5008 ARTICLE 23.

of his official duties hereunder; and the said County Road Engineer
shall hold office for two years from the first Tuesday of June, 1929,
unless sooner removed for cause or by the County Commissioners as
hereinafter provided; and the County Commissioners shall make such
appointments without any reference whatever to the political opinions of
the person so appointed.

1912, ch. 331, sec. 116. 1922, ch. 402, sec. 116.

237. The said County Road Engineer shall not be liable to removal
from office for any reason other than immorality, incompetency or wilful
neglect of duty, and then upon the sworn complaint of ten or more resi-
dent taxpayers of Wicomico County, to be filed with the said County-
Commissioners, or upon complaint by the clerk of the County Commis-
sioners, filed by their direction; and every such complaint shall state
specifically the nature and character of the charges preferred, of which
due notice shall be given the said County Road Engineer; and if the said
County Commissioners, after hearing such charges, at which the engineer
and the parties making complaint shall be entitled to be represented by
counsel and to produce any competent testimony, shall find that said
County Road Engineer is immoral, incompetent or has been guilty of wilful
neglect of duty, it shall be their duty to immediately remove said County
Road Engineer from office; but either party to such hearing shall be enti-
tled to an appeal from the decision of said County Commissioners to the
Circuit Court for Wicomico County; provided, that such appeal is taken
within five days thereafter; and when such appeal shall be made in writ-
ing, it shall be the duty of the clerk to the County Commissioners to at
once file all papers, with the ruling of the County Commissioners, with
the clerk to the Circuit Court for said county, and the clerk to the Circuit
Court shall place said appeal on the Appeal Docket of said court, which
appeal shall be heard de novo without the intervention of a jury in recess
or in term time; and the court shall fix a date for hearing of said appeal,
of which date the appellant and appellee shall have at least five days
notice, and the clerk shall issue subpoenas for witnesses, and the court
may affirm or overrule the action of the County Commissioners as to
removing or not removing said engineer and may award costs. But if the
order of the County Commissioners removing such engineer, shall be
affirmed, then in such case the said engineer shall not be entitled to receive
any salary from the date of the order of the County Commissioners from
which such appeal is taken. Pending an appeal where such engineer has
been removed the County Commissioners may employ another engineer
with the same duties, as by this Article provided for the Road Engineer,
or a majority of all of the County Commissioners may by resolution remove
said engineer after giving him at least sixty days' prior notice in writing
and appoint a successor to fill the unexpired term of said engineer in the
same manner as herein provided in case of a vacancy.

And the said Road Engineer before entering upon the discharge of his
duties as provided for in this Act shall within thirty days give a bond