The Lambertville record. [volume] (Lambertville, N.J.) 1872-1968, 1896-03-11
HAWAII, THE PEARL OF
THE PACIFIC"
The Ninth of Series OF Letters by John
X. Musick
AUTHOR OF 1.-THE COLUMBIAN HISTORICAL
NOVELS" "BRoTHRR AGAINST BROTHER"
ITO, RTo.
Copyright, 1896. by FUNK wAesALLs COMPANY
New York;
A Journey to the Great Vol.
canO.-A Mysterious Plan
tatiOn Owner.

OF course, no visitor to the Hawaiian
Islands fails to see the great volcano Xii
auea. The journey to this volcano car
now be made very comfortably. Tht
Wilder Steamship Company runs line O.
steamers from Honolulu TO Hilo which
there connect with stage. This stagt
takes one to the Volcano House, abou
three miles from the crater.
On Dec 10, boarded the Kinau, 6
steamer Of the Wilder line, for Hilo. The
next morning we were at one of the ports
on the northern part of the island called
| Wahumacoua, where there was a large
sugar plantation for which our ship was
bringing some heavy machinery. AS the
vessel was anchored half a mile from
shore, the transportation of that ponder
Gus machinery to land was an interesting
sight. Two OF the boats were lowered and
dashed together with ropes and heavy
beams OF timber. Then the great iron
rollers and cylinders were let down by
means of steam derrick and placed on
the two boats, which were then rowed
ashore by the natives sailors.
The water in this bay is so clear that we
could see pebbles on the bottom at the
depth of forty or fifty feet Schools of
fisb, some weighing twenty to thirty
pounds, could be seen swimming about
the ship. The natives on board cast over
hooks and caught one fine large fellow.
When the cargo for this port had been
all taken ashore, we continued our voyage
down the coast of the great island which,
with its miles of stone fences and brown
earth, seemed barren waste. But as we
proceeded the scene changed. Huts and
mills In abundance, with green pastures,
cane fields, and forests succeeded barren
wastes. Then soon, as we steamed along |
the shore, the snow-capped peak OF
Mauna Kea arose before our vision, 10 |
strong contrast with the tropical sun and |
summer breeze that famed our cheeks.
During the afternoon We passed the
landing called Panilo, where Minister
Stevens's daughter, an estimable young
lady, was drowned. Miss Stevens had
been visiting some friends at this place,
and was taking the vessel for Honolulu
when the boat which was conveying her
10 the ship was overturned by the surf
and she was drowned in fifty feet OF
water. native sailor afterward dived
to the bottom and recovered her body.
We arrived at Hilo at about eight in the
evening, and going ashore was taken in
a hack to the Hilo Hotel, kept by Port
uguese named Joseph Viorra. From here
| to the Volcano House one goes over fair
| ly good road through the Puma district in
a stage, which makes the trip every other
| day.
On the morning of December 18th we
boarded the stage and left Hilo. In the
suburbs we halted to pick up japanese
woman who was going up the road, and
at the bridge beyond Hilo we took ma
tive man and an empty goods box on
! board Then t.~ ..~.se6 with the
stage swept down the road, through a
lane with rich cane fields on either side.
| After few miles the cane fields disap-
peared, aud we plunged into vast forests
of abis wood mingled with which wild
coffee was growing. Occasionally we
passed narrow path leading into the
dense jungle, and whenever one glanced
down it, the shanty of Japanese might
have been seen snugly hidden away like a
ground-blrd's nest.
| The stage carried the mail, and l was
surprised at the manner In which this was
distributed by the driver. AT every path
along the way he gave blast on his stage
| horn, and threw off letter or paper.
Sometimes there was a post.box at the
roadside, and as he whirled by the stage
driver deity dropped into it the mail for
the owner OF the plantation.
One practice Ia Hawaii might teach
a valuable lesson to the Upited States,
and that is the employment of convict
labor on public roads. Hawaii has some
of the best and some OF the worst roads In
the world. Some OF her broad turnpikes
over the mountains are due 10 convicts
working out their fines or years of penal
servtude, which is certainly more profit
able than hiring them out TO a corpora.
ton. II man violates the laws, 1t makes
no difference whether he commits mis-.
demeanor or felony. he must serve the
spunky little republic by digging on the
road.
At four o'clock the Volcano House, Mr..
Peter Lee proprietor, was reached. One
has oil the evidences Of the near proximity
OF volcano on approaching the house.
Steam was issuing from the seams in the
lava-erusted earth along the roadside, and
when we gained the higher ground we
could see for miles about US. There were
a thousand assures in the earth from
which hot steam and smoke were issuing,
while far of to the west the smoke from
the eternal fires OF Klauea gave 1t the APP
pearance of Dore's paintings OF Dante's
Inferno. Below the Volcano House, not
three hundred PAGES away, are vast sui
phur banks from which issues vapor
10 continuous stream. Mr.. Lee, the pro-
prietor, has built bath house, and con-
veys the sulphur vapor 10 It, the healing
| properties Of which he declares are I'M
| equaled
The Volcano House is large, commo-
| Gious country inn, with accommodations
equal TO such places in the United States
II is great pleasure resort, and patron
lied extensively by invalids. Altho 1t
would seem that one could almost stand
on its porch aud throw stone into the
crater, II is three miles away.
| My guide, whose name was Albert, was
a strange mixture of nationalities. He
was born in japan, his mother was a
native OF the Gilbert Islands, and his
father Frenchman. He had been rear
ed in California and was only temporarily
in Hawaii. Tho very intelligent fel.
low, he was unable TO solve the problem
OF his nationality. | tried to. but soon
gave ii up.
Mounting my horse in the court in
front OF the house we began the descent.
By zigzag course we wound our way
down the cliff into the first crater, which
is over three miles across, our path some
times leading along the side OF the cliff,
and the projecting rocks almost grazing
our knees as VIC passed. We gained the
second plain or great crater at last. This
plain is covered with dark lava plains
which in the distance looks like con-
gealed quagmire.
Once upon this plain we entered path
made across the lava. In places ferns