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lesse, soe as noe surveyor could foresee wheather hee should be able to performe his respective undertakinge at the rate above said, or that hee should not gaine exorbitantly by it.
Hereupon Dr Petty propounded that the whole land should be measured both accordinge to its civill bounds, viz., by barronyes, parishes, townelands, ploughlands, balliboes, &c., and alsoe by its naturall boundings by rivers, ridges of mountaines, rockes, loughes, boggs, &c.; as answeringe not onely the very ends of satisfyinge the adventurers and souldiers then in view, but all such other future ends whatsoever as are usually expected from any survey.
The objection was, that the same would not be don under twenty yeares tyme, and the settlement must be soe longe retarded. It was answered, that security should be given for performinge the whole in thirteen months, provided the allowance might be somewhat extraordinary. Hereuppon the army agree to give out of theire owne purses soe much as should be requisite over and above what the councell were limitted unto by theire superiours.
This undertakinge extended onely to the provinces of Ulster, Lienster, and Manster (that of Connaght beinge reserved for the Irish), nor unto all the lands in the said three provinces, although the same labour and method would have effected the whole, and more, as well as what was.
Now the method and order used by the said Petty in this vast worke was as followeth, viz.:
Whereas surveyors of land are commonly persons of gentile and liberall education, and theire practise esteemed a mistery and intricate matter, farr exceedinge the most parte of mechanicall trades, and withall, the makeinge of theire instruments is a matter of much art and nicety, if performed with that truth and beauty as is usuall and requisite. The said Petty, consideringe the vastnesse of the worke, thought of dividinge both the art of makeinge instruments, as alsoe that of usinge them into many partes, vizt., one man made onely measuringe chaines, vizt., a wire maker; another magneticall needles, with theire pins, vizt., a watchmaker; another turned the boxes out of wood, and the heads of the stands on which the instrument playes, vizt., a turnor; another, the stands or leggs, a pipe maker; another all the brasse worke, vizt., a founder; another workman, of a more versatile head and hand, touches the needles, adjusts the sights and cards, and adaptates every peece to each other.
In the meane tyme scales, protractors, and compasse-cards, beinge matters of accurate division, are prepared by the ablest artists of London.
Whether alsoe was sent for, a magazin of royall paper, mouth-glew, colours, pencills, &c. At the same tyme, a perfect forme of a ffeeild booke haveinge bin first
