New-York tribune., 1871-12-01
THE COAST SURVEY.

eng r,r,n or IApoR-JJIsTORY or TIE SER
vICp-NR UAS>IER-PROF. BACHE-PRof.
rEIRCE-PRESENT ORGANIZATION AND EA-
TENT or TIE COAST SURVEY
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. Nov. 2S.--Thc lifting out
OF tho assler hy the Coast Survey Ofce to make cH'
,cndc surycvs on the Pacific Coast and tho invitation
so wi Sey tended 10 Prof Agassz and oNr scientists
10 accompany il It's outward voyage and assist in eA
Vibrations naturally draws attention to an important
branch O: our service. brief account OF the origin ms
tory mans CEMENT and methods of work OF the 'o'S'
Survey and II the results IL las attained. may he Vai
able TO c,chc the country 10 appreciate FUZZY Hs I'M
mrnsc ya,uc When great extent of our coast Is con
sder,si. stretching from Ncw-Brinswck 10 MoAco WI
the Atlantic, and from tn Straits of Fhca 10 Lower
California on the Pacific. We may form some ldea
OF the vast labor required for Its accurate sur
ycy That cost line has range OF t,oo miles,
from the ?iih to 44ih parallels on the Atlantic
side and froip the 32l to the 50th on the Pacific.
Taking into consideration the innumcrabe indentations
and conycXities the bays, nlcts. capes ana headahdS
and the multitude of islands that destroy the recttudc
OF line the work Of measurement becomes vast
indeed Farther, II one shoiid. an Imagination, dive
down 10 the oceans bottom. and make the submarine
tourney along the coast from Maine around to Washing
ton Territory going vast shoals, sandbanks. and
plateaus pa sing submarine rocks ana mountain
peaks risn from oceanic valleys and cisterns thousands
OF fahoins in Depth and should see that all this inc
quality must be measured with the lead and with
geodctic accuracy that the bottom Of every bay and
harbor must lie mapped the bearings Of every reef and
soal Indicated, followed in their deviaons,
the ux ard rcfux Of tides observed and cronclcd and
every PHI steal pcGuarty ascertaincd and reported for
tho guidance and safety of the mariner, the work would
assume him Its colossal proportions. The sciences
In their Latest and broadest applications, more gcner
ally invoked and employed in this branch of our service
than any They all summoned to this task Of
charting the mariners
TIE COAST SURVEY BEGUN UNDER MR.. HAsSLER.
The Coast Survey, from the very nature OF its nsru
mcnts is Of comparatively modern date. Onr Coas;
SIrvcy began in 1907, in the administration of
Mr.. Jc Gallan was then Secretary of the Treas
ury. 1t perhaps through his influence that Jefferson
rccommcndd d 10 Congress appropriation for the pnr-
pose At that time the only charts OF our continent
those OF Des Barres ROnainc, and Gondc and
English publications founded on these. Congress
made appropriation OF $50 600 for the service AT that
time Mr. j. H. Ha;slcr Swiss who had had cons!dera-
bic experience and in surveying switzerland y
tranPat, had come to this country and his pltsfncc
and influence stimulated the enterprise His plan was
adopted In ISL he sent abroad to procure isiru
1ncnts but our second with Great Britan suspended
the work ill II not effectively resumed and
organized under Government control until 1892 when
Mr. Hisser rcappointcd Superintendent. 1t thus
needed 25 years for the plan to take root here and pcn
Mr. Ha>sl continued to be superintendent until his
death in lSi3. The survey had then been made foin
NewYork eastward to point Judith and southwark 10
Cape Hcnlopcn.
ADMINISTRATION OF PECF. BACnE.
Mr.. Hassler succeeded by Frof A. d. Bachc, who
brought with him eminent qualifications for lis work.
He was graduate OF West Point. and Lieutenant If
Engineers til 1920. He had been Professor OF Natural
Philosophy and Chemistry in the University of Pennsyl
vania, Principal Of the Philadelphia Esh School, and
President Of Gerard College. He was man Of great
energy. tact and executive ability, well rs intellectual
strength and culture. Under his management the work
was rosanzcd and enlarged In 1913, the year of bis
appointment, Congress passed All act making apprn
priaon Of so).OO for tbs service and authorizing the
Rresidcnt to call together board Of oiccrso consist Of
the suptrnt n,nt his two principal assistants, two
naval officers and four from tho corps OF Typographical
engncerstO rcOrgdn1c the method Of conducting the
survey Tie Board met the 3nh Of March, lo43, and
adopted plan. witch approved by the President
The Board also adopted the following resolution which
accounts for thc assignment Of such u Drahch ol
the service to the Treasury Department instead o the
Navy or War Dcpmtn cn,, which do the work:
Ecssrsd T much as the G,GG 1"d an R pn,r"e Of
cia interest OF the country and as an tte a~s "d To,
ncn of civilians and officers of the aud navy uron
said work. Is te opinion OF ths pIaII ana tn"y 40
the control and considered part OF the Treasury De-
parmen'."
able jealousy which would have followed had other OBJ
tanned control OF wai avoided.
Uadcr Prof. Blchc's administration the work made
great strides, and success challenged the attention
piilrhtiOn or Foreign tDe Hldcut
OF the Royal Geographical Society, Admiral William
Henry shy ,h, in his annual address i'll lSJ0
"TN' coast surv:y Of the United Estates ia truly ns-
tionql LnGcrt kin, and has been most credably con-
duclcd iIir- IN us ,arlons departments M OF sricc..
have -tu'd 'he H'c" "n clos ana q" not hesitate 10
IIouo,n" the Hyic.on. that though tn" AInerhan
l~j in tie nci They have per SdHU) CapCd lnto
tlr Very front
In l.G;. on Tie death Of Prof Bachc, iProf Benjamin
P.irce, LID. of Harvard Unyereity. appointed
Superintendent, and still holds the Office. Prof Peirce
had already attained great reputation at home and
abroad - an astronomer and mathematician, aud his
mana cement of the coast sulvcy has justified the
fdencc placed IN him. This work has steadily on
keepina abreast Of the science of the day, extending it's
operations ana pcIIer;ng its methods.
How THE SURVEY L. MADE.
The science which furnishes the method on which the
whole snrv'y is made is known as Geodesp. Any
who ha, stuicd trigonomcry knows that If the
length OF one side of triangle is given by simply
urDg TIE angles OF the other siiee may dctcrmiue
lengths asu. The proceeds ON this principle
line ii accurately measured on the land as base line
From TIE cxtYcni; of this lnc by " theodo
lite, two lines arr drawn to some mountain top or oe-
waited Object 10 form Triangle having the meas
urcd line lis base. The thcoiolitc determines tie
angles of these sides, and knowing the length Of The
base one easily compute the length OF the other
sides. one OF these sides, it's length having been
puted serves as Il base line Ter triangle,
and with the the )iote, after having drawn the other
side OF the triangle from It's eXtrcueS. their length
can be determined before. one of these sides may
serve a. base for another triangle and Qd 6n,n
Thus from "a single base line. If accurately measured
whole network OF tranges Iuay be extended over the
country, and their dimensions accurately determined by
trigononetrc science the work beng verified Whenever
necessary by the actual measurement e any OF tie
computed sides. III this way II would be possible, hav
ing single base lEe in Maine, to trianguate
the whole country till reached California, and the
actual OF the last triangle here if found 10
correspond with its computed length would verify The
whole operation.
PRACTICAL WORK sURvLY.
In the practical work Of the survey reconnaissance Of
do Ii