722                               LAWS OF MARYLAND                        [CH. 355

an attorney who has filed written appearance in the proceeding on
behalf of the applicant.

17.    Filing and effect of application; warrant; notice.

(a)    Priority and filing. After receipt of an application in
proper form and payment of any fees and deposit required by law,
it shall be filed by the Commissioner. All applications shall be con-
sidered for filing in the order received by the Commissioner; and
after the filing of any application, no warrant for the survey or
resurvey of any land described therein shall be issued upon any
subsequent application, unless the first application is withdrawn or
is not perfected within the time prescribed by this subtitle.

(b)    Contents of warrant. When an application has been filed, the
Commissioner shall issue his warrant to the surveyor named in the
application. The warrant shall recite the name and address of the
applicant, the date on which it was filed, the nature of the request
made in the application, and a description of the alleged vacant land
and/or the land to be resurveyed as described in the application.
The warrant shall authorize and direct the surveyor to lay out and
carefully survey the vacant land and/or to resurvey the land
described therein. It shall enjoin the surveyor to prepare an accurate
plat and description by metes and bounds of the alleged vacant
land and/or land to be resurveyed; to run no lines within the lines
of any former patent; to correct any errors in the original survey of
any land to be resurveyed; to compute the area of any vacant land
comprehended within the description and plat so prepared; and to
return his certificate thereon to the Commissioner within six months
from the date of the warrant. The warrant shall be signed by the
Commissioner and his seal affixed thereto.

(c)    Notice. At the time that the warrant is issued, the Com-
missioner shall give notice thereof by registered or certified mail,
return receipt requested, to each adjoining landowner named in the
application and to the Board of Public Works. Notice of the issuance
of such warrant shall also be inserted by the applicant once each
week for two successive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation
published in any county in which any portion of the land described
in the application is situated. Notices referred to in this subsection
shall contain the information required as recitals in the warrant,
the date of the issuance of the warrant, and the name and address
of the surveyor to whom it was directed. A certificate of the
publication of such notice shall be filed in the proceeding.

18.    Conduct of surveyor; certificate of survey or resurvey.

(a)    Execution of warrant; rules for conduct. After thirty days
from the date of issuance of the warrant, but not less than two weeks
from the date of the last insertion of the notice required by Section
17, the surveyor shall proceed to execute the warrant. The Com-
missioner may prescribe rules for the conduct of surveyors which
are supplemental to the requirements of this subtitle.

(b)    Certificate. After the surveyor has surveyed the alleged
vacant land and/or the land to be resurveyed he shall prepare and
verify by his affidavit two copies of a certificate, which shall be
returned to the Commissioner within six months from the date of
the issuance of the warrant. In any case the Commissioner may, in
his discretion, extend the time for the return of the certificates upon