16 BULLETIN 978, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 
weighmasters in the various markets. In some places where the 
scales are owned or maintained by the railroad companies, employees 
who have become incapacitated for other work are made weighers. 
Bond for the honest and faithful performance of duty is required 
-of the weighmasters in some markets, while at others an oath is 
sufficient. Where supervisors are employed they must meet the same 
requirements as the weighmasters, except that in some instances they 
may be required to furnish a larger bond. 
DUTIES OF WEIGHMASTERS. 
Aside from the weighing duties, the weighmasters often have 
other duties which vary greatly in character. At railroad team 
tracks, where the weighing duties are not heavy, the weighmaster is 
often the yardman and polices the yard, together with keeping a 
record of the cars received at the yards and forwarded from them. 
He also directs the teams to the proper cars: in fact, looks after 
_ everything in connection with the freight received in the yard of 
which he has charge. 
lf the weigher is an employee of a epee eae owner he may also- 
_do any of the various duties connected with the business of his 
employer. 
. TIME AND WORK REQUIRED. 
There are no fixed rules as to the hours or amount of work required 
that are applicable to all official weighmasters. The hours of work 
are usually those prevailing in the markets or territory in which the 
work is done. At the railroad yards it is often necessary for the 
weigher to be on hand at an early hour in order that he may check 
up the cars in the yards and learn the location of the various cars 
to be unloaded. These yards may then be closed at an early hour in 
the afternoon, or another weigher may come on duty at the expira- 
tion of the work period of the first weigher. The work periods now 
are generally about eight hours, but many weighers frequently work 
overtime and receive extra pay for the extra time. 
QFFICIAL WEIGHTS AT TERMINAL MARKETS. 
The official weighing of hay in the large markets is confined almost 
entirely to hay shipped to those markets, and a composite descrip- 
tion of the various methods of weighing and the supervising of the 
weighing on wagon scales used at these markets is as follows: The 
owner or purchaser of the hay, or his representative, drives his team 
or truck to the scale nearest the car to be unloaded. which has been 
designated as a scale where official weights may be obtained, and pre- 
sents to the weighmaster an order from the seller or owner for the 
hay. This is the weigher’s authority to weigh the loads to be hauled 
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