68 A MANUAL FOR NORTHERN WOODSMEN 
or muddy shore begins. This line is surveyed in connec¬ 
tion with a United States land survey, the process being 
called “ meandering.” 
At every point where a standard, township, or section 
line intersects the bank of a navigable stream or other 
meanderable body of water, corners are established at the 
time of running these lines. These are called “ meander 
corners.” They are always marked M C in addition to any 
other marks left for their identification. 
In the same way, when a line subdividing a section runs 
into a considerable body of water, a “ special meander 
corner” is established and marked in the same way. 
3. Witness Corners and Witness Points. 
A key to the location and meaning of these will be found 
in the following sections from the “ Instructions.” 
49. Under circumstances where the survey of a township or 
section line is obstructed by an impassable obstacle, such as a 
pond, swamp, or marsh (not meanderable), the line will be pro¬ 
longed across such obstruction by making the necessary right- 
angle offsets; or, if such proceeding be impracticable, a traverse 
line will be run, or some proper trigonometrical operation em¬ 
ployed to locate the line on the opposite side of the obstruction; 
and in case the line, either meridional or latitudinal, thus regained, 
is recovered beyond the intervening obstacle, said line will be sur¬ 
veyed back to the margin of the obstruction. 
50. As a guide in alignment and measurement, at each point 
where the line intersects the margin of an obstacle a witness point 
will be established, except when such point is less than tw T enty 
chains distant from the true point for a legal corner which falls in 
the obstruction, in which case a witness corner will be established 
at the intersection. 
51. In a case where all the points of intersection with the ob¬ 
stacle to measurement fall more than twenty chains from the proper 
place for a legal corner in the obstruction, and a witness corner 
can be placed on the offset line within twenty chains of the inac¬ 
cessible corner point, such witness corner will be established. 
97. The point for a corner falling on a railroad, street, or 
wagon road, will be perpetuated by a marked stone (charred stake 
or quart of charcoal), deposited twenty-four inches in the ground, 
and witnessed by two witness corners, one of which will be estab¬ 
lished on each limiting line of the highway. 
In case the point for any regular corner falls at the intersection 
of two or more streets or roads, it will be perpetuated by a marked 
stone (charred stake or quart of charcoal), deposited twenty-four 
inches in the ground, and witnessed by two witness corners estab- 
