20 THE LOG OF A TIMBER CRUISER 



baseline, for upon this would depend our route and 

 the manner in which we would approach and cruise 

 the various divisions of the range. This baseline, 

 we learned, was simply a surveyed line running from 

 the nearest established section corner to the camp 

 where we were to begin work. This accounted in 

 great part for our stop at Kingston, where the only 

 known corner for miles around was located. After 

 carrying the baseline to the first camp it would fol- 

 low the ridges or canyon bottoms wherever the go- 

 ing was easiest according to whatever plan Frazer 

 devised in regard to the general scheme of our work. 

 The baseline, Frazer said, would be plotted out on 

 township plats, carried for the purpose by the in- 

 strument man, each day as we went along. Since it 

 was to be tied in with the section corner at King- 

 ston it would assuming accurate computation en- 

 able us to ascertain our exact location as regards 

 section and township at any time, and all other work 

 would be carried on with reference to it as a guide. 



The outfit used in carrying forward the baseline, 

 we found, consisted of a plane table, an alidade and 

 a stadia rod. The plane table was a flat, smooth 

 plane of wood an inch thick and about two feet 

 square, which screwed onto a heavy wooden tripod 

 with spike-tipped legs. The alidade, which when in 

 use was to be set upon the plane table instead of 

 upon a tripod of its own, turned out to be an instru- 

 ment like a telescope with several mysterious look- 

 ing little attachments in the form of thumbscrews 



