Freeland tribune. (Freeland, Pa.) 1888-1921, 1900-05-03
VOLCANOES.
View Of Young Lady Who Has
Lived Lena In Hawaii.

Some Of the happiest days Of my
life were spent on table land looked
down upon by the three great noun
tains Of Hawaii, Hauna Loa. Mauna
Kea and Hualalai, In height 1850,
l3,s05 and S,275 feet. I wonder IL there
IL another place In the world more
beautiful than those great ranch lands
whence one gets a view of roSe-col.
ored Kea. somber and Rhostly I.oa-
and the lower crags Of Hualalai. Per
hnps Mauna Loa, from the Volcano
House on the brink Of the crater Of
Kiiauea, is better. One does not real.
lie At Kilauet that one Is on the side
of Maunn Loa, is 1000 feet above sea
level, for the summit Is miles away,
and seemingly, miles mp in the clouds.
From the hostelry Mauna Loa looks
quiet and ghostly; unless touched by
the red light Of the sun, when II be-
comes a mountain Of fire.
Late news tells US 1t is now a YER
table mountain Of fire; that q noise
heard at the Volcano House, twenty
miles away, announced a terrific ex.
plosion had occurred, and that the
light Of the fountains of fire can be
seen for forty miles around. We wait
further news with much interest and
some anxiety; three great lava streams
travelling In different directions, down
the sides Of that huge mountain, sure.
ly will work havoc to some Of the smil.
ing country that lies on It's sides. as
we'll rs cover the ruined land that
marks the old flows. When one thinks
Of the fine growth Of young coffee
trees; Of the wide ranch lands, where
ronm wild cattle and sheep; Of the
wonderful troplc forests jungled with
fern, chua and pandanus trees; when
one thinks Of friends that live OH
these coffee and ranch lands, one
wishes there was cable to bring
daily news from old Mokuaweoweo,
the summit orator Of Mauna Loa.
In the olden time whenever an er,p-
ton took place It was the custom TO
pick the ohelo berries, which grow
In great quantities near the volcano.
and throw them into the crater as nm
offering to Pele Hogs and other prop
erty were often thrown into the
streams Of lava 1t is rumored that
modern monarchs tried this latter
method Of appeasing the wrath Of
Pele; and, strange coincidence, the
day after one Of such ceremony the
lava flow ceased to advance. A ma.
tive girl, with wide-distended eyes
and In q hushed voice, told me Of
Pcle's recent appearings; how the old
people tell OF seeing her flying about
the country at night, sometimes hav-
ing the form Of very ancient woman,
sometimes very young and beautiful.
l could not decide whether the girl,
who lived In q primitive part of Ha-
wall, believed the stories or not: the
Hawaiian Of to-day, while ashamed
to acknowledge faith In the old super
stitions, of course, has not wholly de-
parted from the beliefs Of his fathers.
Alexander Ia his Brief History Of
the Hawaiian People, tells how one
superstition was broken down by Kap-
iolnni- not the dowager Queen, who
lived about seventy-hve years ago In
her youth she was intemperate and
dissolute but later In life became an
example Of virtue to her country-w
men. Up to her time 1t had been tab.
Ooed for any woman TO ascend tho
mountain to the volcano, or to pick
the Ohelo berries, sacred 10 Pele dread
goddess Of the place. After hor CONVEX
sion 10 Christian beliefs, Knpiolant
determined to break the spell Of be-
ltnf In pata and kn
tious natives to worship the true God.
She made journey Of $50 miles, most
ly on foot. On approaching the vol.
cnno she met the priestess Of Pele,
who warned her not 10 70 near the
crater. and predicted her death II she
violated the taboos of the goddess.
who are you" demanded Kapiolani.
"One in whom the goddess dwells."
was the reply. In answer to 4 pretend
ed letter Of Pele's, Kapiolani quoted
passages from the Scriptures, setting
forth the character and power Of the
true God, until the priestess was 81
fenced and confessed that Keakua.
the deity, had left her. Kapiolani ard
her company Of eighty persons descen-
uNh VNNI hNC uuuuitu let 10 IHe
black ledge. There, In full view Of
the grand and terrific action of the
inner crater, she ate the berries con-
sccrated to Pele, and threw stones In
TO the burning lake. saying, Jehovah
Is my God. BE rules all and
fear not Pele. II perish by her anger,
then you may fear Pele; but II | trust
in Jehovah and he preserve me when
breaking her taboos, then you must
fear and serve him alone" This has
been called one Of the greatest acts Of
moral courage ever performed. Miss
Yonge well described the scene in a
chapter called IAN Haw6iIan Chief.
tess" After Tennyson's death among
his papers was found a poem In honor
Of this same heroine. 1t was published
In the illustrated London News and
afterward In a late edition Of Tenny.
sons poems. He wrote:
Noble the Saxon who hurled at his
4 valorons xvso MN In aJ5on g,, rI..l,