I can remember a quotation the goes something like this... "Better to measure incorrectly to the actual mark than to measure precisely to the incorrect mark".
Does anyone remember the quote and who said it?
I'm pretty sure that quote can be attributed to Justice Thomas Cooley.
The words you refer to come from the preface of A.C. Mulfords "Boundaries and Landmarks".
THIS manual is intended to familiarize the surveyor with the different types of old boundaries that exist throughout the country. A great deal has been written on this general subject, especially in reference to the public lands of the West. Very little, however, is being done on the conveyances of the Eastern States, and it is my hope to furnish something which may prove useful to those who are likely to meet with cases of this sort. No attempt is made to describe how the lines should be measured; the intent is rather to furnish suggestions as to the method of locating the line to be measured - in short, finding it. It is far more important to have faulty measurements on the place where the line truly exists, than an accurate measurement where the line does not exist at all.
A. C. M.
NEW YORK,
Sept., 1912.
I should say that I have heard this line quoted in defense of substandard measurements. It shouldn't be too much for a professional to both find the right line and to make accurate measurements on it.
Wow, thank you. My connotation would apply to ancient measurements so I agree with you.
Mulford needed a better editor. Surely where he used the phrase "more important" he meant "more preferable." I like what I used to tell my associates: "Finding stuff is more important than measuring stuff." But again, a good professional does both.
Awesome! I think I have that book. Just could not remember where it was from ! Thanks for the reminder.
