Evening journal., 1898-05-07
MAUNA LOA AT WORK.
The Great Volcano of Hawaii Is Re-
ported to Be Rekindling.
After Fourteen Years of ouietude the
Crater of KilaueR Gives signs
OF once More BrenL-
ing Out.

Crater OF oABhh
OF Once More Break
ing Out.
For the first time In IA years the great
crater of MolSuaweoweo, at the summit
of the high mountain of Mauna Loa, on
the island of Hawaii, has commenced to
show signs of activity, and hundreds
Of settlers on coffee plantations around
the base Of the mountain have become
greatly alarmed over the prospect of an
eruption that may be accompanied, as
ut all previous times, by flow of lava
that will destroy thousands of acres of
tillable land and probably wipe out
many plantations and homes.
The apparent increasing activity of
MolIuaweoweo has not come uneXpect-
edly. For several months the active
crater of Kilauea, on the side of Mauna
Loa, about which so much has been said
and written, has shown signs of life,
and those who watch the volcanic phe-
nomena closely have predicted that
great eruption would take place very
soon. But it was only last week that
the mountain crater commenced TO
smoke. Particulars of the phenomenon
as it appeared to the people in the val
leys below are meager, but the officers
and passengers of the steamer Mauna
Loa, which coasts along the windwurd
side of the island, report that a heavy
cloud of smoke and steam was pouring
from the summit of the mountain when
they last saw it from the sea, and had
been so for two days
Since the last great eruption and lava
food, in 1854, when the lava stream
came down within two miles of the
city of Hilo, the crater of Mokuaweo-
weo bas been apparently lifeless. DR..
Guppy, a German scientist, spent four
weeks at the summit of Mauna Loa
alone last summer, and during that
time tramped all over the hardened bed
of the crater, making accurate meas
urements Of it, observing the tempera-
ture, and studying the characteristics
of the place generally. lie afterward
expressed the opinion that the volcano
was merely sleeping. A brief account
OF DR.. Guppy's daring adventure and
its results was published in the Chroni-
Gle at the time.
Prof. FriedlanUer, another German
scientist, who has been making n study
of the islands of the Pacific for some
time, has just returned from Hawaii
where he spent several weeks in the
vicinity of the crater of Kilnuea. From
his observations there he predicted
that another great volcanic eruption
on Hawaii is close at hand. The larg,
volume of smoke and steam that usual
| ~ pours forth from Kilauea has ceased
altogether during the past fortnight
and only a thin, blush vapor is rising
In the meantime the steam vents on tn,
higher ground are pouring forth a yer,
much greater volume of steam. Prof
Friedlander accounts for this by sayin,
that the surface rock is becoming
greatly heated, and that the surfac
water is rapidly vaporized by it, where
as it formerly ran down TO the deepe
levels before coming in contact witt
the super-heated rock, when the stean
found vent only through the cracks il
the bed of the crater.
The great lava flows which cover NJ
small portion of Hawaii have most o
them come from the crater of Mollua
weoweo, bursting through the sides o
the mountain at an elevation of from
10000 to 10000 feet, whereas the crate
of Kilauea is but 1000 feet above Sc;
level. Old settlers say that wheneve
Mauna Loa commences to smoke law
How is sure to follow. Without warn
Ing usually a stream of lava burst
through the side of the mountain ant
flows down into the fertile valleys, car
rying death and destruction with it. A
the same time the crater of Kilaue
usually fills up.with molten lava, some
times brimming over. but never to an
great extent.
No one has essayed to climb Maun
Loa in several months, as the mountai
has, for the first time in several years
been covered with n cap of snow tha
extends almost down to Kilauea.-Sa
Francisco Chronicle.
Now nres-q EerITIs