Page:The National geographic magazine, volume 1.djvu/383

 cated, that these points should be connected by compass lines, and also that cross lines should be run at various points from the Yape to the Capite and from the Capite to the Pucro. It was further decided that as time was limited it would be impracticable to run out the fourth side of the figure that would contain the grant, as the country around the headwaters of the streams was known to be exceedingly rough and mountainous, and to follow any straight line would necessarily involve a great amount of laborious cutting and climbing.

Furthermore, in order to know just what direction this line should follow it would be first necessary to make a connected preliminary survey of the three rivers; to plot this survey and then by inspection of the map and consideration of various starting points to decide on the most available location of the fourth side.

Instead of this it was considered best and sufficient to arbitrarily adopt a certain waterfall on the Rio Yape, the location of which was approximately known from a reconnoisance previously made, as the initial point of the line connecting the upper Yape with the Pucro and closing the figure. Thus it only became necessary, as far as the boundaries were concerned, to run a line along the Tuyra, joining the mouths of the Yape and Pucro; to run a line from the mouth of the Yape to the waterfall above referred to; and to run up the Pucro sufficiently far to be certain that when the work was completed and plotted, a line drawn from the position of the waterfall on the map in such a way as to include the desired area would intersect the Pucro at some point within the limit of what had been surveyed. I have not time to go into the details of the various trips by land and water necessary to carry out these plans.

Before starting it was known exactly what was necessary to be done; each assistant engineer had his work clearly mapped out before him, and each one faithfully performed the task allotted to him, so that the whole survey was brought to a successful completion. This brought to a close all the work in Darien, the other tracts having been surveyed before my arrival and consequently the whole expedition returned to Panama, and soon afterwards I returned to this country.

In going to and returning from Darien, I passed twice over the Panama railroad and along the line of the Panama canal, and I have thought that a few facts relative to the canal and railroad might prove of interest to the Geographical Society.