The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1877-04-14
LETTERS THE FROM PEOPLE.
THIS COLUMN Is OPEN TO ALI


I6@1hg Up NeT lana TIE EtrlY Sur
ceyors Races after l-ar1nt Limit At
tempting to Bribe tie .Saroeyor-.Ny First
SHrrey-The EIk Forge Co., &c, &c.
In early times, under the Proprietary
Government, the public Surveyor was al
lowed to take up vacant land in his own
name, and William Ramsey his Lordship's
Surveyor took up for himself large bodies
of land from 1880 to 1si0. This privilege
was afterwards revoked, as it was liable to
be abused. The early instructions in regard
to the taking up of vacant lands on the
navlgable streams, recognised the doctrine
that as many as possible should have the
advantage of a water front. and % carry it
out, the Surveyor should lay a narrow front
on the water and run far back into the
woods. This may be seen in st. John ;
Manor, in Elk Neck, where tie lines !un
back into the woods nearly two miles. and
some OF the surveys have only forty percEcs
Oh the Elk river. Examples of this kind
quehanna rivers.
William Humphreys was the Surveyor of
Cecil county at the beginning of the pres
ent century, and seems to have been a
careful workman from what appears by his
platS and certificates. After him came
Robert WalmSley, and then Hugh Beard,
whom | recoliect having once seen on a
survey. lie was tall man and walked
rapidly and had a great reputation as an
expeditions workman. He had William
Patton and Evan Chandler for deputies
In his time there was much done in taking
up vacant land. Mr.. Beard lived in the
neighborhood of the Brick Meeting House,
on property that now belongs to John
Marshall. There was "A Land Office on the
Eastern Shore, at Easton, and there were
some exciting races after vacant land,
where two or mole persons wanted to take
up the same land. These parties would
start on horseback, and horse flesh had to
suffer. There was an Instance of two per
sons after the same land entering the office
at the same tlme-one handed the Register
letter, and the other made verbal aprli-
cation for warrant before the letter was
opened; the Register decided in favor of
the latter. as the application came first t.
his knowledge. The surveyor has u chance
to read the character of men, as ne is
brought in contact with all CLASSES, con
tending for their dearest rights in the solid
substance of the globe. reaching down to
the centre, and up to the concave-a great
inverted pyramid.
the Americans were a land loving people"
We frequently see them holding on to a
narrow strip of land with great tenacity,
and willing to spend many times it's worth
rather than yield 1t up. Their dearest
rights have been invaded, and they must
be defended at all haZ lrdS. else their heirs
will be deprived of their birth right.
This love of land is often exempltied
" hen line is being run through Il woods,
and one of the parties interested Is sights
man. The surveyor attempts to move him
toward his own land. and he moves very
slowly; SO much SO that lie can hardly be
seen to move at all, and the surveyor is
doubtful whether he the signal, but if
after repeated trials, he happens to get
little TOO far, a new trOuble begins, for at
the first motion to move back, he goes
great deal too far, and then the slow pro
cess has to be gone over again. This pro
pensity is often seen among well meaning.
good men, and they hardly know why it is
themselves 49, sort of natural.
y surveyor often hears that boundaries
have been moved, but on making measure
mentS to ascertain the fact, it very seldom
proves true, and in the contests for land
each party is generally honest in the belief
that he is entitled to what he claims Ia a
with two cases where men offered to pay
me for working in their favor on the sur
vey. One had bought a tract by the acre
and had paid for forty acres. and he COM
planned to the trustee who sold it, that he
was told that there were not forty acres,
aud was sent by the trustee to measure it.
Now this fellow said, 81 would like you to
make it an acre or two less as | want a
little money, and | viii give you a part
The quantity overrau, and the trustee said
he would make him pay for the excess.
The other said he wanted some large trees
that were near his line, and he said he
knew very well that could run around
them and take them in: that he was a poor
man, aud that Craig had plenty of timber,
and would never miss them. He was dig
ging deep ditch around his land in place
of a fence and it seemed he could burrow
Ill tie ground like a muskrat
The first work of Importance to which |
was called as County Surveyor was the
running ont and dividing of the Elk Forge
lands. about 1911, under the direction of
Edwin }. Stevens, trustee. son of Samuel
Stevens, of Talbot, one of the Forge Com
pany, aud former Governor of Maryland
Edwin was pleasant young man, and we
got along nicely. Sometimes he would get
Il little out of humor, when a joke was car
ried too far. He had SO many lots to
describe III his advertisement, and they
were so similar in character. that it was
hard to avoid repetition. He generally
spoke of Zine chestnut timber. and if he
CHANGED To omit that, and then asked how
his description would do, it was a little
risky to suggest fine chestnut timber"
These lands sold very low, land being
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