﻿CHITTENDEN.] 
  THE 
  SAN 
  JUAN 
  DISTRICT. 
  367 
  

  

  instrument 
  as 
  a 
  simple 
  answer 
  to 
  an 
  often 
  preferred 
  request 
  for 
  a 
  descrip- 
  

   tion. 
  The 
  view 
  is 
  so 
  simple 
  that 
  it 
  requires 
  no 
  comment. 
  

  

  Broken 
  in 
  upon 
  by 
  trouble 
  with 
  the 
  Indians 
  of 
  the 
  northwestern 
  por- 
  

   tion 
  of 
  our 
  district, 
  we 
  were 
  obliged 
  to 
  leave 
  unworked 
  a 
  small 
  portion 
  

   of 
  that 
  corner 
  of 
  the 
  sheet. 
  Our 
  last 
  station 
  was 
  made 
  on 
  the 
  south- 
  

   eastern 
  peak 
  of 
  the 
  La 
  Plata 
  Mountains, 
  on 
  September 
  3, 
  and 
  the 
  party 
  

   dividing 
  up 
  with 
  that 
  of 
  Mr. 
  Gannett, 
  marched 
  out 
  in 
  two 
  sections, 
  

   reaching 
  Denver 
  on 
  the 
  21st 
  of 
  September, 
  having 
  surveyed 
  about 
  6,200 
  

   square 
  miles 
  and 
  marched 
  to 
  and 
  from 
  the 
  work 
  a 
  distance 
  each 
  way 
  

   of 
  400 
  miles. 
  But 
  for 
  the 
  interruption 
  of 
  the 
  fall, 
  the 
  whole 
  area 
  assigned 
  

   would 
  have 
  been 
  easily 
  covered, 
  and 
  the 
  party 
  brought 
  home 
  but 
  little 
  

   behind 
  its 
  actual 
  arrival. 
  As 
  it 
  was, 
  the 
  season 
  was 
  an 
  extremely 
  suc- 
  

   cessful 
  one, 
  and 
  brought 
  out 
  all 
  the 
  main 
  results 
  which 
  were 
  anticipated 
  

   from 
  the 
  first. 
  

  

  One 
  point 
  more 
  to 
  which 
  I 
  will 
  call 
  attention, 
  the 
  question 
  of 
  absolute 
  

   locations 
  of 
  latitudes 
  and 
  longitudes 
  through 
  the 
  district. 
  All 
  such 
  

   determinations 
  in 
  this 
  area 
  are 
  carried 
  from 
  the 
  telegraphic 
  communi- 
  

   cations 
  on 
  the 
  eastern 
  base 
  of 
  the 
  mountains 
  through 
  the 
  primary-tri- 
  

   angulation 
  system 
  across 
  the 
  territory. 
  A 
  study 
  of 
  the 
  methods 
  em- 
  

   ployed 
  and 
  character 
  of 
  the 
  results 
  will 
  satisfy 
  any 
  one 
  versed 
  in 
  the 
  

   subject 
  that 
  absolute 
  locations 
  through 
  this 
  system 
  will 
  be 
  subject 
  to 
  

   extremely 
  slight 
  change. 
  The 
  location 
  then 
  of 
  monuments 
  and 
  the 
  

   boundaries 
  of 
  political 
  divisions 
  becomes 
  an 
  important 
  practical 
  advan- 
  

   tage 
  of 
  the 
  survey. 
  In 
  this 
  particular 
  district 
  there 
  lie 
  58 
  miles 
  of 
  the 
  

   southern 
  boundary 
  of 
  Colorado 
  and 
  all 
  the 
  southwestern 
  portions 
  of 
  

   the 
  boundaries 
  of 
  the 
  San 
  Juan 
  purchase. 
  Since 
  completing 
  my 
  map, 
  I 
  

   have 
  obtained 
  through 
  the 
  General 
  Land-Office 
  copies 
  of 
  the 
  plots 
  of 
  

   the 
  surveys 
  of 
  these 
  boundaries 
  and 
  compared 
  them 
  with 
  our 
  own 
  loca- 
  

   tions. 
  

