The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-04-06
EXAMINING SURVEYORS,
They Ask the Governor to Dis
charge Them From
Office.
Their Work Is All in Vain as 1t
Is Not Properly Pro-
tected.

The members of the State Board of Exam
ing Surveyors have decided to resign in a
body, for they think their organization, as
it at present exists, is a failure. They
were formed for the purpose of examining
applicants who desired to adopt surveying
as profession and of issuing licenses to
any successful applicant who might be
examined. There is no law, however, COM
polling persons to pass the board examina-
tons, and so it frequently happens that
men who had failed to pass had themselves
licensed by application to other surveyors,
. not members Of the board. The board, as
"a whole, has written the following letter
to Governor Budd, asking that they be dis
enlarged and giving the reasons which i'm
pei them to resign:
Dear Sir: We, the undersigned, who were ap-
pointed on the 9th day of May 1891 as mem
: bers OF the State Board of Examining Survey
ors Tor the term OF one year, or until our sue
cessors were appointed, desire it to be gener-
: ally known that we consider ourselves relieved
from the duties of this commission for the fol-
lowing reasons
: That said appointment was only made for
/: the term of one year, and that there was O.
doubt in our minds to the legality OF any
such commission after the expiration OF that
time.
:. That no further appointments having been
made, and as it was the urgent desire of
"A DIOtHtI uleu1DeES u our profession, We cOutlD-
ued to sign applications for licenses as licensed
surveyors, at the same time allowing the GEN
eral impression to exist that the life of said
board continued beyond this limit of one wear
with the hope that by doing so and requiring a
strict examination from all applicants for q
license we could exclude such persons as were
unqualified from reaping the benefits supposed
to be conferred by this law. That If the idea
should generally prevail OF the legal cortinu-
ance of this board there would be less likeli-
hood for the candidates to make use of n clause
in the law which allows any three men holding
license to legally sign applications in place of
the board. That knowing of the existence of
this board those holding licenses would hest
tate to sign applications without its sanction.
During our term of four years we have endeay-
ored to raise the class of men who have OBJ
tanned licenses, but we have found our work
the signatures of these outside par
ties, in many instances they being placed upon
the applications of parties who had either re-
fused TO stand an examination before the board
or had absolutely failed in their attempts to
pass. Finding this and many other points in
the law that interfered with its practical work
ing we had bin introduced before the last
Legislature 10 obviate them, which, we regret 10
say, has not become law, owing to the alleged
opposition OF the principal OF q so-called Pri-
mary School of Surveying in San Francisco
Feeling that a continuance OF such duties url-
der the present law and circumstances is worse
than useless, and finding that ii is becoming
more common among parties holding licenses
TO sign applications, the result OF which action
viii reflect upon us and be one cause tending
to the lowering OF the standard OF the profess
sion rather than TO the elevation OF the same,
we beg to be relieved from any further duties
or obligations which may still be attached to
the old appointment. We remain, yours re-
spectfully, S. HARRISON SMITH,
FRED EATON,
/. T. BAssETT.
orro Won GELDERN, Secretary of the Board OF
Examining Surveyors.