Akron daily Democrat. [volume] (Akron, Ohio) 1892-1902, 1899-09-30

July, Mr. Watson was in Hilo, killing
time in the customary tourist fashion,
says the st. Louis Post-Dispatch. He
was charmed at the timely occurrence,
which gave him an opportunity to view
what he considered the most impressive
sight in nature. he resolved at once to
ascend the mountain.
Several other tourists who happened to
be similarly inclined made up a party,
which started by noon of that day, with
two pack mules, a teamster and weeks
supply of provisions. By night they had
covered the first 10 miles of their jour-
ney over broad, macadamized road and
camped in a grove of palms and ferns.
On the following day they reached
Volcano House, on the edge of the quiet
crater of Kilauea, and on the following
morning started out on the final stage of
their journey They were then II miles
from the Mokuaweoweo crater, which is
on the crest OF Mauna Loa. The path
lay, however, over fields of lava, the
coolings of old flows occurring during
the eruption of 1881. and these were
crevassed with great splits which in
places gaped apart so that it was i'm
possible TO stride them.
The walk over this sheet of lava, which
was about four miles wide and extended
upward to the lips of the old crater, was
very tiresome and perilous.
Two of the party, much fatigued and
desiying TO reach place of rest, conclud-
edato turn north. while Mr.. Watson, filed
with the idea that the southern cone was
the most interesting, separated from his
companions and moved in that direction.
The two tourists, the teamster and the
dOnkeys, therefore, went by the north
route and over the crest, while Mr.. Wat
son continued south, moving toward
promontory OF rock and earth which pro-
jected from the surface of the mountain,
on the top of which grew about a dozen
small trees. Close upon the far side of
this knob the great river of lava was
bounding in a straight line down the
mountain, while about 500 feet above on
the slope of the hill the crater, like the
mouth of some internal monster, was
pouring forth melted stone.
Mr.. Watson sat for hours and gazed
upon this vast estuary of rolling, flowing,
bursting fire rushing down the side of
the mountain. Some thousand or more
feet below the stream entered a thicket
VI tASOs, oSNAithssis VI 1hN 'eiiSes <iS
those which clustered above him.
Here, as he could plainly discern with
his glass, the mounting process of the
lava was repeated, only instead of mount
ing lava upon lava it mounted on trees,
formed cones about them and ran up to
their very tops. These cones, however,
did not burst and fall over as did those
in the flow beside him, but stood there
erect. some 80 feet in height, converting
a forest of trees into a forest of stone.
In this process of attacking the trees
Mr.. Watson remarked with wonder the
resistant powers which the wood seemed
TO possess against the heat of the lava
The tree did not catch fire. A little
smoke surrounded it, and this only when
the lava had reached the area of its
branches
Toward night Mr. Watson arose from
his seat below the rocks to go over the
summit, down the hill and walk out be-
tween the lava on the side which he was
to cross. He thought that his eyes had
been resting. too long on running lava
and that he could see such a stream in
whichever quarter he might look, SO he
went forward.
But he was not mistaken. While he
had been sitting with his back to the
direction from which he had come and in
which he must 90, with his eyes on the
flowing stream, enchanted with its mar
vels, there had broken from the lower
edge of the crater and some feet to the
north of the one he WAS watching a sec
ond flow.
He started on down aud had proceeded
several hundred feet when, to his horror
and amazement, he discovered that the
new stream of lava ran directly into the
earlier stream. The streams joined, and
his retreat had been cut off.
He was hemmed in by running rivers
of fire.
The streams converged in the crater
mouth above him anG united at the brink
of the forest below him.
Mr.. Watson was palsied with fright.
Not knowing what to do, he hurried back
to the rocky knob, mounted it-and gazed
abroad The flow to his.right was mile
wide. The new flow was 100 feet across
and seemed to be increasing in that di-
rection. To pass either was impossible.
Could he be rescued by his party? Would
they think to come and look for him? If
they came, would it occur to them that
he was imprisoned on these rocks? How
Or by what means could they rescue him?
As he meditated his eyes fell upon the
singular forest at the bottom of the in
cline, and he thought of the heat defying
properties of that wood. If he could
only turn the bunch which grew above
him tc his service-ah, he had it, stills!
He had been an expert on stilts when
boy. Would his skill forsake him now?
On stills he could possibly ford the small
er stream. He would not judge it to be