THROUGH HAWAII. 
43 
a view to discover the most eligible place for digging 
a well. 
The whole face of the country marked decisively its 
volcanic origin; and in the course of their excursion 
they entered several hollows in the lava, formed by its 
having cooled and hardened on the surface, while, in a 
liquid state underneath, it had continued to flow towards 
the sea, leaving a crust in the shape of a tunnel, or 
arched vault, of varied thickness and extent. Before 
they returned, they also explored a celebrated cavern in 
the vicinity, called Raniakea. After entering it by a 
small aperture, they passed on in a direction nearly 
parallel with the surface ; sometimes along a spacious 
arched way, not less than twenty-five feet high and 
iwenty wide; at other times, by a passage so narrow, that 
they could with difficulty press through, till they had pro¬ 
ceeded about 1200 feet; here their progess was arrested 
by a pool of water, wide, deep, and as salt as that found 
in the hollows of the lava within a few yards of the sea. 
This latter circumstance, in a great degree, damped 
their hopes of finding fresh water by digging through the 
lava. More than thirty natives, most of them carrying 
torches, accompanied them in their descent; and on 
arriving at the water, simultaneously plunged in, ex¬ 
tending their torches with one hand, and swimming 
about with the other. The partially illuminated heads 
of the natives, splashing about in this subterranean 
lake ; the reflection of the torch-light on its agitated 
surface; the frowning sides and lofty arch of the black 
vault, hung with lava, that had cooled in every imagi¬ 
nable shape ; the deep gloom of the cavern beyond the 
water; the hollow sound of their footsteps; and the 
varied reverberations of their voices, produced a sin- 
