"It is a great profession. There is the fascination of watching 

a figment of the imagination emerge through the aid of 

science to a plan on paper. Then it moves to realization 

in stone or metal or energy. Then it brings jobs and homes 

to men. Then it elevates the standards of living and adds to 

the comforts of life. That is the engineer’s high privilege. 

"The great liability of the engineer compared to men of other 

professions is that his works are out in the open where all can 

see them. His acts, step by step, are in hard substance.  He cannot 

bury his mistakes in the grave like the doctors. He cannot argue them 

into thin air or blame the judge like the lawyers. He cannot, like the 

architects, cover his failures with trees and vines. He cannot, like the 

politicians, screen his shortcomings by blaming his opponents and 

hope the people will forget. The engineer simply cannot deny 

he did it. If his works do not work, he is dammed . . . 

"On the other hand, unlike the doctor his is not a life among the 

weak. Unlike the soldier, destruction is not his purpose. Unlike 

the lawyer, quarrels are not his daily bread. To the 

engineer falls the job of clothing the bare bones of science with life, 

comfort, and hope. No doubt as years go by the people forget which 

engineer did it, even if they ever knew. Or some politician 

puts his name on it.  Or they credit it to some promoter 

who used other people’s money . . . But the engineer 

himself looks back at the unending stream of 

goodness which flows from his successes with satisfactions 

that few professions may know. And the verdict of 

his fellow professionals is all the accolade he wants."