The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1913-04-19
RAISES A QUESTION OF
ELIGIBILITY

Commissioner Willard Mcdowell to be
County Road Engineer and the haste of
the County Commissioners In making
the appointment has raised so much in
quiry as TO whether the Commissioners
have followed the requirements OF tho
law in making this appointment, that we
inquired of their counsel as to whether
or not they had asked his advice on this
question. Upon learning that they had
not, we asked for an opinion from one of
our local Attorneys. In response TO this
request, said Attorney furnishes us wi. u
the following statement, which we here
with present to the public, knowing as
we do the strong feeling there is in this
county on the matter of the Road Engi
neer:
QUALIFICATIONS OF APPOINTEE.
Section 11Sc, OF Article s, Code or Pub
lie Local Laws of Maryland, provides
that the Governor, on or before May /,
1910, shall appoint some competen.
person to be County Road Engineer
who shall have a sufficient knowledge 4.
civil engineering to enable him to az.
curately make surveys, plats, profiles ana
specifications for the grading, draining,
maintenance, repairs and reconstruction
of the public roads of said county, and
also to do all necessary engineering work
for the building or rebuilding of bridges,
and who shall have had at least tnre,
years experience in road engineer
work and road construction" The said
section provides, as), for the appoint
ment by the County Commissioners Of
the successor to the appointee OF tne
Governor but limits the Commissioners
in making said appointment to "A class
of persons having the qualifications here.
tofore mentioned
The section mentioned does not make it
mandatory upon the Commissioners to
select a person having taken IA degree in
engineering, but does with clear and di-
rect eXpr SIS. on limit the selection from
class of persons WHO SHALL HAVE
A SUFFICIENT KNOWLEDGE OF CIVIL
ENGl NEERlNG TO ENABLE HIM to
ACCURATELY MAKE SURVEYS, PLATS,
PROFILES, AND ALSO TO DO
THE NE CESSARY ENG. NEERlNG WORK
FOR BUILDING AND REBUILDING OF
BRIDGES, AND WHO SHALL HAVE
HAD At LEAST THREE YEARS EN-
PERIENCE IN ROAD ENGINEERING
WORK, ETC"
There is a class of persons in certain
profess ons known to the law as quail
fed " For instance, the Law of Mary
land permits IA person to mix and com
pound drugs although such person may
not be graduate in pharmacy. The law
makers regard such a person litIcd to
discharge the duties and responsibility of
drug mixing and compromising by reason
OF years OF experience under competent
tutorage.
The use OF the language sufficient
knowledge of civil engineering = = = y
TO ACCURATELY MAKE SURVEYS,
PLATS, PROFlLES and al
so TO DO THE NECESSARY ENGl-
NEERING WORK for the building and re-
building of bridges" seems to leave no
doubt and make it perfectly clear that
the Legislature intended that the per-
son selected must either be a graduate
engineer or one who had become quail
fed" by study and experience
A qualified engineer stands in my
opinion, in analogy to a qualified phar
mar.st.
The Act goes further and requires that
the person, selected, however we'll fitted
from the viewpoint of technical training
and education, must have had three
years experience on road cngnecrin
work and public road engineering was
the only character of engineering in the
contemplation of the Act.
REMEDY
Section ll2d provides that the engi-
neer may be removed from Office for in
competency or wilful neglect of duty
and further, sets forth the manner
which the charges shall be brought and
how the case Shall be conducted to CON
cMs.on.
1t seems clear to me that the said se'-
ton presupposes that the engineer has
been selected from the proper class and
has the qualifications prescribed in the
previous section and that the charge of
'incompetency or wilful neglect of duty"
has arisen after the engineer assumed
Office and was attempting to discharge
or was failing to discharge, the duties OF
his said Office. If the engineer We're Sc
leCted from the eligible class by II
Comm ss!onors there could be no way o.
removal, except by the method pres
crihed by the said section and tlen only
after positive and convincing proof of
his 'inc!mpctcncy or wilfu neglect of
duty But suppose the Comm ss.oncra
ignore the plGin provisions or the Act
in respect to the qualifications pres
Crited therein. what do We find? The
only answer is that THE APPOINTMENT
Is VOID ABB lNITIO and, therefore. be-
ing such an appointment as the Com
m!ssioners were unauthorized to make
is an ultra vii cs act and the payment OF
any money to such appointee is restrain
able by application to a Court of
Equity. \ petit on for an Injunction to