Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1901-04-11
THE SOILS OF HAWAII
Greater Part of the Islands Cannot Be
Cultivated.
COVERED With LAVA And GILCHES
Dry Plains Made Fertile by lrri-
cation.
REPORT OF DIRECTOR STUBS

Islands are discussed at some length in a
report on the agricultural resources of
Hawaii written by William C. Stubs. d.
rector of the Louisiana experiment station,
and published under direction of the Sec
rotary of Agriculture. In writing of the
geology of the islands Mr. Stubs points
out their volcanic origin. The rocks are
mainly basaltic lavas, with here and there
a few remnants of elevated sea beaches
composed of consolidated coral sands. The
islands extend from northwest to south
east, showing that through a fissure in
the earth s. crust volcanoes have been built
up. Botanical and geological evidences go
to show that the age of the different ISL
ands increases as one proceeds from east
to west. Kauai, the most northwestern, is
always mentioned the oldest island, and
Hawaii, the most extreme southeastern, as
the youngest. The eroding forces of nature
have produced greater destruction upon
the former island than upon any other,
while the only active volcanoes in the
group are found on Hawaii.
Judging. therefore" says Mr.. Stubs,
from the greater disfntegration of it's
soils, the much heavier denudation of Its
slopes, the presence of numerous running
streams. of precipitOus falls and cascades,
the greater abundance of vegetation. both
in quantity and variety. all apparently sup
port the statement that Kauai Is the old
est of the islands Rightly considered. it
proves only that volcanic activity ceased
here earlier than elsewhere but it does
not show that it began here earlier than
in Hawaii. Which island first lifted it's
head above the ocean there is absolutely
no way to determine"
Reefs Extending Toward Japan.
Continuing, Mr.. Stubs says:
''Northwesterly of the Hawaiian group
there is succession of reefs and low, I'M
inhabited islets extending for a distance
of so degrees longitude, nearly half way
to Japan, revealing a narrow band of
elevated sea bottom with an average depth
of not over 1000 fathoms, as is shown by
the chart of this portion of the Pacific.
These are all in the continuation of the
main axis of the Hawaiian group, along
the same assure of the earths crust and
are doubtless the cOral-croWned peaks of
submerged volcanoes. antedating in activ-
ity those which have produced the pres
ent Islands. Doubtless volcanic activity be
gan at the northwest and gradually moved
southeaSterly. terminating in Hawaii, with
subsistence of the older formation during
the progress. The extensive western end OF
this raised sea bottom is still removed by
a great distance and enormous depth of
soundings from the nearest land Japan
That this great gulf between Japan and
Hawaii has always existed is shown by
the absence of any affinity between the
flora of the two groups of islands.
sound1ngs have given nearly uniform
depths of 5000 fathoms, while farther
south 2 degrees or more is found one of
the largest depressions in the ocean, which
extends nearly to the low-lying islands of
jarvis, Christmas, Palmyra and others
which trend in the direction of the So
ciety group. There is therefore. no evil
dence to show terrestrial immigration of
plants to these islands in former times.
Flora Brought by Ocean Currents.
Ocean currents. however slight may be
the positive evidence. must be assumed
as the vehicle of transportation of the
fora found originally on the islands The
northeasterly current of the Pacific, which
strikes the continent of America and Is
detected southwark after contact. de-
posits driftwood of pine logs upon the is
lands. This DETECTED current Is reinforced
by feeder on its southern boundary from
Mexico and Central and South America,
and bears with it the drift of these coun-
tries.
"A review of the island flora shows only
one or two inhabitants Of California. and
they from the highest mountains, while
the Andean hora is quite abundant The
equatorial counter current may, during the
long continuance of southwesterIy gales,
which frequently prevail in winter, have
deposited drift on the islands.
Plants Found Nowhere Else.
This isolation of the Hawaiian Islands
has given them a peculiar flora, contain
ing large proportion of plants found
nowhere else. The peculiar characteristics
of the islands contribute largely to such
results and aid in multiplying varieties.
The traveller may, in a single day, pass
from the tropical heat of the coast to the
region of perpetual snow, and If he crosses
from the windward over to the leeward
side of an island he will encounter eli
mate with varying rainfall from 300
i,,rt -nIIx N1e,a
a wonderful diversity in temperature, rain
fall, elevation and barometric pressure.
The soil, however. is quite uniform, de-
rived from the basaltic lava, with a mar
row band of coral limestone encircling the
islands on the coast. These soils ex-
tremely porous, and the rainfall passes
quickly into them. sinking into the arte
sian reservoirs made possible by the en-
circing belt of coral. which furnish the
potable and irrigating waters of the is
lands. Geologically speaking, the islands
are therefore, very young, with a very
limited fauna and flora.
Character of the Soil.
THE recent geological origin of the
islands has already been mentioned. One
would naturally expect, therefore, to find
the soils primitive In character and more
nearly of the composition OF the volcanic
rocks from which they came than soils of
similar origin in older countries. Such has
been found to be the case as has been por-
trayed in Lavas and Soils by DIR. Walter
Maxwell former director of the Hawaiian
experiment station. now of Queensland.
He has shown that the soils Of the
islands may be geologically classified as
dark red soils, which have been formed
from normal lavas by simple weathering
in climate Of great heat and dryness
and yellow and light red soils. which are
derived from layas that suffer great altera-
ton at the time of. or soon after, emission,
under the action of the steam and sulphur
Gus vapors resident within the lavas at the
time Of eruption. Through the action Of
these imprisoned agents these lavas have
undergone such a radical alteration, both
In chemical composition and color, as to
mislead a scientist as to their origin were
1t not for the presence of the living vol
canoes on the island of Hawaii, which per-
mits of special study along these lines.
DIR. Maxwell has shown that lateral or
'tufa cones exist all over the islands. and
the lavas therefrom nave given soils wide
ly distributed over all the islands These
schs are inferior in fertility to the dark
red soils. Some of them yield well when
first brought under cultivation, but depre-
ciate rapidly in productivity in few years.
requiring careful and special treatment for
maintenance or restoration Of fertility