S OME 835 registrants from all parts of the United States and several foreign countries attended the Fourteenth Annual Meeting of the American Congress on Surveying and Mapping, held at the Shoreham Hotel, Washington, D. C., March 22-24, 1954. A lively program of technical papers, roundtable discussions, workshop demonstrations, exhibits, and social get-togethers filled the three-day calendar. For the second consecutive year, the keynote address was delivered by a member of the Cabinet of the President of the United States and was reported with other highlights of the meeting in the Washington daily newspapers. Furthermore, the activities of the ladies brought forth an approving story in the society columns of a leading Washington daily. The meeting was unquestionably a success, both from the standpoint of advancing the sciences of surveying and mapping, and of affording the opportunity for friendly, informal contact among the many members present from far and near. As many as possible of the papers and discussions heard at the meeting will appear in this and future issues of SURVEYING AND MAP PING. Opening of the Congress President Carroll F. Merriam opened the exhibits officially at 10:00 a.m. on Monday. The American Congress on Surveying and Mapping was called to order an hour later for the opening session. In his opening address, entitled "Mr. Janus and His Remarkable Optical System," President Merriam described how his background affects his point of view as President of ACSM. Mr. Merriam explained that his particular field of experience places him in a position where, like Janus who faced both backwards and forwards, he can see both inwardly and outwardly in looking at the issues facing the surveying and mapping profession. Following his opening address, President Merriam introduced the keynote speaker, the Honorable Douglas McKay, Secretary of the Interior, who spoke on the theme "Surveys and Maps Prepare the Way for National Growth." In his address, Secretary McKay emphasized the importance of surveys and maps in administering and developing the natural resources of the Nation. He pointed out the enormity of the task of obtaining complete and adequate maps of the entire country. Even with the most modern procedures, he stated, it will take 30 years to complete the national topographic mapping program, and then we will have to start remapping to bring the maps up to date. At the conclusion of his remarks, Secretary McKay introduced Dr. William E. Wrather, Director of the Geological Survey. Dr. Wrather, recent winner of the John Fritz medal for his outstanding scientific achievements, presented the greetings of his agency to the meeting. (The opening address by President Merriam and the keynote address by Secretary McKay are printed elsewhere in this issue.) The opening session was followed by a special luncheon in honor of members and guests from other countries. Canada, it was reported, had 16 representatives at the meeting. Guests were also introduced from Brazil, Colombia, Turkey, Mexico, India, Germany, the Philippine Islands, and the Canal Zone. Plenary Sessions President Merriam, presiding at the first plenary session on Monday afternoon, introduced Phil Miles, who read a paper prepared by Harry LaViers, Vice Chairman of the Kentucky Agricultural and Industrial Development Board, entitled "Good Maps Can Business Afford Them?" The State of Kentucky, it was reported, is not only providing good maps, but also is making businessmen aware of their advantages. Various direct and indirect advantages of maps to business were enumerated with apt and specific cases mentioned where good maps have resulted in substantial savings in costs and have provided information not otherwise available. The conclusion of the paper answered the title question by stating that business cannot afford poor maps. The second paper of the afternoon was given by Ralph Moore Berry, registered professional engineer and land surveyor, and former chairman of the Property Surveys Division. Mr. Berry's subject was "Compulsory Ties to State Plane Coordinates." After briefly explaining the State plane coordinate system, Mr. Berry proposed that all new surveys filed as public records should be tied to the State system, provided suitable control stations are available within a reasonable distance. He stated that the benefits from the recovery and retracement standpoint would outweigh the added cost, if the lines to tie points were relatively close. Where the tie points are more distant and the cost could not be charged to the customer, Mr. Berry proposed that the surveyor be assisted by interested local agencies or by surveyors' organizations on a cooperative basis, and that in some cases the U. S. Coast and Geodetic Survey may be able to schedule work in the area to provide control points in the desired locations. In the third paper of the session, Marshall S. Wright, former president of the Congress and now chairman of the Committee on Surveying and Mapping, U. S. Department of Agriculture Graduate School, presented a paper on "Prospects for a B.S. Degree in Surveying and Mapping." Mr. Wright discussed some of the problems, from the standpoint of both the mapmakers and the educators, involved in offering academic degrees in surveying and mapping. Courses in these subjects are noticeably absent in the curriculums of universities in the United States, and there are several administrative difficulties encountered in initiating and supporting such educational programs. He discussed some of the more important of these difficulties in the hope that mapmakers will offer ideas and suggestions for their solution. At the second plenary session, held during the early part