The Bemidji daily pioneer. [volume] (Bemidji, Minn.) 1904-1971, 1920-04-29
Plan Worked Out by Which Various
Government Boards viii Coop.
crate In Making Large Scale
Map Of Country.

Our three armies went to the front
with q supply Of maps which contrib
uted nightly to our success. Last
July, says the New York Post, the en-
cheering council called President Will
sons attention to the lack of co-ordina-
ton in the map-making agencies Of
his country. The matter was not
2igeon-holed !; various bureaus were re-
Quested to confer and decide upon a
general plan by which the work could
be carried on most expeditiously and
without overlapping or duplication.
To Map 100000 Square <Aaiiss. ..
TO make large-scale maps ;sofs over
three million square miles Of territory
is gigantic task. But 1t is hoped and
believed that it will be achieved. One
danger lies in REORGANIZATION. There
are at present no fewer than eleven
map-making and three map-using
boards operating under government
control. 1t will readily be seen that
the bureau of soils needs one kind Of
map, the bureau of Indian affairs an
other. But. except for highly special!
lied work. the United States geological
survey would seem to be the logical
body to prepare the standard topo-
graphic maps. 1t has its own photo
photographic and engraving plants, and
the maps it has already produced have
been declared by experts to be the
equal Of any. -.:'-'
It Is safe to assume that it was the
excellence of detail Of the maps fur
nished us by the allies that led the
conference to feel that to do the work
for the whole country as France or
Germany had done it would take too
much time: Better map with few
details now than one with all in, the
distant future. One-third Of the area
Of continental United States, exclusive
6f Alaska, has already been mapped In
this fashion. The establishment of
basic horizontal and vertical controls.
Is about half completed. And a plan
has been worked out by which the vari-
Gus boards will cooperate. Making the
personnel permanent will do much to
Stan0ar0lZe the Work. ....ri
Aerial Surveying. ~:...,
Revisions are to be made as fast as
changes due to development occur.
There, is to be a central information o.
fee. not simply for the benefit Of the
bureaus concerned. but for the general
public as we'll. The general scale rec
commended Is :62 500; where larger or
smaller scales are desirable q special
corps will be appointed. Aerial survey
ing Is to play IN important part.
Graphic scales in English and metric
units will be printed on all maps pre-
pared for general use, as well as dia-
gram of the control on which the map
is based, together with date of survey
and location of all permanent marks.
That each map will explain the SYM
bols used hardly needs to be pointed
out. ~.
In modern warfare the map IL more
powerful than the sword. Germany
knew this. Prisoners captured from
the Germans could locate any object,
from a single machine-gun nest to a
full battery of artillery; they had been
taught to read their maps. The men Of
our own divisions. from ranking off,
GERS to scout privates. became skilled
at it-ln time; but it was difficult work
at first. We were not q map-reading
people. Men in the service who two
years ago would scarcely have attempt
ed to find their way from point to
point within q single county would at
present know precisely how to orient
themselves anywhere In France If sup
piled with Frances excellent cartes
topographiQues. The same can be done
in this country once the necessary
maps are available 1t is merely q
question of utilizing the arts of war IN
times Of peace. 1t is an important en-
terprise now happily under way, Il
the government completes it the pub
lies interest will be equaled only by
it's gratitude. e. T.