Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-04-16
MADAM PELE ACTIVE
The Kilauea Volcano Again
in Full Operation.
TEN YEARS QUIEsCENCE
NOW SHOOTING OUT LAVA I'M
GREAT QUANTITIES.
The Territorial Legislature Getting
Along Fairly Well-Leprosy-
Mrs. Stanford's Death.
Special Correspondence Of The Evening star.

HONOLULU, March 81, 1905
Kilauea volcano is again in full activity.
There had been ten years of ouiescence
succeeding a full century Of nearly unin-
terrupted action. During that interval the
somewhat larger but more fitfuI volcano
OF Mauna Loa, twenty-five miles away and
nearly two miles higher, had twice been in
violent eruption. But all those long years
Madam Pele,'' the tutelary goddess of
lava fountains, had been sulking at Kila-
uea and refused to do business at her old
stand And this was in spite of the fact
that a fine new hotel had just been put
into complete order in 1892 for the enter
tainment of guests, and an excellent mac
adamized road of thirty-one miles built
from Hilo port thither. Many visitors con-
ttnued to call at the crater. The climate
was delicious at 1000 feet altitude The
vast black pit alone was well worth see
ing and trayersing. 1t was much to visit
the deep abyss of Haleamaumau and watch
the still ascending yapors from the hidden
depths and to find creytces where heat
still fingered, enough to ignite sticks
thrust in. But the glory was departed.
The hotel business languished The Hon
olulu steamers brought only slender and
scattering parties. The twenty miles of
Olaa Plantation railway, which shortened
the stage route, issued few tickets. save
for through passengers to Ka-uports, sew
enty mills away. But now w are once more
all right and calling out, "All hands come
on!"
On Washington's Birthday.
1t was on Washington's birthday that
Mrs. Pele came out of her long seclusion
and began spouting lava fountains into the
bottom of her headquarters in Haleamau-
mau pit. 1t meant business In the old
style. For most of the time since the foun-
tains have shot up merrily; the fine lake
has grown in the bottom of the broad pit
has overfowed. and keeps rising This in
ner pit is about /, 400 feet in diameter and
100 feet extreme depth before beginning to
I'LL up. 1t may now be 400 feet down to
the fire-lake, with a bottom area of 30 or
40 acres, of which one-fourth may be oc-
euiped by the actual crusted-over pool. This
crust breaks up more or less every few
hours and is always scanned with fiery
cracks, disclosing the molten fluid like
water seen through ice. Fountains of the
lava jet up from twenty to fifty feet high
at quite regular intervals of from ten to
twenty minutes, lasting six or eight mill
utes. l describe the process as Familiarity
observed at former visits. The present ac-
ton appears to be Identical These foun-
tains in the daytime seem of deep red.
In the night they are of terrible brilIiancy.
and always attended with the roaring
clash of falling metal. Commonly feath-
cry spray rises from their submits, driven
by their inner vapors. Often a huge wave
surges up like a dome, lifting masses of
crust and plunging down with heavy
0lVe INTO QeptHS. II IS an almost
constant scene of massive ebullition, scat
tered about the surface Of the lake.
The sight is one at first of terror. but
soon of fascination. / have never seen a
newcomer who did not at first betray fear,
and if a woman, with cutlery of horror.
But no one is ever injured. save possibly
little scorching from the hot radiation.
After a while familiarity SO grows that
when the lake or a stream from it has be-
come accessible one win eagerly drive a
pole through the crust and draw it out
with adhering lava, on which to imprint
keys or to imbed coins. Just now the lake
is not accessible In the regular course of
things it will gradually rise In a few
months to the top of the pit, where you can
toast yourself as much as your courage or
endurance permit. The process of rising
Is one OF slow building up of the outer
plateau of solid lava floor by frequent
small overdows from the liquid area That
area Is always edged by low dyke formed
by small surgtngs and crustings OF the
fluid. Over and through this dyke the con-
tents of the lake frequently break out del
ugfng considerable area OF floor outside
Thus the bottom builds up until the lake
may surmount the top of the pit.
The Real Crater Pit.
Let it be understood that the Halea-
maumau pit described Is only a small part
of the great crater pit, or ealdera, of kila-
uea. That Is huge depressed area sunken
cut of the great upland slope, which con-
tafns about seven square miles of space.
This is f1oored with black ragged lava. and
surrounded by perpendicular cliffs, ranging
from 300 to 500 feet in height Sixty years
ago that floor averaged coo feet below the
higher plateau. where the hotel stands.
The frequent and copious fioodihgs of lava
from aleamaumau have gradually raised
the floor until nowhere more than 500 feet,
and at the center of action not more than
200 feet, below the hotel, 50 that it pre-
sents the appearance of low mound. For
over half century 1t has been the habit
of the inner crater to overflow, and by CO.
pious streams to buid up the main ffoor,
although those foods rarely reached 80
far as the two miles to the point Of de-
scent from the hotel. So visitors now have
to traverse rise of about 800 feet In the
two miles over the lava.
No casualties have ever occurred from
volcanic action at Kilauea since white men
began to visit 1t. 1t Is a quiet tame vol
cano, although a mighty one; as safe as
Niagara Falls. and quite as approachab.e.
NOW As an admirable time for the tourist
to observe what is doubtless the greatest
spectacle on the globe. as well as one of
the most accessible. There are six days
steaming from San Francisco to Honolulu:
thirty hours more to Hilo, and four hours
on the road to the crater. Fifty dollars
covers the round trip from Honolulu. Ev-
cry comfort Is provided and you have a
mild and charming climate even In mid
summer-no tropic heat. no malaria.
The Territorial Legislature.
Our territorial legislature is now in the
eighth week OF its biennial session. 1t he's
accomplished creditable amount of work
has transacted business mainly In an or
DERBY and becoming manner-and has
aroused no violent antagonisms. Rela-
tons with the executive are fairly cordial.
There seems good reason to hope that all
will continue as well to the end. SO tar
as appears. there has been an entire abb
sence of the graft and corruption which
distinguished the legislature of 1903. al
though individuals may have made futile
efforts to introduce such things.
There has been some friction between the
legislature and the board of education, as
well as with the board of health Commit
tees of inquiry into the doings of both those
bodies have been In session. but have not
yet reported. AS to the department of edu-
cation, the governor sprung quite a surprise
on the community by calling, for. reasons
not yet brought to light, for the resignation
of the quite capable and Inuch-esteemed su-
perintendent Of schools. who has accord
ingly resigned-his successor not yet Ap-
pointed. It does not seem likely that the
investigation into the affairs Of the depart
ment will develop any Irregularities or seri-
.IzfA 49, IT, 49,