SANDWICH ISLANDS, forming the kingdom of Hawaii, are a rich, beautiful, and interesting chain, eight in number, exclusive of one or two small islets The chain tuns from S. e. to n.w., and lies in the middle of the Pacific ocean, in lat. 19° to 22° n., long. 155° to 160' west. Area, 7,600 sq.m.; pop. '72, 56,897, of whom 2,539 were Europeans. The names, with the areas of the respective islands, are: Hawaii (formerly Owhyhee), 4,850 sq.m.; Maui, 750; Oahu, 700: Kaui, 780; Molokai, 170; Lanai, 170; Niihau, about 11G; and Kahoolaui, about 40 sq. miles.
Surface, near the middle of the.Pacific ocean, about half the distance from San Francisco in North America that they are from Melbourne in Australia, and Canton in China, the Sandwich islands form an oasis in the middle of a wide ocean waste, and offer convenient stations for the refreshment and repair the merchantmen and wh that traverse the Pacific They are of volcanic origin, and contain the largest noes, both active and quiescent, in the world. The most prominent physi cal feat of the group are the two lofty mountain peaks of Hawaii, Mauna Kea, and Mauna L , each of which is 14,000 ft. in height, or within 1800 ft. of the loftiest of the Alps. Besides these two chief peaks, which stand apart from each other, and one of which is covered with perpetual snow, the island is traversed by other mountains, which give it a rugged and picturesque outline, and in some cases front the sea in bold, per pendicular precipices, from 1000 to 3,000 ft. in height. In general, the islands are lofty —the small islet of Lehua is 1000 ft. high, and the upland regions of Kaui are, on an average, 4,000 ft. above sea level. Within the coral reefs, which, in single, and more rarely in double ridges, skirt portions of the coasts, sandy shores, leading up to rich pasture-lands, and occasionally to productive valleys, are frequently seen: Everywhere, however, the configuration of the surface betrays the volcanic origin of the islands. Extinct and partially active volcanoes occur in most of the islands. Kilauea, on the Mauna Loa mountain in Hawaii, the largest active volcano in the world, has an oval shaped crater 9 in. in circumference, and is 6,000 ft. above sea level. In the center of this immense caldron is a red sea of lava, always in a state of fusion. At intervals the lava is thrown to a great height, and rolls in rivers down the mountain sides. From 1856 to 1859 this volcano was in an incessant state of eruption, forming at night a sub lime spectacle, and occasionally casting forth burning streams, by one of which a small fishing-village was destroyed, a bay on the shore filled up, and a promontory formed in its place. On Maui, the crater of Mauna Haleakala (house of the sun), by far the largest known, is from 25 to 30 in. in circumference, from 2,000 to 3,000 ft. deep, and stands 10,000 ft. above sea level. Within this huge pit, about 16 basins of old volcanoes,
whose ridges formed concentric circles, have been counted. Good harbors are few. The chief is that of Honolulu (q.v.), in Oahu, with 22i ft. of water in its shallowest parts. On the same island is Ewa, an immense basin, with 12tft. water at low tides. During the prevalence of the trade-wind, which blows s.w. for about nine months of the year, the s. shores of the islands afford safe anchorage almost eve7ywhere.
Climate, Soil, Rivers, situated within the tropics, the Sandwich islands boast a climate that is temperate rather than tropical. In the native language, there is no word to expresS the idea of weather, and this fact may be considered as evidence that extremes of heat or cold do not occur. At Honolulu the extremes of temperature in the shade during 12 years were 90° and 53°, and the diurnal range is 12°. Rains brought by the n.e. trade-wind are frequent on the mountains; but on the leeward side of the islands, little rain falls, and the sun is rarely obscured by clouds. • The soil, the constit uent parts of which are mainly scoriae, decomposed lava, and sand, is generally thin and poor. This, however, is not universally the case. At the bases of the mountains and in the valleys, where abrasion, disintegration, and the accumulation of vegetable mold have gone on for ages, there are extensive tracts as fertile as they are beautiful. The islands produce fine pasturage in abundance, and large herds are bred and fattened, to supply meat to the whalers and merchant-ships. On the Waimea plains, in Hawaii alone, 30,000 sheep of the merino breed are grazed.. The upland slopes of the moun tains are clothed with dense forests: and lower down are grassy plains and sugar and coffee plantations. Basalt, compact lava, coral-rock, and sandstone, are used for building purposes. No metals occur. Several of the islands, especially Hawaii and 'Kaui, are well supplied with rivers, which, from the size and conformation of the group, are necessarily small, but afford great facilities for irrigation. Vast numbers of semi wild horses roam the islands, and while they consume the pasturage, and break down the fences, are of little use. The indigenous fauna is small, and consists mainly of swine, rats; a bat that flies by day, birds of beautiful plumage, but for the most part songless. Among the indigenous trees and plants are the sugar-cane, banana, plan tain, cocoa-nut, candle-nut, various palms, the taro, a succulent root formed the staple of the food of the natives, and is still generally used; the cloth-plant ; and the the roots of which were baked and eaten, while the leaves were used for thatching huts. Cattle and other useful foreign animals and plants were introduced by Vancouver and other navigators. There are about 30,000 mules and semi-wild horses in the kingdom.