55. County engineer.-The board of supervisors of any county may appoint a county engineer who shall be removable at its pleasure. The term of office of each county engineer so appointed shall be three years, unless sooner removed, and his salary shall be fixed by the board of supervisors and be a county charge. The county engineer shall visit and examine the highways in each town of the county and advise and direct the com missioners of highways how to best repair, maintain and improve the same. After such examination the county engineer shall establish such grades and indicate such means of drainage, repairs and improvements as seems to him to be necessary. The county engineer shall forward to the state engineer and surveyor and to the clerk of the board of supervisors of the county at such times as shall be fixed by the state engineer and surveyor his report of the conditions of the highways in each town of the county. He shall carefully inspect the highways in the county which have been improved pursuant to the provisions of chapter one hundred and fifteen of the laws of eigh teen hundred and ninety-eight, and shall furnish a detailed report showing the required repairs and the estimated cost thereof to the state engineer and surveyor at such times as shall be fixed by the state engineer and surveyor. The work of repairing, improving or erecting bridges in any town of such county shall be done under the general supervision of the county engi neer pursuant to plans prepared or approved by him. A county superintendent of highways may be appointed in any county by the board of supervisors instead of a county engineer and when so appointed, he shall have all the powers and perform all the duties herein prescribed for a county engineer. (Added by L. 1893, chap. 333, and amended by L. 1901, chap. 239, L. 1902, chap. 52 and L. 1904, chap. 609.)

This section as formerly added by L. 1893, chap. 333, provided only for the appointment of a county engineer in coun

ties adopting the county road system under the preceding section. The Amendment of 1902 authorized the appointment of a county engineer in any county. His powers have been materially extended by the amendment of 1904, so that under the existing law a county engineer when appointed is given general power of visitaton and inspection over the highways of every town in the county. He is given special control over highways which have been constructed under the so-called State Aid Act, (L. 1898, chap. 115, post p. ). The repairing, improving and erecting of bridges in any town of the county is under his general supervision, and must be pursuant to plans prepared or approved by him.

There is at the present time a decided movement in favor of the expenditure of large sums of money contributed by state, county and towns in the construction, improvement and maintenance of highways. This movement has brought about new and improved methods of construction. The old barbaric methods and devices used by commissioners of highways and other highway officers under former systems are being gradually set aside. The development in road construction necessitates the supervision of competent engineers. It will doubtless only be a short time, if the present movement in the way of improvement of the highways continues, before every county, because of its investment in good roads, will need the aid and constant services of men especially trained as road engineers. The above section will permit the counties to meet. this need by the appointment of competent engineers at a compensation sufficient to enable them to devote practically their entire time to state and county highways.

Duties as to sidepaths.-Upon the appointment of a county engineer the duties of sidepath commissioners, under L. 1899, chap. 152, as amended, and to be assumed by him, and the office of such commissioners is abolished, see L. 1899, chap. 152, § 9, as amended by L. 1904, chap. 342, post.

855-a. Classes of highways; map and survey.-The board of supervisors of any county may cause the highways of the county to be surveyed and designated upon a map in two classes: First, those which have been improved under the provisions of chapter one hundred and fifteen of the laws of eighteen hundred and ninety-eight, and the acts amendatory thereof, or are deemed to be of sufficient public importance to

come within the purposes of that chapter; second, all other highways of the county which may however be further classified by such board of supervisors if deemed of sufficiently different degrees of relative importance for common traffic ana travel. Such survey and map shall be made by the county engineer, if there be one, and copies thereof shall be filed in the office of the state engineer and surveyor, the county clerk of the county, and of each town clerk thereof. Resurveys and amended maps may be similarly made and filed. (Added by L. 1904, chap. 609).

§ 55-b. Maintenance of improved highways.-All highways which have been, or shall hereafter be improved pursuant to the provisions of such chapter one hundred and fifteen of the laws of eighteen hundred and ninety-eight, shall be maintained by the commissioners of highways of the town or towns, where the same are located in accordance with such directions as shall be given for such maintenance by the state engineer and surveyor and such plans, specifications, rules and regulations in addition thereto as may be prescribed therefor by the county engineer, if there be one, and approved by the state engineer and surveyor; so far as practicable, such improved highways shall be maintained by contract. If any of the commissioners of highways shall fail or neglect to properly provide for the care and maintenance of such improved highways within such time and in such manner as may be prescribed, the county engineer, if there be one, may cause the same to be performed and the expense thereof shall be paid by the county treasurer out of any funds in his possession not otherwise ap propriated, upon whom such county engineer shall make a draft therefor and the amount thereof shall be included by the board of supervisors of such county in its next annual tax levy as a county charge, unless the same be apportioned upon the town or towns which such board deems benefited thereby, in

which case it shall be included in the tax so levied upon the town or towns to which it shall be apportioned. Nothing herein shall be deemed to limit the powers of the state engineer or surveyor over any such roads. The board of supervisors of any county, may, by a resolution duly passed, determine that the maintenance of such improved highways or any other highways within the county shall be under the sole control and care of the county engineer, subject to the rules and regulations of the state engineer and surveyor, and upon the adoption of such plan by the board of supervisors, the expense of said maintenance shall be paid by the county treasurer upon the draft of the county engineer therefor, and the same shall be levied as a county or town charge, as above provided. (Added by L. 1904, chap. 609).

855-c. Rules and regulations to be observed by commissioners of highways.-Commissioners of highways in the several towns of this state, within which any highways have been improved, or may hereafter be improved pursuant to the provisions of such chapter one hundred and fifteen of the laws of eighteen hundred and ninety-eight, or which have adopted or may hereafter adopt the money system of highway taxes pursuant to sections fifty, fifty-one, fifty-two and fifty-three of the highway law, shall comply with the directions of the state engineer and surveyor, and the plans, specifications, rules and regulations in addition thereto of the county engineer, if there be one, when approved by the state engineer and surveyor, for the repair and maintenance of the highways thereof, and the state engineer and surveyor may by notice to the comptroller, cause him to withhold from any town the moneys otherwise due from the state under said section fifty-three in which the highway commissioners shall have failed to comply with this section. (Added by L. 1904, chap. 609).

§ 55-d. When county may be compelled to appoint county engineer. The state engineer and surveyor may also refuse to cause the improvement of any further highways pursuant to said chapter one hundred and fifteen of the laws of eighteen hundred and ninety-eight, in any county until the board of supervisors of such county has duly appointed a county engineer, whenever he deems it necessary for the proper care and maintenance of such highways and may also in any county containing towns which have adopted the money system of highway taxes, in which county the whole moneys collected and received pursuant to said section fifty-three exceed ten thousand dollars, by notice to the comptroller cause him to withhold from the towns in such county which may have adopted such money system of highway taxes, the moneys otherwise due from the state under said section fifty-three until the board of supervisors of such county has duly appointed a county engineer, whenever he likewise deems it necessary for the proper repair and maintenance of the highways of the town. (Amended by L. 1904, chap. 609).

§ 56. Apportionment of expenditures for county roads.-The expense of improving, repairing and maintaining the county roads of each county, shall be a county charge, and in any county in which during the past five years there has been expended at least the sum of five hundred thousand dollars for macadamizing purposes, the expense of constructing, improving, maintaining and repairing such county roads, shall be annually apportioned by the board of supervisors of the county, upon the various towns and cities within the county, as the said board may deem just. The money necessary to improve, repair and maintain the county roads or to pay the principal and interest of any bonds issued as provided in the next sec