Ca:rs in Kilaiica. 93 



carious silicious tubes had formed on the rock roof, and obtained many of these fragile 

 specimens, some of which were coated witli beautiful white crystals. This cave was 

 more than fifty feet below the level of the lava in the main jjool, and the walls did not 

 seem very secure. A smill lava stream had recently poured into the mouth of the 

 cave, but there were no vap:)rs, nor anv uncomfortable heat. Taking- advantage of a 

 change of wind, I passed around Halenixumau, and ascended a cone with two peaks 

 formed by lava spatters, but completely' closed on the top, as nearly all the others in 

 the crater were, and found steam hissing from many apertures. On breaking off the 

 crust fine crystals of various salts were found thickly coating the inner surface, and 

 in one place we found much potassa nitrate. I went from cave to cave, from cone to 

 cone, collecting many kinds of lava and some salts, and finished bv a bath in a steam 

 cave, where the steam issued from the floor at an agreeable temperature, and condensed 

 on the roof falling in rain. The water was quite sweet, and no smell of sulphur was 

 noticeable in the cave. On the roof the little tube staladlites were constantlv formino- 

 by the solution of the silica in the rock above, and I broke off the twisted, brittle tubes 

 sometimes a foot long. On the floof the drops had made stalagmites of various forms 

 (see Plates XLVIII and XLIX).'' This steam bath was mo.st delightful after the 

 smoking I had just experienced in a cave where the end was red-hot, and into which 

 m_v natives did not dare to follow me. 



Sunday was the first bright day I had had, and the pulu'^ pickers from the 

 region came to my hut after the morning service, and told me the names of the various 

 parts of the crater, and legends of various eruptions. '' Monday was rainy, but I com- 

 pleted ni}' measurements, and in the evening made a series of observations to determine 

 the declination of the magnetic needle. The elecflric currents in the lava and the large 

 amount of iron in the rock, made strange work with the compass: I have seen the 

 needle turn suddenly through an arc of forty degrees. The remainder of the week 

 was too stormy to take photographs, and I was relu6lantlv obliged to send back niv- 

 instruments and return to Hilo. 



'■'These stalactitic formations have been fuUy described and figured in the section on the lava forms. No one 

 can well understand the formation unless able to watch the process as I have repeatedl}' done at this visit, checking 

 my results at subsequent visits to the.se and other caves, and I am not surprised that Dana, who never saw them 

 in situ, should question the accuracy of my observation, .■\fter many }'ears I do not care to alter my original descrip- 

 tion, which I believe true, and have quoted in full in the section referred to. 



"■•Pulu is the silky covering of the opening fronds of several species of tree ferns, and was formerh- exported 

 in large quantities to California for bedding, etc. The material proved undesirable in a dry climate, the export 

 ceased, and the present generation knows nothing of this interesting business. 



'' It was here that I got the name Poli o Keawe (bosom of Kcawe, or place of torment of Keawe ), which I gave to 

 the larger lateral crater on my map of this survey instead of the name given by Ellis, which I now resume. The name 

 of Poli o Keawe was certainly applied to some place in the immediate vicinity of Kilauea, but I have not been able 

 to identify it. It may be added that the natives have generally lost the accuracy of local knowledge possessed by 

 their fathers, and when they do not know the name of any place will not own to their ignorance, but often give any 

 name that occurs to them. [47 1 1 



