LAME DUCKS can't fly, but they can reach new lows.

Outgoing Gov. Parris N. Glendening proves the point in the usual way: revving up the patronage mill. With several weeks remaining in his tenure, he has spun out comfortable state jobs for three friends and allies. The big salaries were followed by what look like kickbacks: contributions from each of the three to the governor's campaign committee.

Never mind that the governor wasn't running for anything. Never mind that he or a member of his staff solicited the "contributions."

Mr. Glendening's earlier effort to land a state job of his own makes him consistent at least: He wanted the Board of Regents - a panel he appointed - to make him chancellor of the state university system. He failed, but he honors the insider concept.

Sen. Perry Sfikas of Baltimore got a position on the state Parole Commission. He'll be paid $81,000 a year. Mr. Sfikas, who is liquidating his own campaign account, deposited $6,000 of that money into the governor's campaign pouch.

Del. Thomas E. Dewberry of Baltimore County ponied up $5,000 after Mr. Glendening made him an administrative law judge at $101,000 per year.

And Sen. Michael J. Collins, also of Baltimore County, gave $6,000 in leftover funds to Mr. Glendening plus an additional $10,000 to the Democratic Governors' Association, headed by Mr. Glendening. Senator Collins will serve on the Board of Contract Appeals. Salary: $97,344.

What a spectacle. Three new state workers say they were pursuing Democratic goals shared with the governor. To suggest otherwise, the governor's spokesman says, is to depress an already sour electorate.

To reassure the voters, the state's special prosecutor should investigate. At the very least, the state Senate should review each appointment with extra care before confirmation.