JULY— SEPT. 1857.] 
for India, 
201 
in the Government Notification, such a Measure averaging 80 tolas 
■w eight of Rice when heaped, is in use in many of the Districts, and 
the Sepoys of the Native army always buy by the Seer, generally 
considering it to be f of the Madras Customary" Measure of 104;^ 
cubic inches, w^hich would give 69 J cubic inches, or an Imperial 
Quart. On the 17th July, 1855, the Madras Government, in conse- 
quence of some dispute oft the subject, decided that the Sepoys' 
" seer-measure" should be 5 J of the " Ollucks" named in their pro- 
clamation of 1836, or 68f cubic inches. This closely corresponds 
with the Quart of 69j cubic mches, which I propose as the stand- 
ard " Seer-measui-e." 
The only multiple df the " Seer-measure" that seems necessary for 
Accounts, is one of 100 seers, which might, as proposed in another 
place* be called a "Sotee." For 5z^6-multiplesIwould pro])ose eighths 
(atees) as more in accordance with Native usage. It is seldom that a 
less measure appears in Commercial accounts than single seers, and 
therefore there is not so much object in a Decimal 5?/y-division. 
The objection to the " Seer" proposed by the Bombay Govern- 
ment, which is a vessel holding a Seer of 80 tolas weight of water, 
or a capacity of 57 cubic inches, is that it is a misnomer. If the 
Native term " Seer" is to be used at all, it should be the Native 
idea of a Seer, that is, a vessel containing a seer weight oi cjrain. 
The new Seer for grain is not what i^ is supposed to be, and it is 
no wonder that success has not attended the attempt to introduce 
what the people consider a deception. A little difference above 
the usual Seer," would not have been of so much consequence, 
but this proposed Seer only holds 70 tolas of mixed grain, even 
when heaped. If it were desired to have a Measure analagous to a 
Seer, to contain a definite number of tolas weight of water, it 
surely would have been better to have guaged the Bazaar Seers 
with water,! and have taken the average weight in tolas, about 
93, and fixed on that for the standard Seer-measure ; but if the 
" Seer-measure" is not to accord at all with the Native Measure, 
* Vide page 193. 
t The Bombay Government iu tlieir Proceedings of the 30lh July, 1849, pro^ 
posed this, but it does not seem to have been ac'ed on. 
I 
