relieved of his bridle, and left in charge of the dog. In the mean

e youth brought his compass and set it up on its tripod at the foot of the tree.

thing to convince you! However

o settle in its place, the youth made a

ere we are. Now if the bearings are correct, and I run two lines accordingly,

the shape of that!" sai

G THE

ruments we should want," said the young surveyor, with his pec

could not believe that science

a string eighteen feet long, and fasten the end of it by a nail to the centre of the blazed trunk, A; fasten another six

the tew trees. Banged if I dew see, though, how you'r

point where the other line ought to meet it. We'll see. Here on my compass is a circle and a scale of degrees, which shows me how to

'Cordin' to that, my corner is out on the

set a stake there. As I signal with my hands this way, or this, move your s

sights at the tree. He now placed himself between it and the tree, and, sighting f

ew," as the old man termed it,-which lay in a long, winding hollow of the hills. Th

n 't. I wouldn't go through it for the price of my farm. Coul

at to find your section corne

gate a boat thar. And it'll take till middle o' next week to

t's have a stake down there, pretty near the slew; then we w

nt showed that the stake at the edge of the slough was sti

ew!" the old man exclaimed, computing the distance with his e

yor. "Since we can't cross, we'll measure th

wn upon him with indi

idee of turnin' from our course, and measurin

med to him such complete folly, the young surveyor made

head of you, I held my end of the chain up from the ground, to make it horizontal, and then with my plumb-line found the corresponding point in the ground, to start fresh from

bushy gray head, and said

e at an angle of sixty degrees from the true course. Then, with my compass at E, I sight another line at an angle of sixty degrees from my last. I am making what is called an equilateral triangle; that is, a triangle with equal sides and equal angles. Each angle must measure sixty degrees. With two angles and one side, we

-casting his eye across the bog-"how in the name of se

sighting across the stakes, and walk down toward the slew,-that is, on this dotted line. Having got my angl

cute! Young man, wha

young surveyor, slyly. "Now, if you are ready

his axe and a fresh stake, tramped around to the eastern side of the slough. Having got the range of the stakes, he was movin

surveyor, taking up his tripod

is not far from your cor

d some time; though it's all overgrowed so with these clumps of slew-grass, ye can't t

heir corner stakes through them. But there must have been water here when this job was done, which accounts for its not being done better.

boy surveyor standing by the compass, with folded arms,

he had found that their bearings corresponded with those copied in his notebook. This

spot, but I want to be sure o

urry. The common compass they use doesn't make as fine angles as the theodolite or transit instrument does; and then the chain varies a trifle in length with every variation of temperature; the metal contracts and expands, you kn

" muttered the old man, crossly. "Seems like

pod. "If, however, you are dissatisfied with my work, you can employ another su

le, in order to prepare it for a pile of fresh sods. He was slashing away at it, with

t be a stone. Ain't a rock as big a

aid hold of it and tried to pull it up. The youth, with lively interest, took the shovel, and du

ping with muddy water, and bra

left jest whur't was broke off, when the rest was wanted

ery, while the young surveyor regard