130 AGRICULTURE OF MAINE. 



men. and the regular procedure was for the 20 men and two or 

 three wagons to go down through the markets, or through the 

 east side and take in all the incorrect measuring and weighing 

 devices found in use. The east side is largely a push cart dis- 

 trict ; about everything is sold from push carts. You can buy all 

 kinds of food and dry goods from push carts down there. 

 They are so close together that it would be impossible to walk 

 along the street unless you went up the crossing. The force 

 there would go to a block and ten men would go around on one 

 side of the block and ten men on the other side and work to- 

 gether, simply taking from all the dealers the incorrect weigh- 

 ing and measuring devices found in use. The first thing a 

 tip would be sent along up through the street that the weights 

 and measures people were coming, and then there would be a 

 grand scramble to get out of the way or hide everything possible, 

 or to take the push cart and get away. Sometimes there would 

 be a dozen push carts all piled up in a general heap, dealers 

 running with their scales and measures and trying to hide them. 

 I went after a man one day and he ran into a house and opened 

 the door of the oven and put the scale right in there. Of course 

 we took him to the Station. We found another man just 

 walking away from a dry goods cart. He was walking rather 

 stiffly, as though he had a stiflF leg. I said, "Where is your yard 

 measure?" He said, "I haven't any." We searched and found 

 that he had taken the yard measure and put it down the side of 

 his trousers, and when we found that measure we found that 

 he had sawed two inches out the middle and dovetailed it to- 

 gether so from 22 there was nothing until you reached 25 

 inches. It was a very good job and you would hardly notice 

 it unless you looked it over very closely. But that is contrary 

 to the general rule. When the dealers want to alter their scales 

 or weights they usually adopt some pretty rude methods, such 

 as hanging a piece of iron on the scales. Some of them use a 

 good deal of ingenuity in altering their weights and measures. 

 We found out from the bakers, who in some cases were com- 

 pelled to deliver loaves of bread to the people, that they were 

 making up two kinds of loaves. One they sold in the store, 

 and the light one they delivered at the house. H you ordered 

 a loaf of bread, or a couple of loaves, on the telephone, they 

 would bring up the light loaves; but if you sent down to the 

 store they would give you fair value for your money. 



