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Sullivan's 54th mile point was found and course changed at that point from N. 89° 16' E. to N. 89° 2' E.

"2.53 chains eastward of Hendershott's 58th mile point Sullivan's 58th mile point was found and course changed at that point from N. 89° 2' E. to N. 89° 27' E.

"In each instance it will be seen that the Hendershott courses are changed at the Sullivan mile points. The decree of your honorable court made January 3, 1851, declared that the line should be direct between each Hendershott mile point, and it is evident that the actual courses between the points referred to above are not in accordance with the recorded courses. It was found by reference to our base line in all cases where the field-notes show a straight line between such points that when the distance recorded as a straight line was two or more miles the line is actually a curve. The ordinates measured from the base line do not show any regular rate of curvature, and the curves themselves swing to the south and then to the north, the base line crossing the boundary line three times in twenty miles. The greatest distance of base line from boundary line is at the 55th mile point, which is about 247 feet north of base. The 46th mile point is 160 feet south and the 60th mile point 153 feet south of base.

"It is difficult to account for the discrepancies found between the recorded line as shown in Hendershott's notes and the line actually found. It is quite possible that the irregularities either grew out of the inaccuracy of the solar compass used on the survey or an inaccurate use of the instrument itself.

"We were surprised at the facility with which the Sullivan line could at the time of our survey be traced for considerable distances along the twenty miles of line included in our operations. Of twenty-one mile points from the 40th to the 60th, inclusive, Sullivan had witness trees for fifteen. Some of these witness trees can now be found, and also well defined line trees mentioned by him. On Hendershott's line only eight mile points out of the twenty-one referred to were witnessed by trees. Had the care shown by Sullivan in marking his line been exercised by Hendershott and Minor the line of the latter would have been much more fully

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and satisfactorily defined. The hurried manner in which the work of the Hendershott survey was performed (151 miles of relocation, in addition to random lines, having been accomplished in 30 days) may in some measure account for the great lack of witness trees and other evidences necessary for an actual location of the boundary line of 1850. We are inclined to the opinion that, so far as regards the twenty miles mentioned, the Sullivan line can be as readily relocated as can the Hendershott line.

"The decree of your honorable court requires that the line relocated by us shall be marked with durable monuments. Twenty-one mile points included in the line relocated, being from the 40th to the 60th mile, inclusive, are now marked as required. The 40th, 50th and 60th miles are marked with the cast-iron monuments originally placed by Hendershott and Minor, in 1850. Mile points intermediate are marked with stone monuments. These are of the best quality of Missouri red granite, are twelve inches square, and from 6' 2" to 6' 6" in length. The stones stand 2' above ground (this portion being hammer-dressed) and are well finished in every particular. On the north side of each stone is plainly cut the word Iowa,' on the south side the word 'Missouri,' on the east side the words State line,' and on the west the figures denoting the number of the mile point.

"The iron monuments were reset so as to show about 18 inches above ground. The granite monuments were set with great care, their apices being exactly on the line. They were well rammed when placed in ground and will need no witness trees. Their weight averages 1050 pounds each, and we think they can safely be pronounced both durable and permanent. The amount paid for them includes all freight charges and expenses of delivery and setting.

"Attached hereto (Appendix 'B') is a statement of the expenses consequent upon the relocation and marking that portion of the boundary line between the 40th and 60th mile points, which statement is respectfully submitted for the action of your honorable body.

"Attached hereto (Appendix 'C') is a photograph of the

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section of the oak tree examined and reported on by Prof.

"U. S. COAST AND GEODETIC SURVEY,

"SALINA, KANSAS, June 20th, 1896.

"Gen. James Harding, Hon. Peter A. Dey, Dwight C. Morgan, Esq., commissioners in the matter of the boundary line between the States of Missouri and Iowa.