  

  As 
  might 
  naturally 
  have 
  been 
  expected, 
  I 
  find 
  the 
  latitude 
  agrees 
  

   very 
  perfectly 
  with 
  that 
  of 
  our 
  trigonometrical 
  locations, 
  and 
  the 
  topog- 
  

   raphy, 
  especially 
  of 
  the 
  State 
  boundary, 
  remarkably 
  like 
  our 
  own 
  in 
  

   detail, 
  but 
  the 
  longitudes 
  are 
  very 
  considerably 
  out 
  in 
  both 
  cases. 
  On 
  

   the 
  State 
  line, 
  all 
  the 
  work 
  being 
  shifted 
  about 
  3-J 
  miles 
  to 
  the 
  eastward 
  

   and 
  on 
  the 
  purchase, 
  although 
  the 
  measurements 
  do 
  not 
  agree 
  so 
  closely 
  

   with 
  oiirs, 
  there 
  is 
  an 
  error 
  in 
  the 
  southwest 
  corner 
  of 
  slightly 
  over 
  4 
  

   miles, 
  it 
  being 
  located 
  too 
  far 
  icest, 
  making 
  a 
  discrepancy 
  between 
  the 
  

   two 
  surveys 
  of 
  7^ 
  miles. 
  This 
  condition 
  of 
  things 
  is 
  only 
  what 
  must 
  

   be 
  expected 
  from 
  the 
  difiiculties 
  of 
  longitudinal 
  locations 
  away 
  from 
  the 
  

   lines 
  of 
  telegraph 
  and 
  fixed 
  observatories, 
  and 
  future 
  determinations 
  of 
  

   territorial 
  limits 
  should 
  never 
  be 
  attempted 
  where 
  the 
  best 
  of 
  astro- 
  

   nomical 
  determinations 
  cannot 
  be 
  had, 
  at 
  least 
  for 
  the 
  initial 
  point 
  of 
  

   the 
  survey. 
  The 
  waste 
  and 
  complications 
  arising 
  from 
  these 
  false 
  loca- 
  

   tions 
  cannot 
  be 
  too 
  highly 
  estimated, 
  while 
  many 
  of 
  the 
  lines 
  already 
  

   run 
  must 
  be 
  as 
  soon 
  as 
  possible 
  rerun 
  to 
  attain 
  any 
  approximation 
  to 
  

   correctness. 
  These 
  same 
  remarks 
  apply 
  in 
  a 
  great 
  measure 
  to 
  the 
  de- 
  

   tailed 
  work 
  of 
  the 
  General 
  Land-Office. 
  It 
  i.s 
  to 
  aid 
  them 
  in 
  the 
  better 
  

   determination 
  of 
  initial 
  points 
  for 
  their 
  linear 
  surveys 
  that 
  monuments 
  

   are 
  established 
  at 
  the 
  well-determined 
  points 
  of 
  our 
  triangulation 
  sys- 
  

   tem. 
  The 
  whole 
  geographical 
  work 
  of 
  the 
  far 
  west 
  opens 
  a 
  wide 
  field 
  

   for 
  mutual 
  assistance, 
  which 
  with 
  the 
  improved 
  methods 
  and 
  constantly- 
  

   increasing 
  carefulness 
  of 
  working 
  will 
  render 
  expensive 
  mistakes 
  in 
  the 
  

   future 
  much 
  less 
  liable 
  to 
  occur. 
  

  

  In 
  closing 
  my 
  report 
  of 
  the 
  topographical 
  work 
  of 
  this 
  division, 
  I 
  

   would 
  acknowledge 
  the 
  great 
  assistance 
  I 
  have 
  constantly 
  received 
  in 
  

   the 
  mapping 
  from 
  Mr. 
  Holmes' 
  accurate 
  sketches 
  and 
  his 
  intimate 
  

  

  