From Archibald McLachlan   Sunday - 9 Sep-

Sunday¹ – 9 Sep–

I had scribbled the beginning of a reply to Veritas² – Lo! the postman gave up 2 letters & a N paper³ – and now I am puzzled, I thought Veritas was a R.E.⁴ or the letter was written by their authority, or permission – How to answer it, and not give too much importance to Veritas – If he really is as you say – it would be foolish to descend from your cloud to grapple with a worm– other worms will start up, this must not be – However, you could crush him sideways –

I think you & D⁵ are fully equal to all that is wanted – I will therefore give you only hints – dont follow me I pray you – use my hints only as helps, not as dictations!!

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To Sir R P⁶

I addressed you in the Mercury⁷ of 1^st Sp:⁸ – on public grounds for public good – spoke of a great public work – and a great public injury. I attacked no man’s private character, but public men, & public grievances &c. &c. To that letter a reply has by some party been attempted, and only attempted – I shall not stoop to notice the productions of inferior agents, men ignorant of the subject – grossly ignorant – I have animadverted⁹ on the O.S.I.¹⁰ & by consequence the professional qualifications &c. of the principle Directors of that work. And I now publicly call on Richard G.¹¹ C.E.¹² Dublin who conducted & conducts the valuation to contradict me and reprove me publicly if I am wrong – I call on the R.E. all or any of them to come forth and defend themselves – I do not want your name, sign yourself a R.E. and I am satisfied – If all has been done honourably & efficiently you will have no reason to fear from any encounter – the more the thing is discussed the more your valuable services to the public will be appreciated. Again I say the R.E. employed on the O.S.¹³ come forth – a dignified silence will not be construed into a conscious feeling of rectitude on your part – Defend your conduct, your professional career in Ireland – in England – and do not allow any ignoramus to assume your position. An explanation from you is due to your professional character, to the B of Or:¹⁴ to the Parliament & to the Country – I will not reply to inferiors – But lest you Sir R.P. should fall into the error of supposing the letter of Veritas in the Mercury of Sep. 8^th is the effusion of some R.E. and thereby conceive a low estimate of their statistical!! knowledge on the points in question, I will go out of the line I had marked out for myself, and dispose of some of its assertions – but shall not give any promise of noticing such foolish production in future. –

I notice this letter because & only because you may fall into error, & suppose it is by some R.E. well acquainted with the subject, &c.

& 1^st The estimated expense of the O.S.I. was 300,000 – & time 7 years – read the evidence given before the Com: of the Ho of Com¹⁵ 1824 – this was the sum nearly – & time – nearly – less would not complete it – much more was not anticipated, and the estimate was as correct as estimates generally are, and made by parties accustomed to drawing estimates.

2^nd This was the estimate for completing a ‘Townland Survey’¹⁶ – which survey was to form the basis of a land valuation, & for these, Acts of Par.¹⁷ were passed.

3^rd Did the R.E. understand the nature and description of the maps necessary for valuation of lands, houses &c. – If it be said the R.E. were deceived by the defective nature of their instructions, I ask them for a copy of their instructions – if they say the words ‘Townland S.’ are ambiguous, I ask when was this ambiguity discovered – I ask them who drew up the Code of regulations or instructions commonly called C.C’s¹⁸ blue book. This Blue book (The last time I saw it was in Clonmel,¹⁹ with Cap. Boyle,²⁰ perhaps he has it yet – but I cant recollect the page – Has nobody in the Dis:²¹ office a copy – the page is not so important – the fact is a true fact, it is there – I think about page 6) or book of instructions was written previous to the commencement of the actual operations, and demonstrated that the writer knew well the nature of the maps required – In this book it is stated ‘that the plans are to be drawn by a scale of 6 inches to a mile with all the accuracy and minuteness of detail of which that scale admits’ this is plain speaking, no word here of roads and boundaries, nor any distinction of relative accuracy of the detail – every thing was to be as accurate as the scale would admit – So the blunder cannot be attributed to any ignorance on the part of those who drew up the regulations or instructions. But if they still persist and say they were deceived, or had not proper orders &c – what follows? That a body of RE. – empowered by the British Par: commenced a grand national undertaking, which when concluded is to be creditable to the country & the scientific acquirement of the age, A Colonel 5 Cap: 25 L^ts22 commence and proceed – without any individual of that number knowing any thing of the matter, did not know whether they were acting right or wrong, and never enquired – however, they acted and continued to act till certain maps were sent to M^r Griffith CE. Dublin for the purpose of valuation – and he found them of no use –

4 When M^r G. after an attempt [at] a valuation, returned the maps as erroneous and useless, and a note of the errors existing in the maps. Here is the secret of the maps being abandoned. The R.E now found by experience that their maps were useless and dearly did the country pay for their experience – these maps were not condemned because of deficiency of detail, but because – Boundaries – Roads – houses – every thing was wrong. – even Trig heights & Distances were wrong –

5. Let M^r Griffith be examined before the Ho of Com: and a few simple plain questions will settle the point –

Sunday night – 10^th Sep.

