American Watchman And Delaware Advertiser

FOR THE WATCHMAN.

Late Removal from, and Appointment to the office of Surveyor General of Sussex County.

Mr. John Burton, surveyor general for the county of Sussex, was by an immutable law of our natures, removed from this sublunary sphere in the month of February, A.D. 1822. It then devolved on the governor, (Mr Collins) to fill, by appointment, the vacancy occasioned by the death of Mr. Burton, which he did by appointing Mr. Thomas Jacobs, of N. W. Fork Hundred, as Mr. Burton's successor. Mr. Burton had filled the office with much credit. Being a skilful mathematician, and careful practitioner of surveying, he always used the most approved methods of tabular calculation, in finding the area of his surveys, and inlaying out and dividing land he used trigonometrical rules. Mr. Burton had continued in office, more than a year, after Mr. Collins came into office, and I can confidently affirm, that had he lived to see this day, he would not have been removed by the governor then in office. Mr. Jacobs is exemplary in his morals, and it is well known, that his abilities are equal to those of his predecessor for a proper discharge of all the duties of a county surveyor. But he is removed from office; not on account of his incompetency; nor indeed by any law of our natures, but by the governor in office; and Mr. L. Riley is appointed his successor. I will now pay some attention to Mr R's super-eminent qualifications. He has been a practitioner of surveying, twenty years or more, and the only method that he has ever made use of, for calculating the area of his surveys, is, that of throwing them into triangles, or into one triangle equal to the whole. He cannot solve a single case in plain trigonometry, by any other method than that of his scale and dividers, the incorrectness of which is obvious to every man who has carefully studied the principles of surveying. It is an incontrovertible truth, that Mr. R's mathematical studies have been confined to a few geometrical problems; and these he applies in all cases; whether in finding the area or division of land: therefore his whole practice has been a jumble of errors, with nothing certain but its incorrectness. His other literary acquirement are equally superficial. His orthography is such, that in writing, one third of his words at least of more than one syllable, are misspelt. Nor do I think his intellectual endowments deserve a very high encomium. The only instance that I can give of his intellectual sagacity is, that he is the infatuated patron and stupid advocate of his demoniac ma-jesty, the great conjuror Tillotson, (near Elkton, Maryland,) whose infernal influence, (the atrocious evils of which are incalculable) is co-equal and co-extensive with all the grossly ignorant, and obstinately superstitious within the circle of his infamy; hence I infer that Mr. R. is not philosophically wise. These are Mr R's endowments; and is he well qualified to be at the head of the surveyor's depart-ment, where there are several young men, that are skilful both in the theory and practice of surveying? What could induce Mr. R. to solicit the appoint-ment? was it that he might increase his practice, in his old age, (for he is nearly three-score) and undergo all the fatigue, and unavoidable exposure of the practice, for the small compensation, that a surveyor generally receives for his services? This is rather improbable; and the emoluments of the office (other than the practice) are scarcely worth estimating. Was it the vanity of having Esq. annexed to his name? This is more probable. And is such an appointment an honor to such abilities as Mr. R. possesses? Let us suppose a case which would be parallel to that in question. Suppose one of your neighbours, say an industrious farmer, whose literary acquirements are very superficial, should have read something on phlebotomy, and of the surgery of setting a broken bone; thence to profess to be a surgeon, and impose on the ignorance and credulity of his patrons for twenty years, or more; though in three fourths of the cases, where he had operated as a surgeon, the member still remained writhed or crooked, yet he had the peculiar address, to make them believe, that he had acted as a skilful surgeon should have done, and that he was the greatest surgeon of his vicinity—suppose that he is then, (for his reputed surgical skill) chosen as a member of the medical board of his state, or elected to a professorship in the college; would he be likely to fill either place with honor to himself, or to the honor of young practitioners in the one, or graduates in the other? Would not men of talents and information say that his elevation to such places was an imposition on good sense; that he was a quack; an impertinent pretender; a fool. In my estimation a man must do honor to an office, before it can be an honor to him to hold it; as the poet justly observes:

"Act well your part, there all the honor lies."

Would this supposed member of the medical board be able to "act well his part" in either of the stations to which he was raised? I answer—just as
well as Mr. R. with his abilities, can act the part of surveyor general for the county of Sussex; in either case modesty would have directed the man to follow the example set by the fabled Broteus, i. e. to take refuge in Mount Etna: where his deformity might have been for ever concealed; rather than thus to expose himself to public view. As to the governor's motives for making the appointment, I cannot well discover them. If it could have been pretended, that Mr. Jacobs was unqualified, Mr R. is eminently more so. True, the governor might not discover Mr. R's want of abilities, as that would have required some superiority in his own: But he knew very well that a county surveyor is removable by the governor at pleasure; he must also have known that the governor elect would soon be inducted into office; and that he could remove or continue Mr. R. at his own discretion. Under these circumstances, to attempt to impose such a man on us as Mr. R. for a principal surveyor, appears to me to be an act of consummate folly; bordering on insanity. As I have mentioned the governor elect, (Col Joseph Haslett) I must here add, that from him I know nothing of his mind on the subject, and can therefore only anticipate. As I deem Mr. Haslett a man of acute understanding and profound judgment; of much liberality of sentiment and of refined sensibilities—I anticipate that he will consider the case, and according to the rules of justice and good policy, will act for the county in which he resides. If it should be said, that I have exceeded the bounds of that charity which teaches "to hide the fault I see." I answer, that I know no law of charity that bids us implicitly to acquiesce in the elevation of the most presumptive ignorance to the post or places of honor and intelligence. I know that I have not underrated Mr. R's abilities as a mathematician: and had he continued in his private situation, however unqualified I might have known him to be for a proper discharge of the duties of his calling, I should never have honored him so far as to give his name to the columns of a public newspaper. I am very certain that had he ever studied the fundamental rules of surveying, and known the demonstrative certainty of the logarithmic tabular rules and proportions, as every competent practitioner must do; and then see a man so unqualified (as he now is) raised to the office which he has obtained—he would feel indignant at such an imposition—at such gross presumption and want of discernment. That Mr. R. is tolerably wealthy, industrious, and economical, and well skilled in the pleasing art of money catching; that he is an affectionate husband, a kind parent, and a good neighbor, may be true. He may possess many of the best social qualities in an eminent degree, but these (admitting he possessed them) can never qualify him for the duties of a practising surveyor. Nothing short of a well founded education in the principles of geometry and trigonometry, can give him those qualifications.

ARISTIDES.