HAWAII; ISLE OF 
Most southern and eastern, and geologically 
termed the youngest, Hawaii is the largest of the 
Hawaiian Islands, About the size of Connecti¬ 
cut, or 4,015 square miles, it has an area nearly 
twice that of the rest of the Territory. Since its 
name is also borne by the archipelago, it is con¬ 
veniently distinguished therefrom in local refer¬ 
ence by the appellation Big Island. It is known, 
too, as the Scenic Isle, the reason for which is at 
once clear to all who behold how Mature appears 
to have placed something of her every kind of 
beauty and wonder in this one little wave-bound 
realm. It is an epitome of the globe’s greatest 
grandeurs. 
It is because Hawaii is the only island of the 
volcanic chain whose craters are still active that 
it is said to be the youngest. Its northwesterly 
and smaller companions bear many scars of an¬ 
cient eruption. Shells of dead craters mark the 
islands everywhere, except on the most northern 
of the larger islands, Kauai, where the erosion of 
ages has, for the most part, obliterated the ruins 
of old volcanoes. On the Big Island, therefore, 
with Kilauea always active, and Manna Loa fre¬ 
quently staging a spectacle sublime, the visitor 
fancies he is exploring a world still in the making. 
He is shown where recent lava flows from the 
heights have poured into the sea and pushed back 
the waters, and his imagination conceives a grow¬ 
ing island. 
Kilauea and Mauna Loa are the two largest act¬ 
ive volcanoes on the globe. They are the only 
live craters in the islands. Kilauea is on the 
slope of Mauna Loa. The highest mountains of 
any island in the world rise from mid-Bacific 
depths, culminating in the snow-capped peaks of 
Mauna Loa and Mauna Kea, on the Island of 
Hawaii. Mauna Kea is the higher of these 
vast domes, with an elevation of 13,825 feet, 
Mauna Loa reaches a height of 13,675 feet above 
the level of the ocean. A third mountain, Huala- 
lai, of 8,275 feet, contributes to the majesty of the 
Scenic Isle. 
The Hawaiian Islands comprise an extraordi¬ 
nary variety of surface and climate, and Hawaii 
Island is particularly remarkable in this respect. 
Though gentle summer rules throughout the year, 
at populated levels, almost any climate may be 
chosen if the apropriate elevation is selected. 
Over excellent automobile roads the sightseer 
may travel for several days without once com¬ 
plaining of scenic monotony. Too many surprises 
are contained within the ocean confines of this 
great little island—little in comparison with many 
_older and more frequented tourist countries—to 
permit of any suggestion of sameness. If he has 
but a day or two on the Big Island, Kilauea vol¬ 
cano and Hilo city, of course, will receive his 
first attention, but the island holds enough attrac¬ 
tions to furnish thrills for many days. 
LIVE VOLCANOES 
There is the unsurpassed mountain scenery, 
and the deeply impressive fascination of molten 
lava; the tropical luxuriance of valleys, slopes 
and gulches in areas rich in rainfall; the barren 
spots in seldom watered regions, by way of abrupt 
contrast, for in a little while the visitor, in his 
ride around the island, passes from lush greenery 
to desert, or from immense agricultural surfaces 
to lonely lava wastes. 
There is the coast precipitous, and the shelv¬ 
ing shore; black sand beaches, and white and 
golden strands; hidden vales and canyons, opening 
only on the sea; silvery cascades, sometimes mys¬ 
teriously disappearing, shimmering like silken rib¬ 
bons on the faces of high cliffs. 
The volcanoes of Hawaii are now included in 
the United States national park system, which has 
supervision of two separate areas, together en¬ 
titled the Hawaii National Park. One tract, on 
the Island of Hawaii, embraces the active vol¬ 
canoes, Kilauea and Mokuaweoweo, the latter 
being more commonly known as Mauna Loa. Both 
are on Mount Mauna Loa, the former on the long 
slope, at an elevation of 4,000 feet, and the latter 
near the summit. The other tract contains the 
extinct crater of Haleakala, on the Island of Maui. 
An observatory and seismological station, upon the 
brink of Kilauea, is maintained by the federal 
government in collaboration with the Hawaiian 
Volcano Research Association. 
Mot only is Kilauea distinguished as the most 
active of the world’s volcanoes, but it is the most 
comfortably visited—the most easily accessible. 
After a two-hour automobile ride from Hilo, over 
a smooth highway commanding delightful and ex¬ 
traordinary scenery, the Traveler finds himself 
upon the edge of the pit of fire, viewing an awe¬ 
inspiring spectacle that has no rival on the planet. 
From Hilo port to the volcano hotels—the 
Crater Hotel and the Volcano House—the distance 
is 30 and 31 miles, respectively. The trip may 
be made by train from Hilo to Glen wood, 22 
miles, the balance of the way being covered by 
automobile stage, though the direct motor run is 
usually favored. From these hotels a road, of 
about seven miles, goes to the floor of the vol¬ 
cano’s main crater, ending at the rim of the 
bowl of living lava. Over steam cracks, winding 
through dense woods, it penetrates a wonderland, 
gradually descending 600 feet before it comes 
out into the vast volcanic basin. 
From the Volcano House the visitor beholds 
a grand view of all Kilauea and of snow-tipped 
Mauna Loa and Mauna Kea. From this modern 
hotel on the edge of the crater he sees an enor¬ 
mous sink, nearly eight miles in circumference, 
with perpendicular walls hundreds of feet in 
liight; and the floor of this sink, containing an 
area of 2,750 acres, is of solidified lava, weirdly 