of the afternoon on Tuesday with President Merriam presiding, three papers were presented. William C. Cude of the Engineer Research and Development Laboratory discussed "Military Surveying and Mapping Instrument Research." He stressed the point that for military use speed as well as accuracy is of prime importance and that for processing and reproduction work there is the added requirement of mobility. Problems of procurement as well as design were included in Mr. Cude's discussion. Capt. Oliver S. Reading of the U. S. Coast and Geodetic Survey presented an illustrated talk on "European Developments and Practices Used in Surveying and Mapping." Among the recent developments covered by Capt. Reading's discussion were the automatic level, the geodimeter, and certain improvements in theodolite and planetable equipment. The paper also called attention to the excellent series of maps available for some European countries, discussed the methods of keeping these maps up to date, and also suggested possible ways in which the mapping situation in the United States could be improved. Ernest J. Stocking, U. S. Civil Service Com mission, gave a paper entitled "Cartographers and the Civil Service" in which he discussed in some detail the problems of the classification of civil service positions in cartography and related fields. He pointed out that, while many of these positions are not properly classifiable as "professional engineering" positions, there are both professional and sub-professional positions in the cartographic field and that the Civil Service Commission is attempting to produce revised classification standards which will recognize the professional status of surveying and mapping and be acceptable both to the Commission and to the various Federal mapping agencies. President Merriam, presiding at the third plenary session on Wednesday afternoon, introduced, as the first speaker, Christopher M. Weld of Rand McNally and Company. In his paper entitled "Maps and Marketing Studies," Mr. Weld discussed a number of ways in which business can profitably use maps. He emphasized the importance of Census Bureau data in preparing business maps, and decried the fact that because of budgetary limitations up-to-date business or industrial statistics are not available to an adequate extent. Dr. Francis J. Marschner, scheduled as the second speaker, unfortunately was not able to be present to discuss "The Need for a State Land-Use Map Series." In his usual dynamic manner, Walter G. Stoneman, Chairman of the Committee on Map Use, outlined a number of ways in which ACSM members could help "sell" the public on the benefits of making wider use of existing maps and charts. He read excerpts from the constitution of ACSM to stress the responsibility of the ACSM in map education and use. Technical Division Sessions Each of the six technical divisions held one or more sessions for the transaction of division business, the presentation of technical papers, and the discussion of professional and technical problems. The proceedings will be reported as fully as possible in future issues of the Journal. CARTOGRAPHY DIVISION Chairman Arthur F. Striker opened the Cartography Division meeting on Tuesday afternoon with a brief report on divisional activities during the past year. A paper on "Negative Scribing Today" was presented by Charles F. Fuechsel in the first part of the session. His paper was in the nature of a supplement to the panel on "Plastic or Glass Engraving Versus Drafting," a feature of the Thirteenth Annual Meeting. The new instruments and techniques described by Mr. Fuechsel were illustrated by slides and by the Geological Survey training film "Negative Scribing for Map Reproduction." William B. Brierly opened the second part of the program with a discussion of "Geographic Considerations in the Morphology and Structure of Settlements and Urban Areas." Slides of large-scale maps showing various urban patterns illustrated Mr. Brierly's paper. The problem of cartographic representation of urban areas on medium-scale maps designed for air use was discussed by Lt. Col. Storm C. Rhode, Jr., Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations, Headquarters, U. S. Air Force. Corresponding requirements for maps used by ground forces were described by Lt. Col. Merritt L. Hewlett, Armor G-3, Department of the Army. CONTROL SURVEYS DIVISION The first session of the Control Surveys Division was held on Tuesday morning with Capt. Albert J Hoskinson, Division Chairman, presiding. Capt. H. W. Hemple, Chairman of the Nominating Committee, presented the name of H. C. Fuller, Army Map Service, in nomination as a director of the Control Surveys Division for a term of 3 years. Mr. Fuller was elected by a unanimous vote. Following the business meeting, Milton E. Compton, Jr., Engineer Research and Development Laboratories, presented a paper on "Surveying With the Speed of Light." Mr. Compton discussed the geodimeter, a Swedish-developed device and method for accurately measuring distances. Tests made by ERDL and the U. S. Coast and Geodetic Survey in 1953 over measured base lines indicate an accuracy of better than 1 part in 200,000, with good repeatability. Although the observations must be made at night, an observation can be completed in from 2 to 3 hours. Following Mr. Compton's oral presentation, a movie was presented showing the setup and operation of the geodimeter in measuring a 6-mile base. After answering questions from the floor, Mr. Compton and his associates demonstrated the geodimeter and further explained its operation. The second meeting of the Control Surveys Division, held on Wednesday morning with Chairman Hoskinson presiding, was something |