SAMOA 503 



and ashes, which are evidently of very recent origin, so 

 that the native tradition of the last eruption having taken 

 place only 200 years ago is probalily correct. In the 

 north-west of the island are also many miles of lava- 

 plains, but little altered ; and in the east there is an older 

 and larger lava-bed partly decomposed and covered with 

 a scanty vegetation. In spite of a considerable rainfall, 

 Savaii possesses only a single river, owing to the porous 

 nature of the vesicular lava, which offers a large extent 

 of heated surface, so as to evaporate the greater part of 

 the moisture, while the remainder sinks down and appears 

 as springs near the coast. The mountainous interior is 

 thus entirely waterless and barren, so that even the 

 natives cannot traverse it. It is a solitude destitute of 

 animal life, alternately parched by a tropical sun and 

 deluged by fierce rain-storms, and affording neither food 

 nor permanent water. The narrow belt of fertile soil 

 which in places extends between the mountains and the 

 sea is, however, exceedingly beautiful, covered with a 

 luxuriant vegetation, and with lofty groves of coco-nut 

 and fruit trees. It supports • a population of about 

 12,000. 



Upolu, the next island to the eastward, is the most 

 important of the group. It is extremely fertile, and con- 

 tains the capital, Apia, which is the residence of numer- 

 ous Europeans. A range of small mountains, 2000 feet 

 in height, runs through its entire length, the peak of 

 Tafua, at the western end, forming a perfectly rounded 

 lava-cone, with a crater filled with dense forest. Another, 

 Lauto, forms a crater-lake. The island is forest-clad to 

 its highest point, and the scenery of the southern shore 

 is magnificent. The town of Apia contains numerous 

 stores, chiefly German and American ; various schools 

 and churches, hotels and other buildings. It is, in fact, 



