The Louisiana Democrat. [volume] (Alexandria, La.) 1845-1918, 1866-05-30
Sublime Spectacle.

COLUMN. OF FIRE ONE THOUSAND FEETsIN
HEIGHT AND RIVER or FLAME THIRTY FIVE
MftES LONG.
A jet of,Iaya 81. more stppendpus proper
tons than any ever conceived Of is describ1
ed by Mr.. Coan, in, the Honolulu Friend.
Of February, in his account Of the eruption
of MannaI1oa on the island Of Hawaii.
The erruption commenced near the sum-
nit of the mountain. and only five or six
miles southeast Of the eruption in 1913.
| For two days this summit crater sent down
its burning floods along the northeastern
slope of the mountain; then suddenly the
valve closed. and the great furnace appar7
emily ceased blast. After thirty six hours
the fusia was seen bursting out Of the cas-
tern side Of the mountain, about midway
from the top to the base. ...... @
IT would seem that the Summit lava have
found subterlanean tunnel, for half way
down the mountain, when coming TO q
weak point, or meeting with some obstruc-
ton, it burst up vertically sending column
of incandescent fnsia 1000 feet high into
the air, This fire jet was about loo feet
in diameter, and it was sustained for TWEEN
ty days and nights, varying in height from
500 TO 1000 feet. The disagreement, from
the mountain side was often with terrible
explosions, which shook the hills and with
detonations which were heard for forty
miles. This column Of liquid fire was an
object Of surprising brillancy, of intense
and awful grandeur. AS the jet is issued
from the awful or fee it was at white heat.
As it assembled higher and higher it red
dened like fresh blood, deepening its color,
until in its descent much of it assumed the
color of clotted gore.
In few days it had raised cone some
300 feet high around the burning oritice,
and, as the showers of burning minerals
fell in lived torrents upon the cone, it be-
came one vast heap ofslowng Goals, fash
ing and quiveripg with restless action, and
sending out the heat Of 10000 furnaces in
full blast. The struggle in disgorsingl the
| fiery masses, the upward rush of. the col
umn, the force which raised 1000 vertical
| feet, and the continuous falling back Of
thousands of tons OF mineral fusia into the
throat of the crater. and over a cone Of
glowing Goals, one mile in circumference,
was a sight to inspire. awe and terror; atten-
ded with explosive shocks which seemed to
| rend, the mural ribs of the mountain, and
sounds to waken Che dead and staitle the
spirits in Hades. From this fountain a
river, of fire went leaping and rushing; down
the mountain with amazing velocity, filling
up basins and ravines, dashing over preci-
pieces, and exploding rocks. until it reached
the forests at the base of the mountain.
where it burned its fiery way, consumating
the jungles. eyaporatins the water of Che
streams and pools. cutting down the trees
and sending up clouds ofsmoke in murky
columns Of fleecy wreaths to Heaven.
All Eastern Hawaii was sheen of light
and our night was turned into day. So
great was the Illumination at night, that
one could read without lamp. and labor
travelling and recreation might go on as in
the day time. Mariners at sea saw the
light 200 miles distance 1t was pyrotech-
meal display more grand magnifcence than
was made by an early monarch. In Che
daytime the atmosphere for thousands of
square miles would be filed with murky
haze, through which the sun beams shed a
pale and sckly light. Smoke. steam, gases,
ashes. cinders-furnaee or capillary gyrtiia-
menfary or vitrifcations called Poles hair
-hoated in the air. sometimes spreading
out like a fan, sometimes careering in swift
currents upon The wind, or eyrating III ever
charging colors in the ftfal breezes, The
point from which the fire fountain ISSUED
/ is 10000 feet above the level, of The sea
thus making The ieneous pillar q distinct
object Of observation along the whole cas-
tern coast of Hawaii. }, H.s
During the eruption the writer made an
excursion othe source. After three days
Of hard struggle in the Jungle and over fields,
ridges and hills ofhTstling scoria, he ar
rived near sunset at the field ofaction. All
NIGHT long he stood as near the glowing
pillar as the vehement heat would allow,
listening to the startling blossoms and-the
awful roar of the motion column, as it
rushed upward 1000 feet. and fell back in
a fiery avalanche which mountain. tremhle.
1t was sucb Scene as lew, mortals ever
witnessed. There was no sleep for the spec
tator. The fierce, red glare, the subterran-
eous mutterines and struyglings the rapid
explosions Of gases, the rush and roar, the
sudden and startling bursts, as Of crashing
thuDder-all, all were awe-inspiring. and all
combined to render the scene one ofinles-
cribable brilliaacy and terrible sublimlty.
The rivers of6fe flowed about 80 miles.
and stopped within ten milesof Hile. Had
the fountain played ten days longer it
would probably have reached the shore.
The R6fa nf tho Senate.