The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1908-05-12
FRIENDS
OF HAWAII
TWO MAINLAND TOURISTS WHO
CONSIDER THESE ISLANDS AT
TRACTIvELY SUPREME IN THE
PACIFIC.

Hawaii has secured two warm friends
in Thomas H. Stryker, of Rome, New
York, and P. A. Garvie, of Los Ange-
les who have been here since the ar
rival of the s. S. Aorangi from the Col
onies a week ago last Wednesday
Both expect to leave this week or next
for their homes, but both declare their
intention of returning to the Territory
next winter if possible. Mr. CARVE is
strongly impressed with the bright out
look for the future OF Honolulu, and
is casting about with an eye to invest
ing in some city real estate, with
view of building a residence in which
he can spend a part of every year.
Both Mr.. Stryker and Mr.. Garvie
are travellers of wide experience and
are just now completing a several
months trip through the South Seas,
Australia and New Zealand Although
each was travelling independently they
happened to meet early in their jour
ney, and as their itinerary conceded
| they have been travelling companions
ever since. Their enthusiasm for Ha-
wall is all the more flattering from
| the fact that they are familiar with
| tropical countries in almost every part
of the world and have just returned
from a cruise which is generally sup
posed to be par excellence. They, how
ever, without reserve declare Hawaii
to be in class by herself in COMPARE
son with any of the other places they
| have visited.
Mr.. Stryker spent several days at the
volcano last week, returning by the
Mauna Kea on Saturday. "Kilauea is
most decidedly worth going a long
way to see," declared he, in speaking
about his trip. 81 saw Vesuvius in
eruption several years ago, and / have
seen several volcanoes, on my recent
trip through the South Seas, but your
volcano is in most ways far the most
interesting. I did not think that it
would be at first, from the fact that
| there is little to be seen until one gets
to it, but it has fascination not pos.
sessed by the others and which makes
it hard to break away from. | went
down into the main crater at night and
sat at the edge of the great active pit
in the center for several hours. The
fact that Kilauea is simply a tremen-
dous pit several miles, should Judge
} across, with almost perpendicular sides
| thnnC1nn ar c
; one from seeing it at all until one
stands on the brink. The glow on the
clouds at night is the only thing that
indicates its existence at a distance.
The volcano is really a crater within a
crater. The inner pit, a mile across, is
where all the activity is and can be
approached to its very edge. The
molten lava is not much over one hun
dred feet down and ! think will in a
few months overflow into the main
crater, for ! am told that it has been
rising steadily from a depth o. Gne
thousand feet for some time past. 1t
is like a great ladle full of molten
metal in constant motion. The sur.
face cools rapidly till it is almost
black, and then great cracks begin to
open and run in the most bewildering
manner in all directions, while the
white hot lava pours out and spreads
over the dark surface another layer
which cools almost Immediately only
: to break out in another place a mo-
( ment later. While this is going on, {
: dozen little cones will be swelling ou
in different parts of the floor anC
r spouting fire fountains that are daz
, zling.
t "On my present trip we passed a
r night as close as possible to the vol
cano of Savaii, in the Samoan group
There was little to see, however, ex
cept the dense cloud of steam hanging
over it and rising from the sea wher
n lava had flowed into it. We also pass
Il ed quite near to the new volcanic isl
f and recently formed in those waters
n but there was little to be seen"
p Neither Mr.. Stryker nor Mr.. Garvi
are very much impressed with Austria
4 liza or New Zealand.
> 81 consider New Zealand very niue
- oVer-rated," said Mr.. CARVE. 1T ma
!, have great future, but it is certain
p ly behind the times now. | suffere
n mostly from lack of fruit, and wha
!, could be procured was very dear.
- was told that a good deal of fruit wa
~ grown, but that lack of transportatio
facilities made it impossible to get
into towns"
: Mr. Stryker, in comparing New Iei
land with Hawaii, said: New re;
=, land is at least fifty years behind Il
o rest of the world in most things, Hel
&c in Hawaii one may live as well as I
could on the mainland, and as reason
II ably. In New Zealand when ! wei
p" into the best hotel and asked for
d room with bath, l was stared at
'N surprise, and l later heard two be
I'll boys commenting on the extraordinal
Us notion of a person wishing priva
ne hotI In q IOta1 Nor haVa the hOtC