makes a calculation to ascertain the course he should run across the tract so as cut off twenty-five acres. He runs the line desig nated as north twenty-nine degrees, east, one hundred and nine-tenths perches, and marks the beginning and end of this line. In his calculations he forgets to allow for the variation. All the old courses, by rea son of the variation from lapse of years, have slipped westward. In consequence this new line veers off and takes in two more acres than it should have done, had allowance been made for the variation. Mrs. Reece goes into possession of the piece surveyed off and remains in undisputed possession thereof for ten years, without being aware that she had more than the twenty-five acres that she agreed to buy. After the lapse of this decade of peaceful possession, the same surveyor makes the discovery of his mistake of not having made allowance for the variation. A son of the surveyor has become the owner of the adjoining land on the west, consequently the mistake costs this son the loss of two acres of land. However, time by limitation has not placed the mistake in such a position that it cannot be corrected. So the sur veyor returns upon the land and makes a new line in the attempt to correct his mis take. On the trial resulting over the confusion of lines, the surveyor testifies that the varition of the needle of the compass for the period of time elapsing since lines were originally surveyed would be about four de grees. That in running the new line he had forgotten to make allowance for this varia tion of four degrees, and consequently too much land was embraced in survey of land for Mrs. Reece. That he went back to correct his error and made the correction by going east nine poles on the base line and then running north twenty-five degrees, east one hundred and fifty-four and eight tenths perches, coming out three and five tenths perches west of the original stone corner
which had been established when previously run. That Mrs. Reece was thus left twentyfive acres neat measure by the change. That the survey now made differed from the previous one by removing a large wedge shaped piece of land on the south and add ing a small wedge on the north. A peculiar significance is given to the correction as made by the fact that upon the large wedge-shaped piece of land on the south grew a quantity of valuable timber. This timber is added to the son's pos sessions, who proceeds to cut it down and convert it to his own, uses. Mrs. Reece is. however not satisfied. She brings an action of trespass for damages against the son under a Pennsylvania statute providing that in case of timber trees of another cut down and of the conversion of the same to the use of offender, the party so offending shall be liable to pay to the owner treble the value thereof as a punishment or penalty. The son denies the trespass, alleging in de fense a legal title to the land. The relative surveyor is relied upon to explain the first survey without allowance for the variation and the correction thereof by coming east on the base line and running the line north twenty-five degrees east. There would have been a verdict for the defendant if the trial could have ended be fore the surveyor had been cross-examined. The case hangs upon a question pertaining to the science of surveying. The surveyor has had his own sweet way in the explana tion thereof. Yet further scientific light is to be developed. Courts, lawyers and juries can scarcely be expected to know as much about magnetic needles, true meridians and variations as they do about corporeal and incorporeal hereditaments and other legal ct ceteras. It might easily happen that they might be deceived by the unintentional or intentional errors of those supposed to possess such scientific knowledge. When a blunder is made in the original survey, how are they to
