Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, Va. [W. Va.]) 1852-1859, 1855-07-12
Mo.o,, and plxon's Line.

| tnen names GuulA uuNN NSNSeSSh w NhN ShNS
nses, II would be brought, that even royal llIl'
tae y 0u1d nave IaIISa " "'oF'Hs 'ae'n !" u""e''
| lake II,
Fot our attention being brought al this time 10
the geographical Ssnldcatlon OI This famous linz,
we 9te indebted 10 Tie RESEARCHES u AlE John u.
D. LnlrOte, 0f DSlllMOte o gentleman whose pro
G0uuL requirements and literary INSle have con-
ltiLuled much 10 cnIlCE lhs common stock VI
knowledge. The subject was chosen by him TOT
OIL address before the Historical Society Of Penn.
Sylvanin; mud, as we presume bnI very limited
number Of copies wete printed Tot distribution,
we shall mol subject ourselves TO tie charge UI
carrying figs ~ Athens, II we quote lew passages
from II for the benefit OF OUT readers SPeaklIlSot
the political turn given 10 puteIy geographical
question, he says:
"a consequence OF Ibis state Of things has been
10 petpeiuate the nltOtY OF Tie old surveyors WHO
established liza fate good fortune as fCgatdS lhcit
| fame; LOT v lille The enginetls WIN located the
road across the SimplVn have been forgotten in tue
all.abyOtbiMS EeNUwn VI The master whom they
served; while Of the thousands who sail pSsi lie
Eidysionr, not one perhaps knows who il was that
erected, on ctag, in tic midst Of the sea, The
wondrOuS light house that has now deIel The ten.
pests OF century, while oblivion has been The
lot OF mankind, whose works, Of everyday ulFiIy,
should have BpeH llelT enduring monuments CluS.
Mason and jeremiah Dixon, who, GiGhly.Slx yeats
ago ran line through The forest until The lnIll.
ans forbade the lutlllet pEOgreAS Gt the CLAIM aud
compass, AMI whose great IeEt seems 10 have
LerI That OF accurate surveyors, have obtained q
nOCliCy f0r lheIf names as lasting as The history
Of our county,"
Il was in 1863 thai Tic prOptetOrs Of PeRnSYlva.
mia and MARYLAND agrccd with Charles Mason and
al, In. LOnuINFp htIlgE
their respective gInnS; aud these "lwO Inahenla'
ticians or surveyors" Landed III Philadelphia in
November Of tue same year, and entered al once
upon The work HeEce'I upon.
According IL thcir own account, llieir new line
Jl mt vAty All inch eastward Ut westward Of that
HIGH had been established by ptevlOMS surveyors:
$50 that a(lcr all" says Nj. LatEobe, "tle sight.
ing along poles and the rule Chain measurements
IoI l7Gl und I7U2 would have uDSwelcd every put
nUse, had lie ptopcIOIS only thought So"
lie gives minute account 81 The ltoGFeSS Of Ibis
work from li!uu TO TINE, and thus q nlInueS;
nrhc lines whose history has thus been given
were directed 10 Le marked IN particular nallCct
bol by the agreement VI the parties and the deGfev
IUf Lord IIaldwiCEej aud the surveyors according
lly planted at Tie end Of every fifth mile stone
rrayeu with The arms OF the pennS on one side anu
lUf The Baltimore iumly OIL The other marking the
intermediate miles with smaller stones having o 7
on one side and un N OIL The other. The stones
with tho AIMS were oil sent from England.
"rhis wAS done vi The parallel VI latitude as fat
os SilvIing Hill but ieEc all wheel transportation
eeasng In 1866, lie further marking Ol the lIIIe
was the CteStS Of oil the mountain ranges, built
some eight feet high, rs far rs The summit Of tue
Allegheny, beyond which The line was marked by
posts, around which StOneS and eaElb wcEe thrown
The better 10 preserve them"
All tue ellOlS Of AIF. IalrObs 10 discover SOME
information IN regard 10 the GaEacIeIs und person
al Onnrntance of these Two remarkable individuals
moved ltutlcs. "Iheir Ieltcfs," he says, "are The
urTcSl business letters, tIeIr Journal is The most
naked of records" Oh liz Therefore amused Inn.
self by devlnlns Their Characters IrOm lheiE res
PcGiive Autographs. Pom these he very ingenious
| ~ dcLuCeS that "NlaSon was a cool, dtllOafac,
pninS.takins man, never in lInHyi Gtnan OF quiet
courage, who crossed tho OnOngnielA with fifteen
men because II was his dutytU do so though he
wOnld have much preferred thrice lie nuInJef III
his Heels"
From Dixons signature he infrrS "tlIut he was
youuset man; a more active NAM a man OF lmpa
icnt spirit utd nervous temperament; just such
a man as worked best with SObet. SIDE colleague
In note he tells us That l.aIantIe in hIS BIbti
0grdpkic .isirOnVmi9ue, says Tint Dixon was bOrMC
| IL Il cOul mine. liz died Ut Durham, England, in
Inn; but Mason survived linn leu yeats, and &c.
Curdlms 10 the EHcye|OpeoT4 dmr5icana, jiel 10
ptnRSyIyuRh in 1851, One al the stOneS--thal
which marked the northeast corner Of Maryland
being undermined bya book, The course Of lime
fell, aud was IctROvct 10 l0tm part Of u chimney
10 nciglLOhns farmhouse.
UpOn tho Store bting missed Nj. I,altOle says
"thv Legislatures u Pennsylvania, Maryland and
Delaware look the matter in hand, and n joint
CVinm, sion was appointed, which, obtaining the
services Of Lieutenant Colonel James y. Gfabam,
distinguished officer OF the Typographical Engi.
meets Ofthe United States caused thu work Of Ma
son and Dixon to be reviewed us far as necessary.
Colonel Gtaham'S work cOTTObOrAted III all inpOt.
lant particulars the work u his predecessors. -
SOlIc GirOrS Wtre discovered, however"
by The CORRECTION Of one VI these clIOtS the state
Of Maryland gained an addition To her Territory 0
zone ncEc and eightySevcu hUudrctlhS OF MI acre,
but whether lUSS fell upnn Pennsylvania VI Della.
ware does nOt appear. Another Ol llr cTtOtS cot.
Eeclcd was Of a FATHER singular character. Col.
Graham says in lis report; AMI. ". Smith, n gen
tlenall who has Ouce served as n member NJ the
legislature 0i DGlawntr, resided q full half mile
within the state VI Pennsylvania" and Christians
ChuEch, Ly the same le.SlEvcy, was found 10 be
IN Pennsylvania.
I'LrSe arc all cntIOus facts, well worthy 10 be
made The subjects Of all avltcSs 10 any historical
society; RNd The manner III which Nj. lNtEOJe cS"
eouted his task shows the discriminating judge.
rueRI of tic Pennsylvania Sucety in selecting al
individual so Cvety way competent 10 lis SHtSiac'
tory performance NaiOAaI I"iCIGgt"cer, Juiy2.
--.-.-..---+-A~%" -----
From tie Washington UnIOn.