354 .MISCELLANEOUS 



Weights and Measures. 



This and the previous subject have overlapped on several 

 occasions, but it may be useful to separate them as far as 

 possible here. Students of human character will smile, and 

 perhaps sigh, over this short section, for it shows more clearly 

 than any other in this history the very restricted horizon 

 which bounds the vision of most business men, and that agri- 

 culturists prove no exception to this rule. Practically every- 

 one agrees as to the need of uniformity in weights and measures, 

 and nearly everyone also agrees that the system which should 

 be made compulsorily uniform is the system which he is used 

 to. Here is a paradox. Unanimity of opinion, with almost as 

 many variations as there are counties in England. But even 

 the paradox does not hold good when details are discussed, for 

 then unanimity becomes discord ; while, to make confusion 

 worse confounded, comparatively few men have yet grasped 

 the difference between the metric and the decimal systems.* 

 Some champions for unformity expound learnedly in support 

 of the legal standard system, but few of them remember that 

 there are three systems of weights and measures in vogue in 

 the United Kingdom, all of which are legal. These are (1) the 

 Imperial weights and measures, which are those in general 

 use ; (2) the cental system with the Imperial pound as the 

 unit ; and (3) the metric system. 



This matter first came before the Council in 1869, jointly 

 with the question of " Corn Averages." It was then resolved 

 ' That all agricultural produce should be sold by weight only, 

 and that the cental of 100 Ib. should be the standard." This 

 attracted the attention of the International Decimal Associa- 

 ciation, who proposed co-operation in obtaining a parlia- 

 mentary inquiry into the best remedy for existing anomalies 

 and disadvantages in our practice of weighing and measuring. 

 On 5th April the Council agreed to a petition praying for 

 such a Select Committee of Inquiry. In May the Council 

 sent members to a conference, and later nominated six 



* This may be partly due to the fact that the Decimal Association 

 urge the adoption of the metric system. 



