Year: 1859

Eruption of the Volcano of Mauna Loa.


The latest arrivals from the Sandwich Is
lands bring the intelligence of wonderful
eruption of the Volcano OF Mauna Loa, on
tho Island of Hawaii, exceeding in extent
and magnfcence any previous eruption
known to the inhabitants. The Honolulu
advertiser says: ION Saturday, the 23d Of
January, smoke was first seen issuing from
the mountain, and in the evening Of the
same day the volcano presented a grand and
fearful spectacle. The crater from which the
lava issues is new one. 1t appears from a
distance (no one having been able to get
within several miles of it) to be circular, its
width being about equal to its breadth, and
perhaps three hundred feet across the mouth.
This may be too moderate an estimate, and
it may prove to be five or even eight hun.
dred feet across it. The rim of the crater
is surrounded or made up Of cones formed
from the stones and scoria thrown out, these
cones constantly varying in extent, now grow
ing in size, and again all tumbling down.
The lava does not simply run out from the
side of the crater like water from the side
of bowl, but is thrown up in continuous
columns, very like the Geyser Springs, as
represented in school biographies. At times
this spoutng appeared to be feeble, rising
but little above the rim Of the crater, but
generally, as if eager to escape from the
pent,up bowels of the earth, it rose to
height nearly equal to the base Of the crater,
But the columns and masses of lava thrown
ont were ever varying in form and height.
Sometimes, when very active spire or cone
of lava would shoot up like rocket, or in
the form of a huge pyramid to heigh near


ly double the base of the crater. If the
mouth Of the crater is five hundred feet
across, the perpendicular column must be
eight hundred to one thousand feet in height!
Then, by watching it with spy-glass, the
columns could be seen to diverge and fall in
various shapes, like a beautiful fountain.-
The length of the lava stream from the cra-
ter to where it enters the sea at Wainanaii,
we estimate to be thrty-eight miles. For
the first ten miles from the crater, the flow
is divided into many streams-perhaps as
many rs fifty-but low down, it is confined
to one or two principal streams, with frequent
branches to the right and left. On leaving
the crater, the lava stream does not appear
for some distance, say an eighth of a mile,
as it has cut its way through deep ravine
or gulch, which hides it from the eye. How
deep this guch may be is all conjecture, as
it is impossible to get near enough to look
into it, but it probably is several hundred
feet deep. The first, then, that we see of the
lava after being thrown up in the crater is
its branching out into the various streams
some distance below the fountain-head. In
stead of running in one large stream, it parts
and divides into a great number, spreading
out over tract of five or six miles in width.
For the first six miles from the crater, tho
descent is very rapid, and the flow of tho
lava varies from four to ten miles an hour,
according 70 tho descent But after it
reaches the plain, where it is level the stream
moves slower. Here the streams are not so
numerous as higher up, there being princi


pal one which varies and is very irregular,
from an eighth to half a mile in width,
though there are frequent branches running
off from it, This principal stream reached
the sea near Wainanali, or about fifteen
miles from Cawaihae, on the 3lst, after
flow of eight days from the time the erup-
ton commenced on the 23d of January.
This stream, on reaching the sea- spread out
to about half mile in width The sight of
it, as it poured into the sea, forming clouds
of steam several hundred feet high, is repre-.
sented by those who saw it, as very beautiful.