Vol. 66.] 
VOLCANO OE MATAVANU IN SAYATI. 
G31 
The Outflow of Lava into the Sea. 
This is one of the most striking features of the eruption, and 
it seems to have been going on, with the exception of one day, since 
1905 ; but, like the flow of lava-streams elsewhere, it is never the 
same for many hours together. 
The lava, on descending to the low ground, has spread itself like 
a fan, and by successive flows has coyered the coast at different 
times for a distance of 9 miles, destroying four villages (Salago, 
Toapaipai, Malaeola, Sataputu), and the buggy-road between them, 
also the whole of the town of JSaleaula except two houses. This 
part of the coast was collectively known as Le Ala Tele, and about 
half of it, reaching from Saleaula to Toapaipai, was encircled by 
a coral-reef. The lava has filled up the whole of the space inside 
this reef. Capt. Allen is quite clear that the lava first filled up 
part of the space between the shore and the reef, 1 and, on reaching 
the outer edge of the latter, did not continue to extend into deep 
water, but turned to the westward along the reef and continued to 
extend along it for some distance. The space between the shore 
and this part of the reef was not filled up until later. He agrees 
with me, however, that much of the reef farther west, which 
is now strewn with lava-blocks, has been so covered by the action 
of the waves and currents, and that the blocks are not in situ . 
He thinks that the reason why the lava spread along the reef 
rather than into deep water was that the lava-front exposed to the 
open sea was much more rapidly and effectually cooled than that 
which flowed only to the shallow water on the reef; this, I agree, 
is the probable explanation. 
Having twice tried from the land to examine the place where 
the lava fell into the sea, and having been each time stopped by 
hot lava-flows, I determined to examine the coast from a boat. 
The reef was covered with breakers and consequently inaccessible. 
Its surface is certainly strewn with large basalt boulders, but, for 
some distance at the western end at any rate, these appear to be 
water-borne from the lava coast adjacent. Bowing farther east¬ 
wards, we came to the lava in situ forming a wave-washed, iron- 
bound coast of cliffs, 20 to 30 feet high and higher yet farther 
on. Though at sea the wind was slight and the surface smooth, 
the heavy low swell of the Pacific was breaking with tremendous 
force on the shore, the spray dashed nearly to the top of the 
cliffs, and a very steep beach of basalt-boulders at their foot was 
obviously undergoing rapid denudation. The cliff consisted of 
numerous irregularly bedded sheets of massive lava a few feet 
thick, with thin bands of the usual scoriae and ash separating them 
at their joints. One or two small natural arches presented no 
special features, beyond showing the rapidity of the erosion. On 
coming nearer the point of entrance of the lava into the sea near 
the headland of Asuisui, the cliff rises to a height of 40 or 50 feet 
or more; while, close to the spot where the explosions occur, and 
1 See his photographs of this in II. I. Jensen’s paper, Proc. Linn. iSoc*. N.S.W. 
vol. xxxi (1906) pis. lv-lvii. 
