River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1874-06-02
THE CRATER OF KILAUEA.

VAST Lake of Fire in the Hawaii.n
Islands-Intcrcsting Account of n Visit by
n Lady Traveller.
4 correspondent of the Indianapolis
journal, who writes from Hilo, Hawaii
glves long and graphic account of
recent visit by party of four, Of whom
she was one, To the crater of Kilauea,
tile largest known active Volcano in the
world. She describes it as vast Black
pit, ten or twelve milesin circumference,
and about 1000 feet deep. The greater
part Is d stony lake of old lava, with
innumerable erevices, from which is
sue clouds of steam, and near the Gentle
was huge mould, probably half mile
around the top and 200 feet high, which
sent DIP heavy columns of smoke, the
cauldron of the South Lake. We quote
the writer's account of the descent into
the crater. She says: 1.-THE path led
first down a steep decline covered with
ferns, strawberry plants, oheIa silver
sword and Ohid bushes, past the edges
OF deep rayines or between two chasms,
huge powders OF lava rock that had
fallen from tile cliff above, down long
flight of steep stairs made of poles and
earth and over number Of Gravelly
ridges that extended like capes and
promontories into tile stony sen of
black lava below. Here we rested,
and listened to the echoes that the
rocky cliffs above us sent back when we
beat on the rocks with our stats. /
Varied the experiment by beating on
Aha rrssAttrtI Itist IA
hollow, empty sound that 1 suggested
that we go TO the more solid ground,
when the guide cheered us by remark
ing that for the next three or four hours
we would be walking on thin crust of
fire and lava, and his statement was
verified as we went ON, Tor every now
and then we came to crack where the
stones are white and yellow with heat
SO that we could not touch them, and
emitting clouds of steam and volumes
Of hot air and sulphurohs gases. The
lava had assumed most fantastic shapes
Of variety beyond description; waves,
ripples, petrilied fountaiiis, cascades,
coils of rope, etc. 1t was twisted and
pulled apart like molasses candy,
leaving the splinters in the air, it was
heaved up in hills fifteen feet high and
thirty feet around, thrown up into
cones, compressed into thick layers,
and then broken into fragments, braid
ed into great cables, and iammed to
gether after il had cooled i'll every con-
ceivdble position. In some places
thick, heavy waves of new lava had
flowed over old lava, penetrating every
depression aud crevice, pouring over
the sides of cliffs like waterfalls of
thick tar Irish }, and hanging in pet
riiied festoons and stalactites down the
sides of huge assures forced apart
IN the great earthquake of 1868. The
new lava has a metallic lustre on its
surface, the old lava was black, or n
peculiar dull grey, like nothing else in
the world. 1t gave a crisp, cracking
sound under our feet, sometimes break
ing through like q crust of snow,
sometimes slowly sinking in an omin-
GUS way that was not reassuring. We
sat down to rest by the side of lava
ridge, but soon became uncomfortable
warm, and going round on the other
side TO investigate, found that we were
on an oven that was giving out glim-
mer of heat looking down wide crack
of red-hot stones, We saw the glow of a
fire below and heard a peculiar sound
of subdued rage which subterranean
fires give out. The guide here began
picking his way carefully, for we were
nearing the edge of the cauldron,
and walking on the thin surfaces of
raging furnaces. Once / saw a large
circular mould with an opening ON the
top, and going as near as we dared, be-
held the veritable fires OF Tophet down
below, while the heat and smoke almost
sutfocated It's. AT last the place was
reached. We stood on the bank of an
/ irregular lake of liquid fire which was
seething and rolling to and fro, glowing
with exceeding great heat, and sending
up vast columns of smoke. The bottom
of the cliff was ringed with rre, and
seemed ready to crumble into the lake
beneath the shore line of lava looked
like blood compared with the black cliff
above IT, A cascade OF fire was play
ing III the centre of the lake, boiling
up, rolling downward, bubbling, toss
ing up tets of molten lava, and scatter
ing fiery sprays all around it. Thel
for few moments it subsidized, and thu
lake cooled over on top, thin crust o.
gray and black, but it soon heaved NJ
slowly in the center and spouted up Z
fiery geyser, thirty or forty feet high
that played like a colossal fountain
several minutes, finging out shower,
and lots Of lava, and dashing up red
pillows against the cliffs with a sound
resembling surf on rocky shore. only
that it had something indiscribably
hellish or diabolical in it that filled me
with an awful shudder. That swash-
ing, self-conscious sound, now faint,
now loud, was to me by far the most
impressive part. think / should 60
mad if had TO listen to it long, and
realize that il was caused 10y the rest
less, surging sea of fire that seemed
the very lake of perdition. A part Of
the cliff has fallen in lately. almost di
yiding the lake into twJ parts, and tn,
southern part, that further from us
seemed more active, for whenever thu
smoke cleared away we could Sc,
great fountains and showers of lava
the spray being constantly flung
against the shore, and the pillows beinl
1