To day I have perpetrated a dreadful scribble. I had little time to do it in – and sent it to you 1/2 finished. I am half sorry that I did scribble it – for since I sent it to post, I have been engaged in conversation with one of the good ones, on various subjects, among the rest, Veritas. My Gent:²³ is of opinion that Veritas is either a R.E. or one writing at his dictation, he says a R.E. would hardly make such admissions and no person would speak so of Col C.²⁴ without permission ‘that Col. C. very wisely and considerately thought it better to keep some’ &c; My gent: says the expressions ‘very wisely and considerately’ are proof that it was written at the dictation of a R.E. – and that the whole tone of the letter bears marks of a R.E. having something to do with it; and also that Spec.²⁵ ‘is very likely to pass by with a sneer of derision,’ for ‘Veritas deserves no other reply.’

I am half of this opinion myself – for if we take much notice of him, another Veritas may take the field and expect to be patronised by his R.E. – Address it to Sir R.P.²⁶ – Express a hope that he will not be misled into the belief that it comes from any person acquainted with the subject – you notice the letter merely for the purpose of expressing your contempt of his presumption and ignorance in introducing the name of Col. C. without authority & coupling the name of Col. C. with such absurd statements, for that his letter was received with shouts of laughter and derision by every man acquainted with the subject – give him 2 or 3 [home] blows and leave the creature –

The scribble I committed to day was done in haste to be in time for the post – I did not finish it; but on reflecting on what I have since heard, it would be better for Spec: not to enter into a lengthened reply, and to treat him as undeserving of such an honor!!! And reserve your heavy guns for a weightier opponent – now when I think on’t, I am half ashamed of fighting such a spooney!²⁷ – You and I may think otherwise – Kill him, you have an easy job! –

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On my conscience when I think of it, it would be burning shame for Spec: to thunder on such worthless creature – Tho’ not for the present, yet for future use, you may recollect the following – A field S.²⁸ was not by M^r G.²⁹ or any of his valuers considered necessary for their valuation; in certain cases general, or principal lines of fences, or where a leading large fence sub–divided a townland, such a fence would be found useful on the maps – a field S. was never dreamt by Col. C. nor M^r G. nor Parliament – nor were fences surveyed till after the revision had progressed considerably & until the R.E. had time to look about them a little – in Down, Antrim-Derry & some others, fences were not surveyed in the revision except now and then a leading fence.

The Blue Book – ‘Accuracy & minuteness of detail’ – I have said the R.E. fell into a mistake in surveying every field; now on comparing these together you get into a ‘fix’, well I must bring you and myself out of it. Now I maintain that those words ‘accuracy & minuteness’ are written by a scientific man on a scientific subject; I will take the words in an Engineering & Surveying signification, this is their plain obvious meaning, that every thing is to be done perfectly accurate; Everything is to be mapped, correctly mapped. – Now Sir! I demand of you or any man, what standard of minuteness & accuracy had the writer in view, when he wrote those words? had he the map of some gentleman’s estate, which was done by some good practical Surveyor? had he a good Irish Baronial map in view? Such as were drawn for the Grand Jury, and adjusting Grand jury Ass.³⁰ such as that done by Armstrong³¹ of the C^o. Armagh?³² – or was it a map drawn at the academy at Woolwich³³ by Cadets? – I maintain it was the latter he had in view; that he had no idea of ‘Accuracy, or minuteness’ beyond the accuracy of Woolwich Academy, and ignorant of the practical accuracy necessary for a valuation of lands, houses &c. &c.

