THE FIRST KNOWN ATTEMPT TO ASCEND MAUNA LOA.
John Ledyard, the famous traveler, was one of the seamen of Captain Cook's party in 1779 when they were anchored off Keala kekua. I will quote the greater part of his narrative from A Journal of Captain Cook's last voyage to the Pacific Ocean and in quest of a, northwest passage between Asia and America. Printed and sold by Nathaniel Patton, Hartford, Conn., 1783, p. 117.
On the 26th of January I sent a billet on board to Cook, desir ing his permission to make an excursion into the interior parts of the country, proposing, if practicable, to reach the famous peak that terminated the height of the island. My proposal was not only granted, but promoted by Cook, who very much wanted some information respecting that part of the island, particularly the peak, the tip of which is generally covered with snow and had excited great curiosity. He desired the gunner of the Reso lution, the botanist sent out by Mr. Banks and Mr. Simeon Wood ruff, to be of the party. He also procured us some attendants among the natives to assist us in carrying our baggage and direct ing us through the woods. It required some prudence to make a good equipment for this tour, for though we had the full heat of a tropical sun near the margin of the island, we knew we should experience a different temperament in the air the higher we advanced towards the peak, and that the transition would be sudden, if not extreme. We therefore took each of us a woolen blanket, and in general made some alteration in our dress, and we each took a bottle of brandy. Among the natives who were to attend us was a young chief whose name was O'Crany and two youths from among the commonalty. Our course lay east ward and northward from the town, and about two o'clock in the afternoon we set out. When we had got without the town, we met an old acquaintance of mine (who ought indeed to have been mentioned before). He was a middle aged man, and be longed to the order of their Mida or priesthood, his name was Kunneava. We saluted each other, and the old man asked with much impatient curiosity where we were going; when we had in formed him lie disapproved of our intention, told us that we could not go as far as we had proposed, and would have per suaded us to return ; but finding we were determined in our re solves, he turned and accompanied us ; about two miles without the town the land was level, and continued of one plain of little enclosures separated from each other by low broad walls. Whether this circumstance denoted separate property, or was done solely to dispense with the lava that overspread the surface of the country, and of which the walls were composed, I cannot say, but probably it denotes a distinct possession. Some of these fields
were planted, and others by their appearance were left fallow. In some we saw the natives collecting the coarse grass that had grown upon it during the time it had lain unimproved, and burn ing it in detached heaps. The sweet potatoes are mostly raised here, and indeed are the principal object of their agriculture, but it requires an infinite deal of toil on account of the quantity of lava that remains on the land, notwithstanding what is used about the walls to come at the soil, and besides they have no im plements of husbandry that we could make use of had the ground been free from the lava. If anything can recompense their labor it must be an exuberant soil, and a beneficent climate. We saw a few patches of sugar cane interspersed in moist places, which were but small. But the cane was the largest and as sweet as any we had ever seen ; we also passed several groups of plantain trees.
These enclosed plantations extended about three miles from the town, near the back of which they commenced and were succeeded by what we called the open plantations. Here the land began to rise with a gentle ascent that continued about one mile, when it became abruptly steep. These were the plantations that con tained the breadfruit trees. * * * After leaving the breadfruit forests we continued up the ascent to the distance of a mile and a half further, and found the land there covered with wild fern, among which our botanist found a new species. It was now near sundown, and being upon the skirts of these woods that so remarkably surrounded this island at a uniform distance of four or five miles from the shore, we concluded to halt, especially as there was a hut hard by that would afford us a better retreat during the night than what we might expect if we proceeded. When we reached the hut we found it inhabited by an elderly man, his wife and daughter, the emblem of innocent uninstructed beauty. They were somewhat discomposed at our appearance and equipment, and would have left their house through fear had not the Indians (natives) who accompanied us persuaded them otherwise, and at last reconciled them to us. We sat down together before the door, and from the height of the situation we had a complete retrospective view of our route, of the town, of part of the bay and one of our ships, besides an extensive prospect on the ocean, and a distant view of three of the neighboring islands.