> In my (not at all humble) opinion, there are two very different kinds of > text evidence, and they should be considered very differently. The first > is a simple numerical/distance statement, the second is an account of > travel time (either explicitly or implicitly). The first is *far* more > subject to typos, "mistransalations" and what have you than the second. > Hence, I would put a great deal more weight on "story" evidence than on > "numbers" evidence, if the two conflict. "Men have invented various names in which to measure distance, and have taken a certain pleasure in assigning units of one to the other ... yet, for all of this measurement, it is understood by those who travel and by those who listen to travelers that the meaningful unit by which distance can be measured is time. "It is true, for example, that the distance from the Gate of the Darr to Ripple Point is scarcely a league, while it is a good thirty leagues from the Gate of Iron to Fosson's Well, yet, because the latter is over level ground with a good road laid on it, while the former is nearly straight up a mountainside covered in loose and crumbling rock, we may in justice assert that each of these places lies the same distance from the heart of Dragaera City, that distance being about thirty hours" -- Paarfi, Paths of the Dead, pg 211 Beyond that, I agree that travel time seems generally more reliable to me than someone spouting off a distance from memory (or worse yet, guessing). For example, no one should trust my answer if I am asked, "What is the distance from Boston to San Diego?" :) > By the by, we should probably start using each other's obsessive work in > our own, especially as regards travel times :-) You have beaten me to it... I have been debating this same suggestion for the last few days, especially after my frustration with Pepperfield/Redface. I agree entirely. And now, for something completely different: Just to give you all some insight into how I wrangle a map out of the text, I'm betting "the Gate of Iron" is on the north side of Dragaera City, as the Holdfree Mines (and apparently mines in general) are to the north of Dragaera City. Then again, Vlad says there are mountains to the west of DC, but from the above, Ripple Point is just outside of the Gate of the Darr (a mountainous creature, from what I gather--a nice tough hide, suitable for making boots from, and Mica is terrorized by a Darr when traveling south from Deathgate back to Dzur Mountain), so I'm betting Darr=West, Iron=North. Bryan