Final answer:
The surveyor is likely using the Public Land Survey System (PLSS), which uses baselines and meridians to create a standardized grid system for property division, in contrast to the more irregular metes and bounds system used by English settlers.
Step-by-step explanation:
When a surveyor references terms such as baselines and meridians during property surveying, he is most likely using the Public Land Survey System (PLSS), sometimes also known as the Rectangular Survey System. This system, proposed by Thomas Jefferson, replaced the metes and bounds system, and uses a grid to create uniform parcels of land. Baselines are the east-west lines from which latitude is measured, and meridians are the north-south lines from which longitude is determined.
The metes and bounds system, introduced by English settlers during the colonial period, utilized natural landmarks to demarcate property boundaries, resulting in irregularly shaped plots. Contrarily, the PLSS uses a more logical approach, involving a rectangular grid system to simplify property boundaries and create a robust middle class of yeoman farmers, reinforcing American democracy.
Overall, the PLSS aimed to organize land division in a more standardized way, facilitating land transactions and making the process of measuring and navigating property lines much clearer and more manageable in comparison to the unpredictable and often disputed metes and bounds system.