WORCESTER COUNTY. 5263

or may agree with the owner or owners thereof for the purchase, use, occu-
pation or removal of the same, and if they cannot agree, or if the owner
or owners, or any of them be an infant feme covert, who is not possessed
of the property to her sole and separate use, or authorized to contract with
reference to the same, non compos mentis, or out of the town when such
property may be wanted, or for any cause be legally incapable of contract-
ing, application may be made by the Mayor to any one of the judges of
the Circuit Court for Worcester County, who shall thereupon issue his
warrant to the sheriff of the county, requiring him to summon a jury of
twenty qualified voters of said town, above the age of twenty-one years
and qualified to act as jurors under the laws of this State, not related to
the parties, nor in any wise interested, to meet on the lands or near the
materials of property wanted for the proposed improvement on a day
named in said warrant, not less than ten or more than twenty days after
issuing the same; and if, at the said time and place, any of the said jurors
summoned do not attend, the sheriff shall immediately summon as many
persons similarly qualified as, together with those in attendance, shall
make up twenty, and from the panel each party, his, her, its or their
agent or attorney, or if either party be not present in person or by agent,
or being present in person or by agent, refuse to strike, the sheriff, for
him, her, it or them, may strike off four persons, and the remaining twelve
shall act as the jury of inquest of damages; and to each, before he acts
as juror, the said sheriff shall administer an oath or affirmation that he
will justly and impartially value the damage which the owner or owners
will sustain by the use and occupation .of the property required by the
Mayor and Council, and assess the benefits to be derived by the owner
thereof from the proposed improvement, and the said jury shall reduce
their inquisition to writing and sign and seal the same; and it then shall
be returned by the said sheriff to the Circuit Court for Worcester County,
and shall be filed by the clerk in his office, and shall be confirmed by said
court if not sufficient cause to the contrary be shown within thirty days
after the time of filing the same, and when confirmed shall be recorded
by the clerk at the expense of the Mayor and Council of Pocomoke City;
but if the same be set aside, the said court shall direct another inquisition
to be taken in the manner above described; and in case the second or any
other inquisition which is confirmed by the court shall not award to the
land owners a larger amount of damages than was awarded by the first
inquisition, the court may in its discretion order the costs of the second
or other inquisition to be paid by the owner or owners of said land or
materials condemned; and the inquisition shall in all cases describe the
property taken or the bounds of the land condemned, and the quality or
duration of the interest in the same, and the valuation the jury have put
upon it, and the valuation the jury have put upon the benefit which the
owner of the condemned land will derive from the proposed improvement;
and the valuation of the land, less the valuation of benefits, when paid
or tendered to the owner or owners of property, his, her or their legal
representatives, or when paid into court under such condition as the court