A reasonably good measure of Crow-flight distance could be obtained by
triangulation (remember the Privy Council directive to Justices of the
Peace in Wales that the bearer (Christopher Saxton) be conducted unto
any high place or hill to view the country and to be aided by 2 or three
local men who knew the neighbourhood - this was c 1570) - one or two
reasonably measured baselines would then suffice to give distances
between church steeples etc - the five miles was unlikely to be argued
about to the odd 100yards.
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