GENERAL MEETINGS. 
11 
Mr. Diller followed with an account of Mi. Shasta, contrasting 
it with Mt. Rainier. 
These communications were discussed by Messrs. Dutton and 
Willis. 
Mr. Marcus Baker made a communication entitled 
WHAT IS A TOPOGRAPHIC MAP? 
[Abstract.] 
Referring to the volume of testimony taken by a joint committee 
of the two houses of Congress charged with the duty of investigating 
the relations of certain scientific bureaus, Mr. Baker remarked that 
the time seemed opportune to discuss dispassionately certain points 
previously discussed controversially. 
Great diversity of view and of usage as to what constitutes topog¬ 
raphy, topographic survey, topographic map, etc., was brought out by 
citations from various authors and witnesses. 
According to some, the relief of a portion of country constitutes 
its topography; according to others, relief, drainage, and culture 
together make up topography; still others find that the delineation 
or representation of such features constitutes topography. Topog¬ 
raphy is also defined as “description of places” and as “a branch 
of surveying.” 
A rather large and mixed assortment of maps was exhibited. 
These maps, made by different nations, on different scales, in differ¬ 
ent styles and colors, with different conventions and symbols, and 
differing as to accuracy and completeness, were offered as samples 
of a very large assortment, which it was proposed to classify. 
“Topographic maps” should form one of the various classes into 
which it would be desirable or convenient to divide maps. To de¬ 
termine what principles should be adopted as guides for including 
or excluding from this class was the object of the enquiry. 
It was suggested that a satisfactory definition of “topographic 
map” must take account of four things, viz.: 
(a) scale. 
(b) purpose. 
(c) features to be represented. 
(d) accuracy. 
