Evening bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1895-1912, 1909-06-12
WOULD FOREWARN
y FOLK OF DANGER
BY Establishment of
Observatory At
K'Iauea
UNIQUE PROPOSITION BY
MASSACHUSETTS INSTITUTE
Professor Jaggar Delivers Mastery
Address Before Chamber of
Commerce-Funds
Pledged.

That by the establishment of an oh.
scrvatory at the summit of Kilauea,
the people of Hawaii would be warned
weeks before the possibility Of an
eruption. was oncsof the salient points
| made In the masterly address of
Thomas A. Jaggar, Jr.. professor of
geology in the Massachusetts, Institute
of Technology, before the Chamber of
Commerce Thursday afternoon.
at Is many times more important
to know what occurs for months, weeks
and days before one of these terrible
devastating disasters occur. During
the past year have visited the scara
of some tweive volcanic cruptions and
earthquakes. and at none of them had
there been any facilities to study the
conditions of forewarning. The ter.
rible havoc of death that followed at
Messina might have been minimiZed
had they possessed such an institution
as we proposed for Hawaii"
With a staff of trained scientists TO
initiate and carry on a thorough study
OF kilauea, to record the daily happen.
ings at the crater, to give the world a
comprehensive report of the phenom.
ena of Kilauea and Hawaiis extinct
volcanoes, as well as acting as time.
Keepers for the~people of the islands,
are the vital features of the PROPOSE.
ton Prof. Jaggar brings to Honolulu.
"Kilauea and Mauna Loa form a
unique pair of volcanoes. being more
like the surface OF the moon than any
known of In the world" continued
Prof. Jaggar." the lava In each Is of a
liquid nature, and the action Is more
constant than in most volcanoes. They
are relatively safe, and It would for
This reason be an excellent place to
establish an observatory"
While Kilauea Is we'll known in the
scientific world, II Is but little heard
al throughout other countries in the
realsense of its wonderful phenomena.
and IL Is the purpose of the Institute.
II the people of Hawaii meet its prop.
osition to send a corps of professors
ana assistants here TO conduct such an
observatory proposed. Prof Jaggar
says that the buildings will cost ultl-
mately $4,000. that the Institute will
guarantee to furnish them, equp them
nut that the people of Hawaii must
guarantee at least $1,000 to $4,000
per year for five years to defray the
expenses of the institution. and that
ultimately an endowment of 500 OO1
would be needed to successfully carry
ON the work.
The Chamber was crowded with en-.
thusiastic business men and many
ladies', and Chairman Jas. i. Morgan
named committee consisting of L. A.
Thurston and J. A. Kennedy to act
with him In raising substitution funds
Already more than S250O has been
pledged, which is half of the minimum
amount asked for, Mr. Thurston made
an earnest appeal on behalf OF tho eli.
'crprlsc and said he considered that
IL meant great deal commercially ms
well as scientifically to Hawai-.
The Proposition
The Massachusetts Institute of
Technology, one of the leading scien.
tihc institutions of the world has dc.
termined to establish, somewhere, a
station to keep continuous record of
earth movements, and to compile data
and do research work I'm connection
with such movements. The object of
such work is the discovery OF laws
governing and causes producing earth
quakes and lava eruptions: with a
view to ultimately being able to pre.
dict earthquakes and volcanic out.
breaks and thereby minimize their de.
structiveness. Furthermore, In the
light Of the results of earth study,
such an engineering school as the
Massachusetts Institute Is well equip,
ped to investigate what forms of con
struction of houses, bridges, aque.