"The lava tree-casts of Puna have, as far as we know, escaped the observation of authors who have written about these islands. They are very little known, though they may be classed among the most interesting natural wonders the islands contain. At the back of Kapoho, on the foothills of the mountain, is an ancient lava flow; so ancient that it is covered with herbage, and a new forest has grown upon it. Here and there amongst the living trees of this forest stand what appear, at first sight, trunks of trees of larger girth. These are the lava-casts of trees which perished (it is impossible to say how long ago) in that flow. The lava of that stream must have been of an unusually viscid nature, for instead of flowing on after surrounding the base of these trees it coiled itself round their trunks like some huge serpent 'twining in giant folds' higher and higher, till it reached the branches, eight or ten feet above the ground. As the trees gradually perished, the lava mantle remained forming a solid cast of the trees that had been enwrapt from the ground to the beginning of the branches. Several of these casts are above one's head on horseback. According to Capt. J. E. Elderts, to whom the writer is indebted for his visit to these columnar casts, similar columns are to be seen further back in the mountain, and of greater height than these near Kapoho."-Bishop of Honolulu.

KING SUGAR.

TH

HE following gem," Go On," is by an anonymous poet. There are fourteen verses, all alike, the first one of which is given:

"Go on, go on, go on, go on,

Go on, go on, go on,

Go on, go on-go on, go on,
Go on, go on-GO ON."

You wish me to make my subject "plain as way to parish church"; and that is my desire, to be sure, in opening up this wonderful cane-producing country to your mental vision-this land where the people are "fed on the finest of wheat and honey," and with sweetest of water "out of the stony rock "—this “land of pomegranates and of oil olive"—this land of perpetual sunshine and of rainbow-this "Land of Promise," of rarest skies and daintiest air-" this other Eden, demi-paradise-this precious stone set in the silver sea"--this Hawaii.

A soil where every foot put down to cane will help to swell the amount of the export-sugar! Rice-the best of rice; taro (arum esculentum)—as good as potato ; sweet potatoes as good as the Carolinas; coffee-none better in Java, and were it not for the blight that

often takes it, and for which no remedy has yet been found, might rival the sugar-with all the tropical fruits and melons, and strawberries "for a song"! Indeed, there are undeveloped resources enough in this little country to enrich two kingdoms the size of Hawaii.

One can, every few days, take a sailing-vessel (passage, first-class, forty-five dollars for San Francisco direct for Hilo, on the Island of Hawaii; or for Kahului, on Maui, making port in about two weeks. From these points passage on an inter-island steamer can be taken for Honolulu, for six dollars. Of course, one can reach the capital from many other points around these islands. But these are important centers, and from them a traveler can make good progress in any direction he may wish to steer. For the small sum of seventy dollars, one can reach Honolulu. from San Francisco in seven days, traveling in a floating palace, with no reasonable wish ungratified, and with a most superb table, where the bill of fare is almost 2,100 miles long! And one fairly needs to lie awake at night to decide what to call for at breakfast, so tempting and so unbounded are the viands.

You will agree with me, I am sure, that there is nothing one will recollect longer than discomforts and discontent realized on a sea-trip. One remains with me yet, like a bad dream, after many years. There was, first of all, lack of skill in the officers; then, want of principle-for one was intoxicated during a distress

ing storm; water was scarce, it is true,-and the table was bad!

But these steamers! I speak for myself. One would wish to live one week of every month on land, and three at sea. And such a sea! Troubles gone, cold winds forgotten; for stormy ocean a peaceful lake, warm soothing air, and a serene sky-the " Rainbow Land" just ahead of us-and a captain who will pilot safe into the port!

From Kahului, which is a tiny village on the shore, you can take a train (one passenger-car) for Wailuku, three miles inland—and a charming little place it is— with Haleakala directly in front of you, and magnificent Iao Valley about a block off. Here, to make any of these trips, you will need a stout native horse, and they are often quite cheap.

In this little town of Wailuku, you will see a neat church and parsonage of the "Anglican Church Mission," a Roman Catholic Church, and a meetinghouse; as many as three stores, a Chinese restaurant, a baker's, where one kind of very poor bread is baked, a little post-office and a burying-ground.

When you find how very quiet it is, you may fancy that the people of the village are dead, or, like Rip Van Winkle, all asleep for a term of years. Where they can, they take a good deal of rest, and indulge in day-dreams. Sugar is sweet, nutritious and satisfying -and in many ways tends somewhat to luxury. It is, however, not a bad thing to "take an interest" in a well-growing field of cane, where you are sure of

rain! You will not need to fret after that, but can have pie and preserves for breakfast if you wish.

Oh, no! The villagers are not dead. They are dreaming of "grinding" cane at the next mill, at Spreckelsville, ten miles off, or at Waihee or Waikapu, half that distance, in opposite directions. I am living almost under the shadow of a cathedral, and I hear at this moment the wail of a funeral dirge. Rather a grave coincidence when I was just trying to correct your too-grave fancy as to the Wailukuans!

At Spreckelsville there are twelve thousand acres of growing sugar-cane. These fields extend for more than fifteen miles in one direction. The plantingtime is from June to November. The grinding commences in December. About one hundred tons of sugar are made in a day.

In sugar the British interests reach into the millions; but American interests are five times as large. The German comes third.

You would not wish, for a moment, to leave Iao Valley, for an entire day, at least. And at Haleakala, you can stay in the "cave" a night, can build a fire and cook meat on a stick! I saw the smoke there, even at the Parsonage, one night when some party was evidently getting supper! You need not make a wry face, for bishops have done all that in that very cave!

"From the summit of Haleakala, the most wonderful and absorbingly interesting cloud-effects can be seen. Standing on the crest of the vast crater in the