The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1859-06-02

0CmOOhC
KonA, May 2e. 1853.
The delights of an inter-island passage nave DeeI
so often and graphically described oy Jarves anu
others that but little has been left to say Anose
Who have never tried it can have but little conception
Of the ~.scabined. cribbed, confined cond'tion OF
those who take passage to Hawaii upon 2 mvor'.e
coaster. Imagine two hundred NATIVES win sns't
calabashes, dogs and babies, crowded toge'ner On =
deck of q seventy-ton schooner, 80 CLOSELY a""eu ~
petber. that to avoid walking on the neaos u my
passengers the crew crawl about their duty on Tue
booms and on the outside of the vessel hanging On
to the rail; suppose two-thirds OF these-dogs anu
people-giving ocular demonstration that tney are
in the grasp of that unrelenting demon, sea-sckness'
while the vessel, plunging into q head-oea. sea-
drencbes the deck fore and aft with spray; ana you
will, with me. continue to be astonlshed AZ tne gre
gariors habits of the Hawaiians. They are eternaiy
travelling from one islsnd to another, generally unoer
such pleasant circumstances as the aoove' d VI
ten on the most frivolous errands. Steamers II
good boats and well conducted, will but increase tne
mania. !,
On rounding the west point of Maui, the secono
NIGHT after leaving Honolulu, we discovered the
POSITION of the volcano on Hawaii. The light was at
first unite faint. the mountain being shrouded with
clouds. anu TeStiuOISo tHS hsSS
which precedes a rising moon. As we sailed out into
the channel before the fresh trade wind, the lights
came out one by one, until we saw a long row OF
6res Indicating the course of the flow over the plain
towards the sea, and having the appearance ct a
great forest on fire. As the picture varied the
lights now Shooting up with a red glare, as if fresh
fuel were added to the flame, and now paling and
almost disappearing only to be again renewed,
brighter than before, it required no great stretch OF
Imagination to fancy that we were gazing upon one
of the maintain workshops of Vulcan, where he and
his swarthy attendants were forging thunderbolts.
With daylight the fires disappeared, and over the
spot a column Of smoke continually ascended-bring-
ing to mind that pit, of which it is written 'the
smoke of their torment goeth up forever and ever."
On landing at Kailua, we were informed that during
the few preceding days the eruption had been unu-
sually active, and that the new stream running
parallel with the first one, bids fair shortly to reach
the shore at Wailoa, a short distance to the westward
of Wainanalii, the place where the lava first debouch-
ed into the sea. The old flow, although it can be
crossed near the shore, is still quite hot in places.
and the steam has not ceased to rise along the line
of breakers.
The weather here now is delightful, the rainy sea-
son being past, and a more fitting time could not be
chosen in which to visit the eruption. A party starts
for the mountain next week. intending to spend two
or three days in examining the flow.
L regret to say that the prospect of a good crop of
coffee is getting slim. In the neighborhood of Kailua
the insect blight has killed numbers IS trees, and
destroyed great quantities of the unripe berries.
Farther down the coast the average promises better,
but not equal to some past years. 1t is a pity but
that some remedy could be found for this destroyer
of one of our best agricultural resources. Oranges
will be plentiful this year, and peaches. which are
just coming on, are abundant. Unfortunately it
takes so long to get to the metropolis that peaches
would be squashes before you could receive them from
here. Yours, &C.. III. L. s.