1716 PUBLIC EDUCATION. [ART. 77

provided, however, that all county school commissioners heretofore
appointed under this section, as amended by chapter 79 of the acts of
1900, shall serve out the terms for which they were respectively
appointed and designated; and provided further, that at the time of
making the appointment of the three additional school commissioners
for Montgomery county, as herein provided, the governor shall designate
the terms of years of each of the said additional commissioners. The
term of office of the said commissioners, after the expiration of the term
for which first appointed, shall be a term of six years; said persons
shall be men of high character, integrity and capacity. Two of said
appointees for the counties of Baltimore, Carroll, Frederick, Dorches-
ter, Washington and Montgomery and one of said appointees for each
of the other counties shall be selected and appointed by the governor
from the political party which at the last preceding election for gov-
ernor cast next to the highest number of votes in the State, so that said
minority party shall always have a proper representation upon each of
said boards. The governor may remove for incompetency, neglect of
duty or misconduct any person so appointed by him as commissioner
of public schools after giving due notice to such person of the charges
made against him and a reasonable opportunity to be heard in his own
defense. In case of vacancy by death, removal from the county,
removal from office by the governor, resignation or disqualification
from any cause, the governor shall fill such vacancy with an appointee
from the same political party as that of the person whose position shall
have become vacated.

The board of county school commissioners is required to act strictly within
its delegated authority, and to apply its funds accordingly. Wiley v. School
Commissioners, 51 Md. 405. See also, Weddle v. School Commissioners, 94
Md. 342.

The history of this section traced. In this section the legislature was
careful to declare the power given to belong, not to the Individuals, but to
the corporation—see notes to section 23. School Commissioners v. Golds-
borough, 90 Md. 202 (decided prior to the act of 1900, ch. 29, and the act of
1906, ch. 353).

Mandamus is the appropriate remedy to obtain possession of an office.
Powers and rights of a de facto officer. School Commissioners v. School
Commissioners, 77 Md. 288.

When a vacancy exists. If there is no vacancy, there can be no appoint-
ment. When the governor is authorized to fill a vacancy for the balance of
an unexpired term, such appointment is not within the state constitution,
article 2, section 11, providing that the commissions of officers appointed
during the recess of the legislature shall only continue in force until the end
of the next session. Unless there is some law to the contrary, an officer who
is appointed for a definite term holds over until his successor qualifies.
When an appointment is made to fill a vacancy, the appointee holds in the
same manner as the person whose place he takes. Ash v. McVey, 85 Md.
126; School Commissioners T. Goldsborough, 90 Md. 204. (Both cases
decided prior to the act of 1900, ch. 29, and the act of 1906, ch. 353).

Article 2, section 13, of the state constitution relative to newly appointed
civil officers being nominated to the senate within fifty days from the com-
mencement of each regular session, construed in connection with the appoint-
ment of school commissioners under the act of 1888, ch. 58. Merrill v. School
Commissioners, 70 Md. 270.

The act of 1900, ch. 29. repealed this section as it then existed and re-en-
acted it so as to require the governor to appoint a new board of school
commissioners for each county in the state. Duer v. Dashiell, 91 Md. 666.