Democratic Sentinel, Volume 18, Number 16, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 4 May 1894 — Not Allowed. [ARTICLE]

Not Allowed.

“Why did I discharge such an excellent workman?” said a well-known civil engineer. “Well, I will tell you. I discovered a short time ago that he was keeping a private notebook, and after notifying him that he must stop it and again learning that he was continuing the practice I was obliged to discharge him. A surveyor in doing a piece of work makes minutes as he goes along >f the lines he runs, of the various points marking the bounds of the lands he is surveying and all such data as is not only necessary for the drawings of his plans, but also incidentally that which may aid him in the case of any other survey being made later on. In fact, this data really constitutes a sort of capital or stock in trade, for if the party owning the land ever wishes another survey of it for any purpose he will naturally apply to that same surveyor, who, having these old memoranda, can do the work easier and more cheaply than any other surveyor. Oftentimes, after many years have elapsed and old landmarks have passed away, those minutes become very valuable. Consequently a civil engineer always wishes to keep these in his own hands, and men in his employ are not allowed to make copies of minutes of surveys which they make while in his employ. Otherwise an old employe, in leaving and setting ufrin business for himself, could Carry away a large slice of his employer’s business.*'- *