12 Scientific Proceedings, Royal Dublin Society. 



engaged in the active employments of life, and trying to earn 

 money, to use those measures which they judge to be best, merely 

 because they will not henceforth be fined for doing so, but where 

 Parliament has left matters in such disorder that they icill incur 

 loss in other ways. The disorder is at present such that work 

 begun in shops using imperial measures cannot be finished in 

 shops using metric measures, or vice versa, without involving both 

 expense and trouble. Neither has Parliament, as yet, put it 

 within the power of the English tradesman to make the change. 

 How can a beginning be made ? How can a prudent tradesman 

 use other measures than those in which his customers are accus- 

 tomed to think ? He could indeed make the necessary beginning 

 if a yard was only another name for nine decimetres, which is the 

 proposal made in this paper, and if a pound was another name for 

 4 J hektograms ; but he cannot start using metric measures so long 

 as a yard is nine decimetres and a complicated fraction, and a 

 pound 4J hektograms and another troublesome fraction. It is 

 the start that is impossible. He cannot begin using them as 

 matters at present stand. It is therefore plain that Parliament 

 has not done enough ; and legislation, like other things, if it falls 

 short of being sufficient, is a failure. If there is no further 

 legislation, Englishmen may continue for another century com- 

 pelled by the force of circumstances to put up with inferior 

 weights and measures, and so far without the same advantages, 

 both within this kingdom and in the competition of the world, 

 as the Frenchman the German or the Belgian. Why should not 

 we, as well as they, have every attainable advantage — every ad- 

 vantage that Parliament can procure for us and for our children — 

 and which I venture to submit it is the duty of Parliament to 

 place practically within our reach ? 



The deputations that waited on the Government proposed fur- 

 ther legislation, but legislation so drastic that it is doubtful whether 

 Englishmen would submit to it. For my part, I hope, on wider 

 grounds, that Englishmen would resent any approach to being 

 dragooned, and I think the proposal a very injudicious one. 



Englishmen, as compared with the nations of the Continent, 

 are fortunately more difficult to drive, while, also fortunately, 

 they are easier to lead where the reason for a change can be 

 made plain ; and moreover it must be remembered that English- 



