26H 



Stiranut of Mauri* Loa. 1 [ A W A 1 1 A N G HO I" P, OR 



View from the jutnmll of Mauna Lo*. 

 DCffetttM from Pendulum IV.ik. 



which had imw become <mr hospital, and which 

 wm fnnnd dry, warm, and large enough to have 

 accommodated the whole party. All the sick were 

 immediately transported here, and placed under 

 tin- fiupi'riritenJi nee of Dr. Judd and his assistants. 

 The men here had procured a largo turtle-shell 

 from tlit? natives, and in commemoration of their 

 jaunt, engraved ou it all their names, nnd nail"d it 

 to a staff which they erected al the mouth of 

 the cave. 



We passed the night with Lieutenant Uutld, and 

 although the lava floor of the tent was a rough bed, 

 wo seldom enjoyed so sound a deep. 



After arranging every thine rotative to the pro- 

 visions, when they should arrive, and visiting the 

 bkk with Dr. Judd, I determined to return to the 

 top. The doctor remained fur a day or two, to 

 arrange matters with the natives at the lower sta- 

 tion, so as to have our supplies more regularly for- 

 warded. Taking with tne James G. Clarke, a sea- 

 man, I again started for the summit, heavily laden 

 wiih provisions. In order to prevent any accident 

 by losing the direction, small flags were placed, as 

 we went up, within sight of each other. We 

 readied the observatory at the terminal crater 

 at fnur o'clock, after a hard walk of six I mors 

 We hud now three stations, viz.: the Remitting 

 Station, Lieutenant Aldeti's, and the Flag Station, 

 under the sergeant of marines. These made it 

 a nt«u*e easy task lo «i-t the luads up, although 

 it would require a longer time. 



I found they had built some part of the wall 

 around our encampment on the summit, and being 

 apprehensive that we were again to have bad 

 weather, we all joined to secure the tents more 

 effectually against the anticipated storm. 



The cold, this day, to *»ur feelings was intense, 

 although the temperature was not lower than 2fi J . 

 All our exertion* in rarrying stone for the wall, 

 and violent exercise, conhl not keep us warm. Dr. 

 Pickering came in, towards dark, half frozen, 

 having made, the circuit of ihe ihree craters, which 

 had occupied him nearly all day. 



The two chronometers, with the pendulum clock, 

 and some of the pendulum apparatus, had reached 

 tin- top during the day ; and I whs rejoiced to hud, 

 on examination and comparison with the one I had, 

 that no difference of rate had yet taken place, 



tin the 2flth the day dawned with tine weather, 

 and continued beautifully clear. We were employed 

 in taking observations, and the transit was set 

 firmly, to get the passage of the stars: a wall was 

 also built around tlu . bservntory, to protect it from 

 the wind. 



On the 2{>th we were busy putting up the pen- 

 dulum apparatus, A short time after noon, Dr. 

 Judd again joined us with the joyful news that the 

 puny from the ship had arrived, with sixty days' 

 provisions for as many men. I now felt that 

 through our own perseverance we should succeed 

 in obtaining our wishes, for with this supply we conhl 

 remain sufficiently lung to effect my object in visit- 

 ing the mountain. 



At night, on the 30th, we had a visit from the 

 old guide, Kcaweehu, the bird-catcher, who gave 

 ua the name of the terminal crater, as Muku-a- 

 weo-weo, and of that south of it as Pohakuohanalei. 

 According to his statement, Moku-a-weo-weo 

 emitted fire not long after Cook's visit, and again 

 five years since, on the north side. 



Wc now erected our pcndulumdtousc, and 

 Treble, the armourer, succeeded in rendering the 

 bar of the pendulum-frame as good as it was ori- 

 ginally. 



The view from the western side of the dome of 

 Mauna Loa was, as we saw it, surpassingly grand. 

 In the distance, the island of Maui emerged from 

 and broke the line of the deep blue horizon, while 

 its lower side was dimmed by a whitish haze, that 

 seemed to unite it to the island of Hawaii. The 

 same haze enveloped the hills of Koltala on our 

 right, and the western extremity of Hawaii. 

 Nearer to us was llualulai, the third great moun- 

 tain of Hawaii, up whose bides a compact mass of 

 white fleecy clouds was impelled by tlio sea-breeze. 

 To our right rose in bold relief Mauna Ken, 

 covered with its snowy mantle; ami at our feet 

 was spread out, between the three great moun- 

 tain.-, the black plain id lava, overhung by ; k dusky 

 pall of clouds. All these features were so blended 

 into each other by the mist, as to exhibit a tone of 

 harmony that could hardly be conceived, consider- 

 ing the variety nf the forms, characters, and dis- 

 tances of the objects, and which seemed to blend 

 earth, sen, and sky into one, I can never hope 

 again to witness so sublime a scene, to gaae on 

 which excited *uch feelings that I felt relieved 

 when i turned from it to engage in the duties that 

 had calle d me to the spot. 



It was not without some nervous excitement 

 that I placed my instrument on the highest point 

 of Mauna Loa, within a few feet of its crater, and 

 turned it upon Mauna Kea.to measure the difference 

 in the height of these twin giants of the Pacific. 



The very idea of standing on the summit of one 

 of the hit-best peaks in the midst of this vast ocean, 

 in close proximity lo a precipice of profound depth, 

 overhanging an immense crater 41 outrageous na a 

 sea," w ith molten rock, would have been exciting 

 even to a strong man; but the sensation was over- 

 powering to one already exhausted by breathing 

 the rarefied air, and toiling over the lava which 

 this huge cauldron must have vomited forth in 

 quantities sufficient to form a dome sixty miles in 

 diameter, ami nearly three miles in height, 



I was still in doubt winch mountain I should find 

 the highest ; for although previous measurements 

 had given it in favour of Mauna Kea, yet I had 

 found Mauna Loa about three hundred feet higher 

 than it had been reported to be. Double the zenith 

 aiiL'h' w as soon obtained, and decided it in favour of 

 Mauna Kea, and subsequent calculations gave one 

 cone of it as one hundred and ninety-three feet 

 jib tic place where I stood. Although twin 

 mountains, they are of very different character. 



Mauna Ken is a vast mound topped will tics, 



nine in number, whilst Mauna Loa is a smooth 

 dome. On the former the frosts of winter prevail, 

 while the latter has internal fires, and occasionally 

 vomits forth its lava to the very point where the 

 other begins to rise, covering its broad flanks with 

 layers of rocka. 



When day broke, on the Kith January, all was 

 hustle on the summit of Mauna Loa, Every one 

 was i ngaged In taking down and packing up the in- 

 strument* aud equipage, loaded with which the na- 

 tive labourers scampered oft'. Some of them, in- 

 deed, unable to bear ihe cold any longer, and hoping 

 to Obtain loada afterwards, withdrew without bur- 

 dens. 



