The Hawaiian gazette., 1874-12-30
Editorial Correspondencc-No ;.
VOLCANO House, KILNUEA,
nnnn...ls.. 1871

December, 1871.
1t was ten o'clock when we mounted our
fresh and well-shod horses, and left Hilo,
bound to the volcano. The details of the ride
are an old story, and we skip over them, with
the remark that every traveller bound to Kilauea
should be well provided against the cold rain
which is invariably met on the road. If he
escapes it he is fortunate, as fair weather is
the exception ourcompany fortunately COM
prised- old travellers, including Her Royal
Highness Mrs. Dominls, Governor Kipi and
wife, Miss Aldrich, Judge Lyman and others
"a total of about sixteen, all accustomed to
island campaigning, and to this rough volcano
road in particular.
Late in the evening the party arrived at the
hotel, to find hearty welcome from the mana
gers, Messrs. Stacllpole and Gilman, who had
been expecting us, and had prepared a cheerful
fire in the old-fashioned fireplace, and what
was more relshing, an excellent supper. A
fatiguing ride of ten hours, with the thermom-
eter at 500, is sufficient TO insure sound sleep,
which travellers are sure to find here, where
everything is so comfortable and home-like.
Pele's furnace, to see which was the great
object of our visit, was active during the night,
and from the hotel it was easy to see that there
were two principal lakes in fusion, with lesser
fires around them. Soon after breakfast the
guide announced himself ready, and the
party formed into line for the descent into the
crater. But what a change has taken place
since 1854, when my last previous visit was
made. Not only have there been several flows
of lava, which have considerably raised the
level of the crater bottom as it existed then,
but the subsistence Of the central portion of it,
in 1858, alters its topography very much
During the volcanic commotion, which took
place early in April, 1868, at the time of the
great earthquake, this central part suddenly
cayed in, leaving an Oblong valley two miles
in length by one in width, surrounded by
ledge about two hundred feet high This ba-
sin has been gradually filling up, and has also
been probably raised up by internal volcanic
pressure, till now the surrounding ledge is not
over one hundred and twenty feet above it.
The most singular incident in connection with
it is, that simultaneously with the shock the
fires in Kilauea went out and did not reappear
till after the eruption in Kau ceased.
The visitor, on reaching the bottom of the
crater, follows the guide distance of four or
five hundred feet, then descends over rough
and broken lava rocks into the sunken portion,
through which the walking is tolerably smooth
and easy, over large slabs of fiat pahoe-
hoe lava, covered with thin crust, which,
when trodden on, sounds like frozen snow.
This lava flow is in places intensely hot, and
in the night the smouldering fires can be seen
through the wide cracks which cross it in
every direction. It took us forty minutes of
rapid walking to cross it, from which we esti-
mated the distance to be about two miles. At
the south side the ascent from the floor of the
basin is more gradual, owing to frequent over
flows of lava from the lakes. Some of these
are quite recent, and the crust very hot The
guide had to turn back several times and seek
new track over lava of not so recent form
alton.
On reaching the molten lakes, great change
was found to have taken place in this vicinity
since 1864. Then there was but one small
ELECTROMAGNETIC was three or four
hundred feet in diameter, and it was but slight
ly, if any, above the level of the crater bot
tom. Now, there are two active lakes, that Of
Halemaumau being the one at the left hand and
farthest south; while the second, which is of
more recent formation, lies at the right and is
called by the natives, q Lake Kilauea." We
to the very edge of the high preci-
pice which surrounds the latter, and looked
down hundred feet or more into the boiling !