descending it. After a brief 
rest on the rim we reluct- 
antly turned our backs on 
a view which w^as then the 
grandest I had ever seen, 
and which made a lasting 
impression on me. 
HUGE BOULDERS WERE 
HUREED SKYWARD 
Upon my return to the 
Philippines, in 1900, I 
promptly renewed my ac- 
quaintance with Taal Vol- 
cano, finding the crater 
little changed, although the 
discharge of steam and 
other vapors had tempo- 
rarily ceased. I believed 
that a violent eruption was 
likely to occur at any time, 
but many others insisted 
that Taal was dead, or as 
good as dead. In 1904 I 
began a series of photo- 
graphs, which were added 
to at frequent intervals up 
to the time of the terrific 
explosion of January 30, 
191 1, and which now af- 
ford a basis for a study 
of the changes wrought in 
the crater not only by the 
191 1 eruption, but by the 
comparatively unimportant 
eruption of July 4-5, 1904, 
as well. 
In April, 1904, a new 
funnel - shaped crater 
formed near the base of 
the southeastern portion of 
the inner main crater wall. 
Until July it continually 
emitted great masses of 
vapor and intermittently 
ejected mud and rocks. 
This unusual activity cul- 
minated, on July 4 and 5, 
in a sharp eruption, which 
I was fortunate enough to 
witness, having reached the 
shore of Volcano Island 
with a party from the Bu- 
reau of Science in the 
332 
