EXTERNAL FORCES 55 



obtains his technical services through a salesman as an inter- 

 mediary. 



Sometimes architects and owners obtain competitive designs 

 on specifications prepared by a reputable engineer in private 

 practice and insert in the specifications a clause that the success- 

 ful bidder must deposit some definite amount to pay the cost of 

 having the designs checked by the engineer, whose name is given. 

 The author does a great deal of work of this sort and is glad to see 

 that many architects are now insisting upon having competitive 

 designs thus checked. When they all do it there will undoubtedly 

 be a radical change in " common practice." 



When an engineer is independently employed to furnish engi- 

 neering service he should not accept the work if it stops with the 

 furnishing of the plans and details. He should insist upon being 

 retained as an adviser during the progress of the work. The 

 work of the best designers may often be discredited when the low- 

 est bidder is not possessed of enough experience, or honesty, to 

 put into the fabrication of the structure the quality of work which 

 the designer put into the design. That many poorly designed 

 buildings stand to-day is due to the fact that the work was per- 

 formed by honest, experienced contractors. 



