170 Jag gar, Jr. — Outbreak of Matcna Loa, Hawaii, 191^. 



its whiteness by contrast. The writer would judge the color 

 to hare been the yellow resembling a coal-gas flame. The 

 Mauna Loa column was made up of from four to six thin 

 wavy strands, apparently separate fume jets above separate 

 fountains, almost stationary at the great distance of observation. 

 One strand to the right (north) maintained its distance from the 

 others, leaving a dark belt of sky between it and them. 



This first night was unquestionably the most brilliant and up 

 to the present (Dec. 7) represented the maximum fountain 

 activity. On the night of Nov. 27 the summit was clearly seen 

 from Puu Lehua on the N. W. slope by the writer, when the 

 brightest column rose from the south side of the band and 

 there was a secondary smoky strand on the north side with a 

 dark zone in between, and the color was orange. 



Fortunately, in view of the stormy weather which followed, 

 an ascent was made by two good observers, Messrs. Leslie 

 Forrest and L. C. Palmer, from Pahala on the evening of Nov. 27 

 and they spent the night on the edge of Mokuaweoweo south- 

 east near the Wilkes station. I am indebted to these gentle- 

 men for the following description and the accompanying plan. 

 They reached the rim in the early evening, watched the foun- 

 tains off and on all night, and returned down the mountain 

 next morning. The activity was confined to the main central 

 basin of Mokuaweoweo, where an elongate area of new lava 

 overspread the middle part of the floor in a N. E.-S. W. direc- 

 tion and seemed to overlap the northern lunate platform of the 

 Alexander map. Mr. Palmer did not see the remnant of that 

 platform at all. This new lava was an elongate fountaining 

 pool at the south and apparently overflows on the floor at the 

 west and north. There were eight main fountains mostly 

 playing continuously, the southernmost a tremendous sheet 

 fountain estimated 150 feet wide apparently playing above a 

 north-south crack which determined its elongate character. As 

 seen from the east it varied in width (length) like a flickering 

 flame on a ragged flat lamp-wick, but played continuously to 

 heights estimated between 300 and 400 feet. The height was 

 estimated by comparison with the west wall behind it. The 

 other fountains were lower, 40 to 50 feet high, the southern 

 ones having in part the character of shore jets working in 

 grottoes. Several mounds had been built up by spatter, and 

 some of the fountains were concealed behind these mounds, or 

 possibly within them. At F 2 (see diagram) was a spasmodic 

 fountain which erupted at varying intervals, sometimes ten 

 minutes, sometimes an hour or more, resembling a fiery flower 

 pot, and shooting up to heights estimated at 200 feet. The 

 new lava flows glowed from time to time, especially between 

 2 and 4 a. m. Nov. 28, when there was general recrudescence. 



