RECORDS AND REPORTS 3 



the entire page to become illegible. For office use soft 

 pencils are preferable, because erasing is desirable. 



Erasers. Erasers should not be used in field work, for it 

 is bad practice to efface an original record or figure. Errors 

 are frequently made in the attempt to correct what has once 

 been recorded, and if the original can be read, it may assist 

 in the locating of the error. Erasers are necessary in sketch 

 work and in office computations. Soft erasers with a small 

 end are best, for they minimize the possibility of rubbing 

 out parts that are correct. Since the stroke of an eraser 

 destroys the reflecting surface, its use can always be detected 

 on a notebook or drawing if the paper is held in front of the 

 eyes in such a position that the page reflects the light. 



METHODS 



Title. Before field entries are made in a book, a title 

 should be placed on the flyleaf or first page. Many offices 

 employing field recorders send out their notebooks with a 

 title page printed in blank, containing a full description of 

 what should be done with the book by the finder in case it 

 is lost. This title should contain the name of the firm or 

 organization for whom the work is being done, the class of 

 work covered, the location of the work, the name of the 

 immediate superior, the name of the recorder, the date on 

 which the first records are made, and, upon completion of 

 the book, the date of the last record. 



Checking. Original records should be recorded directly 

 from the work or instrument used, and a systematic method 

 of checking should be employed. If there is a second person 

 available, he should, if competent, check the recorded data. 

 In direct readings or computations the comparative check 

 should not be made until after the results have been recorded. 

 There is a psychological condition of the mind which causes 

 it to repeat what has previously been heard, and conse- 

 quently there is a tendency, if the recorder makes a reading, 

 for the checker to make exactly the same reading, even 



