Mower County transcript. [volume] (Lansing, Minn.) 1868-1915, 1874-05-28
THE CRATER OF KILAUEA.
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ts!n".l~--lMtcrr~iimR Account 1T u visit bv


i~i"":l~-.i"'crr>'ina Account ofm visit Nv
Lady IRA Weller.
4 correspondent of tho INDIANAPOLIS
journal, who writes from Hilo, Hawaii,
gives II long and graphic account Of
recent visit by purity of four, of whom
shc was ono, to tho crater of kilalcn,
the lnrgest known active volcano in tho
world. She describes it rs u vast black
pit, ton or twelve miles in circumference,
and about 1000 feet deep. Tho greater
part is stony lake Of old lawn, with
innumcrabic crcviccs, from which is
sue clouds Of steam, md near tho centre
was IL huge mould, probably half mile
around the top md 200 feet high, Which
sent up heavy columns of smoke, tho
cauldron of the South Lake. We quote
the writer's account of tho descent into
the crater. Sho says: "Tho pnth led
first down n steep decline covered with
ferns, strawberry plants, ohclo silver
sword and ohia bushes, past the edges
| of deep ravincs or between two clasins,
huge powders of lava rock that had
fallen from tho cliff above, down II long
flight of steep stairs made of poles and
earth and over n number of grayclly
| ridges that extended like capes and
promontorics into tho stony sen of
black lava below. Hero We rested,
and listened to the echoes that the
rocky cliffs above us sent back when We
beat on the rocks with our Stalls. 1
varied tho experiment by bcatiug OH
the ground, but it gave back such
hollow, empty sound that I suggested
that VIC go to the more solid ground,
when the guide cl,eered 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, for every now
and then We came to Il crack where the
stones arc white AMI yellow with heat
SO that we could not touch them. and
emitting clouds of steam and volumes
of hot air and sulpllurous gases. The
OF variety beyond descriptions; waves,
riPplcs, petriticd fountains, cascades,
coils Of rope, etc. It was twisted and
pulled apart like molasses candy,
leaving the splintcrs in the air, it was
heaved up in hills fifteen feet high and
Il irty feet around, thrown np into
cones, compressed into thick layers,
and then broken into fragments, braid
Ell into great cables, and jammed TO-
gether after it had cooled in every con-
ceivable position. In some places
thick, heavy waves Of new lava had
flowed over old lava, penetrating every
depression and crevice, pouring over
the sides Of cliffs like waterfalls of
thick tar { Irish }, and hanging in pct
riticd festoons and stalactites down the
sides of huge assures forced apart
III the great earthquake of 1868. The
new lava has metallic lustre on its
surface, the old lava was black, or
peculiar dull grey, like nothing else in
the world: It gave crisp, cracking
sound under our feet, sometimes break
ing through like crust of snow,
sometimes slowly sinking in an omin-
GUS way that was not reassuring. We
| sat down to rest by the side of a 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 q glim-
mer of heat looking down wide crack
OF red-hot stones. we saw the glow of a
fire below and heard peculiar sound
Of subducd 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 I saw 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
suffocated us. At last the place was
reached. We stood Oh 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 fire, and
seemed ready to crumble into the lake
beneath; the shore line of lava looked
like blood compared with the black cliffs
above it. A cascade of fire was play
ing in the centre of the lake, boiling
up, rolling downward, bubbling, toss
ing up jets of molten lava, and scatter
ing fiery sprays all around it. Then
for few moments it subsidized, and the
lake cooled over on top, thin crust of
gray and black, but it soon heaved up
slowly in the center and spouted up a
fiery geyser, thirty or forty feet high,
that played like colossal fountain
several minutes, finging out showers
and lots of lava, and dashing up red
pillows against the cliffs with sound
resembling surf OH rocky shore, only
that it had something indiscribably
hellish or diabolical in it that filed 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 I should 20
mad if I had to listen to it long, and
realize that it was caused by 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-
viding the lake into two parts, and the
southern part, that further from us,
seemed more active, for whenever the
smoke cleared away we could see
great fountains and showers of lava,
the spray being constantly flung
against the shore, and the pillows being
increasingly tossed against the cliff,
dasbing and writhing i'll eternal tor
ment. Sometimes the wind shifted
and sent the smoke right III our faces !;
it was just like the fumes of lighted
matches, and set us coughing and
strangling in a moment. We were at
times almost suffocated, but dared not
60 further Oh for the edge of the cliff
was scanned and SCARED and scorched
with fires, so that it hung together in
crisp layers, with wide gaps between,
whence issued volumes of smoke and
the peculiar glimmer and glow of great
heat. The place on which we stood
was so hot that we had to keep moving
about lest our feet should burn, and I
found by experiment that could not
hold my hand over the crevicc more
than Il few seconds, owing to the in
tense heat. The scene below was con-
stantly changing; sometimes when the
lake had crllsted over, a billow of red
hot lava would roll from under the cliff
and break in the crust near the shore,
roll again and break in more ETC., etc, ,
I'LL across the lake till it was once more
a mass of liquid fire, that boiled and
dubbed in restless cascades, or spouted
up jets forty feet in the air. Remem-
Der, there was no flame or blaze about nj
this it was liquid matter, heated to
rcd and white heat, resembling exactly
the molten irons seen in foundries.
This lake is constantly changing. At
the time of our visit it was three or
four acres in extent and the s,1rfasc
was 12O feet below the top of the cliff.
Huge masses of rock arc constantly
tumbling in and, there is always danger
to visitors who stand close to the edge.
Only a few days before, a party had a
narrow escape they were standing on a
ledge of rock when they heard swash-
ing sound beneath them, and had lust
time to step backward when the entire