If you reject the assertion of No. 2, as being inconsistent with the scientific character, and long experience of Col. C. – inconsistent with the idea Parliament & the B of Or entertained of him – Then you must adopt N^o.1. I say you must adopt N^o. 1. – Then what follows? Why, a ‘Fix’ – a Devil of a Fix – When was No. 1 written? it was written before, or at the beginning of the S. – When was it discovered, that it was found necessary! to abandon the old maps, and commence a detail S. – Why, 6 years after N^o 1 was written – this is the real fix, and I leave Carbon³⁴ to take which he pleases – If he chooses N^o 1. then I say, that the necessity of a detail survey was known by him from the very beginning, detail & accuracy, both were known to be essential. I am right then when I say, they or he fell into a mistake when he adopted a field survey – he was equally mistaken when he surveyed by actual admeasurement³⁵ small ponds – ½ acres of bog – & waste lands of 1 acre and many other trifles not considered necessary by M^r G. – if he says, no; I was not mistaken in 1832-3-4-5 &c then I reply you must have been mistaken in 1825-6-7 &c – your book proves it – your book – explain your meaning in that, and all is settled –

The apparent inconsistency of my words which place you in a ‘fix’ lies in this, that ‘minuteness and accuracy’ admits of two meanings – in my reasoning here I adopt the reasoning of N^o 2 – yet in conclusion, I will retract my expressions in the letter on the OSI ‘that they fell into a mistake of an opposite nature &c’ because if you are thrown by those expressions into a fix, others might be so too – so– expunge the words – then I am out of the fix but Carbon is into it.

C.B.³⁶ has returned from London, black as thunder – It is reported that Acid³⁷ is to come with his Dt.³⁸ office – The Trig party³⁹ has gone to Preston and among them there are no trumps! – B.⁴⁰

I do not speak mysteriously – I name a man – Mr G.C.E.⁴¹ who was appointed to carry into execution the valuation – and I think that the R.E. should for the honour of their corps have the man examined.

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Veritas says that experience had proved that a survey of mere roads and boundaries was insufficient – Who found out this insufficiency – experience proved it – it follows that inexperience of the R.E. was the cause of the Blunder – for had M^r G. himself surveyed the county his practical experience of the affairs of civil life would have saved him from such an egregious blunder – in fact the maps done by the R.E. were mere military skeleton maps, such as they make at Woolwich, they have no idea of what was wanted for land valuation. When it was discovered the maps were useless – the news of that fact came like a Thunderbolt, it spread panic and dismay – why all this if they were conscious of having acted up to their orders. The Col. blamed the Cap. Cap. blamed the L^t. the L^t. threw the odium on the men, the men retorted – & each party concealing the fact from the public why all this? Veritas would call this ‘experience’

The old method was abandoned: was there any new act of Par:? No – any new code of law or instructions? No – It was because M^r G. would not receive them

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It is said that a detail S. would require thrice the time & money of a skeleton S. – Surely [Nimms], Bald, Telford⁴² &c. &c. such men could surely give a correct opinion on the subject – and their replies show that they and Parliament understood well the nature of the required survey – and cost –

Veritas asserts that the original, was a mere skeleton S. and that a detail S. occupies 3 times the time and 3 times the money of a skeleton S. – according to this the whole affair stands thus:

Original 7 years time misspent		––––	7 – 200.000
Detail – 21 – –	= 900,000	––––	21 – 900.000
			–28 –11.00.00043

⁴⁴

I did not think the amount was so much, and I give this statement that the R.E. themselves may see the necessity of giving correct documentary proof of the facts – and not leaving it to such as Veritas.

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As to the pay of the men – the same absence of facts is shown by Veritas; from 1830 up to the present moment there has been not much difference in respect to the pay of the men; it is certain that a few men receive good salaries – we should make a distinction between the Boards men – and Colonel Colbys men, also a great distinction between the Irish & English Surveys. On the Irish Survey the average amount of pay did not amount to 1/6. On the English Survey it does not amount to 2/6 – there are men who have been employed on the OSI 6-10-14-15 years who do not get 3/6 – take any party of surveyors in any part of the S. & the pay does not amount to 3/. at least it was so lately. In 1842 when there was no deficiency of funds the men were as badly paid as at present.

There is no military men in Her Majesty’s dominions endure so much fatigue as the Royal Sap: & M:⁴⁵ employed in the field work on the O.S.E.⁴⁶ & O.S.I. and there are no military men so shamefully treated &c &c in fact the men are and were paid not by any fixed standard but by the prices of Provisions in their locality – care being taken by the R.E. to discover the prices of meat, potatoes, milk &c. – & regulate the pay of the men according to that – I am borne out in this by every man who reads this letter on the O.S. – Some men after having toiled for 12 months, are recommended to the notice of their superiors as deserving men, & their pay is raised from 2/2 to 2/3!!!!! and as much formality about the action as if great public advantage were conferred –

Post time | more tomorrow.

RI MS JT/1/TYP/11/3794-3799

RI MS JT/8/1/4a