The Hawaiian gazette., 1894-01-09


rather two approximately parable
lines Of volcanic vents ii mid-oceaI
have heaped up mountains Of lava
mostly poured ont IL generou:
floods. and have studded these more
or less thickly with cinder cones snC
planted ar their base in some in
stances tufts cones: great fsults have
occurred here and there. giving rise
to lines Of perpendicular cliffs
The ocean beating on the coast
lines. driven by almost perennisl
trade winds. and rains OF tropical
abundance smoug the mountains
have carried away portions Of the
new made land. forming bluffs, raw
ines and water courses Finally the
coral polyp hiss surrounded the land
with fringes Of reef. which in few
instances have been elevated sutici
emily 20 form areas OF dry land.
Few Of our geological formations
have g history which includes more
thsn two or three epOchs. Pick up
pebble on the beseh. The waves
have worn il 10 smootbness SIS they
have played with it for the last hun
bred years -or a few hundred years.
They received il from e stresmlet in
which it may have been the sport Of
the running water s few decades or
centuries, having been torn sway
from where the original lava food
left it either by the steam itself. or
By the weathering Of the valley side.
The grains Of divine sand on Wal
Xxi besch might celI d somewhat
longer story-how they had been
separated by the action OF the waves
from the more earthly part Of the
tufs N which they had been embed
ded. the tufs fragment itself having
been q part Of the cone Of Diamond
Head blown TO pieces by steam ex-
plOsi0n, cemeuted into c cOngloue-
rate by lime deposited from boiling
spri1gs-detached again by q torrent
caused by 5 December shower Oh the
steep bare side Of the mountain. Be
fOrs II IVES tufa. it may have con
sisted partly Of new lava from the
molten source, partly OF material
torn from the tissure through which
ii had been elected. and this may
have included besides lava not only
coral reef rock with shell fragments
and other organic remains, but por-
tons Of sedimentarE formations hav
ing & history similar 70 that OF the
pebble icst spoken Of
It Is possible that some Of the
divine grains have passed through /.
the whole OF this series OF changes. |
although the majority came no doubt /
from the l2ya through which the I
fssure opened.
Because II most cases the geolo- /
gical facts are 50 easily compre- (
hended and so illustrative Of the ele- /
mentsry principl Of dynomical /
geology. the study may seem TO I
some) to lack the keen interest which I
attaches to the solution Of such com /
plicsted problems as present them /
selves IN other older countries.
Besides We may not hope II our 4
study here to get any glimpses back /
though the long vista Of geologic I
sges which elsewhere so brosdens
the thought of the student
Yet Is the subject sufficiently full
OF interest 10 claim share OF stten (
ton from every one who loves
70 read the book OF nature
and the very simplicity Of
the study should be encouragement /
to those Of Us who can devote little .
time to such diversions Of mind, I
since It i possible for Us 10 gather
items OF information hitherto m
noted which may form q really reli .
able contribution TO science; this We .
should be much less likely to be able /
to do in either botany or zoology
Details OF fact carefully observed .
and recorded can not fail to be OF .
value when the time comes to write I
the full geologic history OF the isl 1
ands. and 10 connect that history I
with that OF other lands Even apart 1
from this permanent value, the study 4
has 8 popular interest OF Its Owl, 10
say nothing Of possible utilitsrisn re-
suits. such as the locating Of artesign /
reservoirs, etc.
1t is no reproach to the science 10 I
say that everywhere the geologist Is (
an eager and persistent fossil hunter. /
Even in Hawaii nei he cannot be con 4
tent to allow that such quest Is q
vain one It is true that organic re-
mains can be but seldom preserved I
in volcanic formations Yet now and I
then even molten lava viii take won !
derfully sharp impressions Of objects 1
over which 1t may flow, and such i'm (
pressions msy in rare instances be I
preserved for ages unchanged, and /
SO reveal TO the patient searcher i'm
portant facts regarding our ancient 1
fora or fauna There Is N the Bish I
Cd Museum remarkable specimen 1
that illustrates this possibility, which 4
otherwise might be thought wholly /
fsnciful. 1t IS lava from Msuna hes (
therefore, not very recent Thou I
sands of years have passed since II
nodded itself into the intricate pat
tern Of the charred tree trunk over
which it flowed, but every line Is as