"DEAR SIRS: I have the honor to submit the following report upon the operations conducted under my direction for the purpose of enabling you to locate and mark by durable monuments,' as required by the decree of the Supreme Court of the United States dated February 3rd, 1896, that portion of the boundary line between the States of Missouri and Iowa which lies between the fortieth and sixtieth mile posts east of the old north-west corner of Missouri, as marked in 1850 by H. B. Hendershott and W. G. Minor, commissioners.

"It appears unnecessary for me to make any mention in this report of the antecedent circumstances leading up to this survey, as you are well acquainted with them, and will, no doubt, take occasion to allude to them in your own report to the Supreme Court.

"I therefore pass at once to my own work.

"Your board having applied to General W. W. Duffield, superintendent of the U. S. Coast and Geodetic Survey, for the detail of an officer to make the necessary surveys, I was selected for that duty, and Mr. A. L. Baldwin, also of the C. & G. Survey, was assigned to the party as assistant observer.

"In compliance with the request of your board, received through Mr. Morgan, we met you on April 8th, 1896, at Davis

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City, Iowa. A preliminary inspection of the western portion of the field of work was made on that day and the organization of the party was completed by engaging laborers and teams.

"On the following day the whole party was transferred to the village of Pleasanton, Iowa, that place being centrally located for the western half of the work, as it is directly on the boundary and just east of the forty-fifth mile post.

"A partial examination of the line, as identified by more or less reliable traditions current in its neighborhood, made it evident that its course in many places deviated widely from the description given in the field-notes attached to the report of the former commission. (Howard's Reports, Supreme Court U. S., vol. X.)

"Not only do the bearings differ from those recorded in that report, but portions of the line which are there called straight were found to be curved or composed of broken lines.

"Under these conditions it seemed inexpedient to attempt to reproduce upon the ground the courses and distances of the former survey.

"Such an attempt would undoubtedly have led to serious confusion, and would have furnished little information of real value, while the labor of making the necessary corrections would have been excessive.

"In place of that undesirable plan I adopted, with your approval, the method of measuring a base line straight across the country for the twenty miles to be surveyed.

"All of the old points which were recovered and all new points which it became necessary to locate upon the ground were directly referred to the base line, which, from a mathematical point of view, is the axis of abscissæ in a system of rectangular coördinates.

"It seems scarcely necessary to mention the advantages which this method affords in point of simplicity and accuracy of work, but it may do no harm to allude very briefly to a few of them.

"Thus the relative positions and bearings of different portions of the boundary can be readily found with far greater precision than would otherwise be easily practicable.

"Moreover, in this system of work each point of the boun

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dary is fixed independently of every other point, all being directly referred to the base line. This characteristic permits any desired local correction to be made at any point without necessarily affecting points on either side, a feature which I consider very essential in work of this character. The base line was so selected as to lie along the general direction of the boundary, which in fact crosses it three times, eleven of the twenty-one monuments being north of the base and the other ten south of it.

"This statement well illustrates both the irregularity of the boundary and the fact that the base line is very close to the general direction of the line.

"Another important consideration in the selection of the base line was to make it pass through the towns of Pleasanton and Lineville without meeting obstructions and without damaging private property.

"This was successfully accomplished, and in the whole course of the line remarkably little tree-cutting was needful. The base line was ranged out with an eight-inch theodolite, the standards of which were high enough to permit the telescope to transit. The telescope was of excellent quality and was provided with an eye-piece micrometer, by means of which slight deviations from the straight line could be measured and corrected.

"As the work of locating the base line advanced eastward the party was moved to Lineville, Iowa, which town is situated just north of the boundary line and between the fifty-sixth and fifty-seventh mile posts, and thenceforward operations were conducted from either Lineville or Pleasanton, as was found more convenient from time to time.

"As soon as the line was opened, and even before the final adjustment of its eastern terminus, the linear measurement was begun by Mr. Baldwin, with the assistance of the commissioners, working westward from the east end of the base, near the sixty-mile monument.

"When about five and one-half miles had been so measured I was ready to take personal charge of the measurement, and began at the west end of the base, near the forty-mile monument, working thence eastward to a junction with the line. above mentioned.