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T O tell where a place is, we must know its direction. But this is not all; we must also know how far it is from us; that is, its distance. To find this out we measure.
You have often heard of an inch, a foot, and a yard.
Your ruler is twelve inches long, that is a foot. Three lengths of your ruler make a yard. A yard stick is three feet long.
With these measures you can tell how long your slate or your desk is, or how long and wide the schoolroom is.
![[Illustration]](http://www.gatewaytotheclassics.com/gold/books/longcc/geography/longcc_geography_zpage022a.gif)
Measuring Short Distances |
The inch, foot, and yard are used for measuring short distances. But when we wish to tell the distance between objects far apart, we use another measure called a mile. A mile is much longer than a yard.
![[Illustration]](http://www.gatewaytotheclassics.com/gold/books/longcc/geography/longcc_geography_zpage022b.gif)
Measuring Long Distances |
Think of some object that is a mile from our schoolhouse. How long would it take you to walk that distance?
How many inches long is your slate? How long is your desk? How many feet long is your room? How wide is it? What is the distance around the room? How many feet wide is each window? Each door? How many yards wide is the nearest street or road?
About what is the height of the schoolroom? Of the schoolhouse? Of the tallest tree near by? Of the nearest church spire?
About how long is the longest street in the town where you live? Do you know how many blocks or squares make a mile? Name the nearest river or creek. Give its direction from the school. In what direction does the water run? Give the direction and distance of the nearest church. What must you know to go to any place?