DBOEEE OP THEBMIDOR, AN Xlll. 139 



" Art. 2. The prefect shall appoint an ingenieur des ponts et chaussees to 

 examine the spots exposed, to prepare a plan of the places, and to prepare 

 specifications and estimates, which shall be communicated to the municipal 

 councils ; and after they have made their remarks, the prefect shall give the 

 authority if required. 



" Art. 3. If the works to be executed affect only private parties, the 

 prefect shall nominate a commission of five individuals from among the 

 principal proprietors interested, who shall choose from amongst themselves 

 a syndic, to deliberate on the utility or the inconveniences of the works 

 demanded. 



" Art. 4. The prefect shall then commission an engineer to prepare plans 

 and estimates, which shall be communicated to the commission, as is pre- 

 scribed for the municipal councils in Art. 2. 



"Art. 5. In cases where the works to be executed would effect many 

 communes who would not act in concert, the demand of the municipal 

 council making the application shall be communicated to the other municipal 

 councils, and the prefect shall then proceed, with regard to aU the councils, 

 conformably to Art. 2. 



" Art. 6. When the neglect — be it of one or more private parties, be it 

 of one or more communes — to make dikes, curages— i.e., clearing away of 

 stones and deposits in the channel, or artificial structures, along a torrent 

 or an unnavigable river, shall expose the territory abutting upon it in a way 

 prejudicial to the public weal,- the prefect, on complaints which may have 

 been made to him, shall order a report of an irigenieur des ponts et chaussies j 

 this report shall be communicated to the parties interested, with injunctions 

 to give their answers in writing within eight days, and the council of the 

 prefecture shall decide on the disputes which may result. 



" Art. 7. If a dike interest a commune in general, and some private parties 

 oppose the construction of it, the mvmicipal council shall be consulted, and 

 the opposition shall be submitted to the council of the prefecture. 



" Art. 8. In all the cases specified, when the time allowed shall have 

 expired, if all the parties interested shall have given their consent, or if 

 there be no protests, the adjudication of the works, according as they have 

 been determined and resolved upon, shall be made in the usual forms before 

 such functionary as the prefect shall appoint in the presence of the parties 

 - interested, or those there duly summoned by posted bills and the usual 

 ordinary publication of such announcements. 



" Art. 9. The amount thus adjudicated shall be apportioned according to 

 the extent of interest attaching to their property, according to a scheme of 

 division which the prefect shall make legally obligatory, accord to the law 

 of the Hthfloreal, an XI. ; and the council of the prefecture shall decide 

 protests relative to this partition of the expense. 



" Art. 1 0. The adjudicators shall be paid the expense of their adjudication, 

 in virtue of an order delivered by the prefect, on certification of the works 

 having been taken over and delivered by the engineer charged with the 

 management of the works. The parties liable shall be forced to pay in the 

 form prescribed by the law of the l^th, floreal, an XI. 



"Art. 11. No proprietor can be taxed for contributions to such works in 

 the course of any one year, beyond a fourth part of his net revenue, after 

 deduction of every other tax." 



Of this decree Surell says, that it did great service to the department of 



