The Crater; or, Vulcan’s Peak A Tale of the Pacific

Woolston now brought against it. Although the latter had but forty whites with him, they came in ships, and provided with cannon; and not a chief dreamed of standing by the offend­er, in this his hour of need. Waally had the tact to comprehend his situation, and the wisdom to submit to his fortune. He sent a messenger to the governor with a palm-branch, offering to restore young Ooroony to all his father’s authority, and to con­fi ne himself to his strictly inherited dominions. Such, in fact, was the basis of the treaty that was now made, though hostages were taken for its fulfi lment. To each condition Waally con­sented; and everything was settled to the entire satisfaction of the whites and to the honour and credit of young Ooroony. The result was, in substance, as we shall now record.

suffi cient means to construct such a building. As for the gov­ernor, he did not commence building at all, until nearly every one else was through, when he laid the corner-stones of two habitations; one on the Peak, which was his private proper­ty, standing on his estate; and the other on the Reef, which was strictly intended to be a Government, or Colony House. The fi rst was of brick, and the last of stone, and of great so­lidity, being intended as a sort of fortress. The private dwell­ing was only a story and a half high, but large on the ground for that region, measuring sixty feet square. The. government building was much larger, measuring two hundred feet in length, by sixty feet in depth. This spacious edifi ce, however, was not altogether intended for a dwelling for the governor, but was so arranged as to contain great quantities of public property in its basement, and to accommodate the courts, and all the public offi ces on the fi rst fl oor. It had an upper story, but that was left unfi nished and untenanted for years, though fi tted with arrangements for defence. Fortunately, cellars were little wanted in that climate, for it was not easy to have one in the group. It is true, that Pennock caused one to be blown out with gun-powder, under his dwelling, though every one prophesied that it would soon be full of water. It proved to be dry, notwithstanding; and a very good cellar it was, being ex­ceedingly useful against the heats, though of cold there was none to guard against.

But, no sooner had the governor decided to build on the Reef, and to make his capital there, than he set about embellish­ing the place systematically. Whenever a suitable place could be found, in what was intended for Colony House grounds, a space of some ten acres in the rear of the building, he put in the drill, and blew out rock. The fragments of stone were used about the building; and the place soon presented a ragged, broken surface, of which one might well despair of making anything. By perseverance, however, and still more by skill and judgment, the whole area was lowered more than a foot, and in many places, where nature assisted the work, it was low­ered several feet. It was a disputed question, indeed, whether stone for the building could not be obtained here, by blasting, cheaper and easier, than by transporting it from Rancocus Is­land. Enough was procured in this way not only to construct the building, but to enclose the grounds with a suffi cient wall. When all was got off that was wanted, boat-loads of mud and sand were brought by Kannakas, and deposited in the cavity. This was a great work for such a community, though it pro­ceeded faster than, at fi rst, one might have supposed. The ma­terials were very accessible, and the distances short, which greatly facilitated the labour, though unloading was a task of some gravity. The walls of the house were got up in about six months after the work was commenced, and the building was roofed; but, though the gardeners were set to work as soon as the stones were out of the cavities, they had not fi lled more than two acres at the end of the period mentioned.