While we were in Hilo we tried to learn something about Dr. Barton, and were informed that he had gone on to the Volcano House, a large hostelry standing upon the very brink of the volcano Kilauea. It may seem strange to some of my readers that the hotel should stand in such a dangerous position, but they must recollect that the crater of the volcano is nearly three miles in diameter, and that only a comparatively small portion of the whole is in a state of eruption, the remainder being crumbling lava, varying in thickness from ten to hundreds of feet.
It was a bright day when we at last set off for the volcano. To tell the truth, we hardly knew how to turn, not knowing what direction Delverez had taken, nor what had become of Caleb Merkin and Joe Koloa.
"We'll have to trust to luck to run across some of them in the vicinity of the volcano," said Oliver. "We can't do anything else."
We were on horseback, having procured first-class animals in Hilo. The journey to the volcano can be made in one day by good traveling, but as we were in no condition to rush matters, we decided to stop at the Half Way House, a well-known inn, situated midway between the town we had left and the end of our proposed journey.
For some distance after leaving Hilo our
