ODEN BOWIE, ESQUIRE, GOVERNOR. 905

good cause shown, appoint a competent, disinter- ested engineer, not a resident of any county through which said road passes, to examine such crossing and to prescribe the plan and condition thereof, so as not to impede navigation ; and such engineer shall, within twenty days from his ap- pointment, make his return to the Circuit Court of the county where such crossing is to be made, sub- ject to exception by either party; and thereupon the Court shall, at the next term after the filing of said return, proceed to examine the same, and unless good cause is shown, shall approve and confirm the same, and such order of confirmation shall be sufficient authority for the erection, use and occupancy of such bridge, in accordance with such plan ; provided, that no Railroad Company shall be authorized to construct any permanent bridge over any canal of this State which shall be	Appoint En- gineer.
less than twelve feet in the clear above the top water line of said canal ; and the piers and abut- ments of such bridge shall be placed so as not in any manner to contract the width of the canal or interfere with free passage on the towing path.	Height of bridge.
Sec. 21. And be it enacted, That whenever the lines of railroad of any railroad companies in this State, or any portions of such lines, have been, or may be constructed, so as to admit the passage of burden or passengers cars over any two or more of such roads continuously, without break or inter- ruption, such companies are hereby authorized to consolidate themselves into a single corporation, in the manner following :	Two roads may consoli- date.
1. The Directors of said two or more corpora- tions may enter into an agreement, under the cor- porate seal of each, for the consolidation of the said two or more corporations, prescribing the terms and conditions thereof, the mode of carrying the same into effect, the name of the new corpora- tion, the number of the Directors thereof, which shall not exceed thirteen, the time and place of holding the first election of Directors, the number of shares of capital stock in the new corporation, the amount of each share, the manner of convert- ing the shares of capital stock in each of said two or more corporations into shares in such new cor- poration, the manner of compensating stockhold-	Terms and conditions.