The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1859-02-03
1oorre.noodepce Of de pscinc Commercial Adverfiser9
S,1ht. on Hawaii-The Volcano

<co--eucnaence Of the Pacific Commercial Adveftise51
s,.ht. on Hawaii-The Volcano
Hrto, January 25, 1859
=. rn,ro,-Tbe Hawaiian Islands, one and all.
appear to. be productive OF some pecuna
great wonder, or call it evil, it suit you oe''er' =
to my way Of thinking it would De the "o'e -.
term. For instance Oahu. for its OVID agst
ment. is noted for monopolizing the mons S"a !"
the government Golfers; which, as u '@
collective wisdom. is doubtless all right. Next comes
ss.n; 9TH = underworld renown for its big Lahaina
nnmpkins and immense c~abbages. Then Kauai
-ell'tnovn for its Justly praised coffee and sugar;
md lastly Hawaii which, though by no means behind
ssona nth it's two last named Sister Islands in Its
nroductiyeness of any of the above mentioned COM
rroa;t;es- fperbaps it needs a general or some other
we'll tried Mexican Hero to herald the qualities Of the
n,mnt;ns IN the public. y is not allowed to partake too
freely of the Golfers contents even though 1t does con-
tr;bnte in no small degree to the filing of them. l
do wrong to complain however, as doubtless the exc
or,;ve power have the interests of this island fully in
view. and feel for it an anxious solicitude, dreading
r.rb.n No ona or both of two evils, viz Either that too
large an appropriation might be misappropriated or
being well aware of the inherent billiousness OF the
island. think that a few thousand dollars for the erec-
al DTlQQcS U Z OtuCI
useless expenditure, and worse than thrown away
with the chances the bridges would have of being
DESTROYED by an earthquake or a lava flow as soon as
erected. In both of which surmises they might pos
sibly be correct.
All this however. is irrelevant, and the mention of
lava and earthquakes, brings me to the post from
whence I intended to have started to inform you. and
the world generally through the medium Of your
- 49, III NTa,ca 20 ia AGAIN troubled with a
terrible fit of vomiting, tho thus far. happily mat
tended with its usual fits and commissions called earth
ouakes. On Sunday afternoon. the 23d inst, the
mountain was observed to be rather smoking in the
direction of the source of the last lava flow in 1900;
but owing to the cloudy state of the atmosphere
nothing certain could be ascertained, until shortly
past seven O'Clock in the evening, when the clouds
commenced to dispense, and then a truly grand and
awful sight was presented to the view in all its strong
and imposing reality. An eruption during the day
perhaps, had taken place apparently in close prox-
unity to the crater of 1855, and by eight O'Clock OF
that evening, the flow of lava had extended to the
base of the mountain, several miles along the plains
and nearly to the base of Mauna Kea; thus pursuing
the same course as the last flow which caused us SO
much alarm.
Although the liquid lava could, on Sunday
evening, be seen only at the mouth of the crater from
whence it flowed and for a short distance beyond,
still l can say, without exaggeration, that by MD
night, to Judge from the brilliant reflection in the
heavens, the flow had extended over a distance of at
least thirty miles in length. What its breadth might
be is impossible to say. Old residents with whom l
have conversed, and who have witnessed several
e~ruptions all agree that this is the greatest and most
rapid flow they have get witnessed. Last night, as
soon as it became dark, all eyes were turned IN direc-
ton of the flow, but owing to the state of the atmos-
phere little could be seen until late in the evening
when the clouds rolled away, and it became evident
to those who were watching, that the violence of the
stream still remained undated, and if anything
vastly increased.
We shall be on the alert again this evening to gain
shaping from the plains betwixt Mauna Loa and
Mauna Kea, whether it is coming again towards Hilt
or whether it may not be on a visit to some othel
section of the island. The most generally received
opinion seems to be that it is treading in the footstep:
of Madam Pele of 1856 notoriety.
Seriously speaking, there is really q heavy anc
rapid flow, and unless the crater shows some inactivity
in a few DAYS, we shall soon be able to determine il
what direction the lava is flowing. As other residents
who have more leisure to devote to the eruption thar
has the writer will probably give you further details
and a more graphic description, 1 must leave spac'
for them in your journal to do so, and after placing
Hawaii far in advance of all the other islands for thu
production of lava flows and earthquakes l will sub
scribe myself. BYRoN's BAY.