HERBERT R, O'CONOR, GOVERNOR. 1851

shall constitute a Commission to examine and report on the
proposed improvement; and if the said Commission or a ma-
jority of them shall certify to the Mayor and City Council
that any land, building, material or other property of any
kind or description belonging to any person or corporation,
or the removal thereof shall be necessary or convenient for the
construction of the proposed improvement, the Mayor and
City Council ma}' acquire such property, attempting to agree
with the owner or owners thereof as to the terms of the pur-
chase, use, occupation or removal of the same, and if they
cannot agree with the owner or owners, or if there be some
legal disability to contract their agreeing, then the Mayor
and City Council may acquire the same by condemnation pro-
ceedings, which, if not otherwise provided for, shall be con-
ducted in the manner following, that is to say: A petition
shall be filed in the Circuit Court for Harford County in the
name of the Mayor and City Council of Havre de Grace setting
forth a description of the property proposed to be acquired,
together with a statement of the purpose for which the same
is desired, and that the board, commission, agents, agenty
persons or person authorized to acquire the same are unable
to agree with the owner or owners thereof, or that one or
more of said owners are under age, non compos mentis, the
unknown heirs of some deceased person or persons, non-resi-
dents of Harford County, under some legal disability to con-
tract, or are unknown, whichever may be the fact or facts
that cause the condemnation proceedings, and said petition
shall contain the prayer that the court will have the said
property condemned, the court shall thereupon pass an order
requiring a summons issued for the owner or owners, or
supposed owner or owners of the property, and the husbands
and wives respectively of those who may be named, to be
served by the Sheriff and to be returned by some day to be
named in said order, not less than ten nor more than twenty
days from the day of the filing of said petition; and if the
owner or owners, or any of them, be not summoned before
the return day of the said summons, the same may be renewed
from time to time as often as the court, in its discretion, may
think proper, or, if the said owner or owners, or any of them,
are non-residents of Harford County or are unknown or cannot
be found upon reasonable inquiry, the Court shall order the
Sheriff to set up a copy of the summons upon the property,
and shall order a notice to said non-resident or non-residents,
or unknown owner or owners, or unknown heirs of such de-
ceased person or persons, or the owner or owners who can-
not be found and served with summons, to be published once
a week for four successive weeks in one or more newspapers