The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1886-03-26

HuLneIdDtO caves HinOOtn and shining
within, to be found all over the island.
Now, when there are distractions on the
earth's surface or meeting flows, this
system of ducts is broken UP. and frag-
ments OF lava are carried along on the
surface, piling up higher than the ad-
jacent ''pahoehoe, % like ice packs in
rivers, and sometimes rolling immense
boulders twenty and thirty feet high,
which now stand on the "aa' with the
drip glistening over them. This theory
is confirmed by the fact that "aa" is
always higher than the adjoining pa
hoehoe," and also by the fact, which l
especially noticed in the flow of 1859,
that wherever there are open spaces in
lava flows (kipukas), the old lava under
the flow is found to be ''pahoehoe" under
"pahoehoe" and "aa" under "aa."
While surveying the region, was ex-
tremely interested in the arrangement OF
the craters; and now having determined
the situation of more than fifty of them
on Mauna Loa, Hualalai and Mauna
Kea, / have ascertained that there is a
method in their arrangement They are
not arranged relatively to the mountain
on which they are situated, but rela
lively to the points of the compass.
There seems to have been 4 series Of
nearly parallel assures through which
these craters have risen, in lines running
from S. 40 deg. f. to S. 60 deg. Z. There
are few arranged in lines running N.
so deg. E.
1t has been remarked by Mr.. w. T.
Brigham that while the general trend of
the Hawaiian group and OF the major
axis of each island is n. so deg. W.,
there is no crater on the Islands whose
major axis is parallel to this line. "On
the contrary" he continues, "a very
interesting parallelism is observed among
all the craters, and invariably the long
est diameter is north and south" 1t
| would be more correct to say that the
major axis of the great craters are gen.
orally at right angles to the general axis
of the group, i. e., about N. 80 deg. E.
| Haleakala and the ancient Kipahulu
caldera appear to take the other direc-
| ton, but the statement is certainly true
of!the great calderas of Kilauea and Mo
| kuaweoweo, which have other points of
resemblance.
Thus in both the highest walls are on
the western side, and in both the action
is working towards the southeast, as is
indicated by the fact that the northeast
craters are nearly filed up, while the
deepest and active craters are in the
southwest end of the caldera.
1t has been shown by Professor Dana
and other biologists that the principal
mountain ranges of the globe, as
well as the main coast lines and
chains of islands, take the two
directions just mentioned, (Which are in
general tangential to the Arctic and Ant
arctic circles" Thus it appears that the
laws in accordance with which the vol
canic forces are is now operating in these
all the grand features of our world have
been established, and possibly related to
the laws of crystallization which pervade
tho mineral Kingdom and thus VIC per
ceive a unity in the processes of the
globe.
In conclusion, would remark that to
my mind the most plausible theory to
| account for volcanic action is that OF
Mallet, that the contraction of the earth s
crust continually going on under the
power of gravitation causes as much
internal heat as would be required to
cause a similar expansion. Professor
| Dana has remarked that 'the fact is we'll
established that motion in the earth s
rocks has been a powerful source of
heat" and that the annual crushing of
not over one-sixth of a cubic mile of
rocks in the earth would cause all the
volcanic phenomena of the world. This
theory has the beauty of attributing all
these phenomena to single cause, and
of thus suggesting the thought of the
one great Power above the inexplicable
force of gravitation, who continues all
the forces of the universe.
j. NJ. ALEXANDER