nd like the Pacific surf, lashed, tore,
covered it, and threw itself over it in clots of living fire. It was all
confusion, commotion, forces, terror, glory, majesty, mystery, and even
beauty. And the color, 'eye hath not seen' it! Molten metal hath not
that crimson gleam, nor blood that living light."

To this description we may add that of Mr. Ellis, a former missionary to
these islands, and one of the number who have descended to the shores of
Kilauea's abyss of fire. He says, after describing his difficult descent
and progress over the lava-strewn pit:

MR. ELLIS VISITS THE LAKE OF LAVA

"Immediately before us yawned an immense gulf, in the form of a
crescent, about two miles in length, from northeast to southwest; nearly
a mile in width, and apparently 800 feet deep. The bottom was covered
with lava, and the southwestern and northern parts of it were one vast
flood of burning matter in a state of terrific ebullition, rolling
to and fro its 'fiery surges' and flaming billows. Fifty-one conical
islands, of varied form and size, containing as many craters, rose
either round the edge or from the surface of the burning lake;
twenty-two constantly emitted columns of gray smoke or pyramids of
brilliant flame, and several of these at the same time vomited from
their ignited mouths streams of lava, which rolled in blazing torrents
down their black indented sides into the boiling mass below.

"The existence of these conical craters led us to conclude that the
boiling cauldron of lava before us did not form the focus of the
volcano; that this mass of melted lava was comparatively shallow, and
that the basin in which it was contained was separated by a stratum of
solid matter from the great volcanic abyss, which constantly poured
out its melted contents through these numerous craters into this
upper reservoir. The sides of the gulf before us, although composed of
different strata of ancient lava, were perpendicular for about 400 feet,
and rose from a wide horizontal ledge of solid black lava of irregular
breadth, but extending completely round. Beneath this ledge the sides
sloped gradually towards the burning lake, which was, as nearly as we
could judge, 300 or 400 feet lower.

"It was evident that the large crater had been recently filled with
liquid lava up to this black ledge, and had, by some subterraneous
canal, emptied itself into the sea or spread under the low land on the
shore. The gray and in some places app