260 
POPULAR SCIENCE REVIEW. 
of a lb. twopence nearly, and, taking this from 1 5^d., he would 
pay 13£cZ., and probably the butcher would have the worst of 
the quarter-farthing bargain. This triumphant exposition of 
the advantage of the decimal system for marketing would 
doubtless gain many adherents to the good cause. 
America is satisfied with a coinage which is seldom used or 
seen — the half cent, the 100th part of the dollar of four and 
twopence ; and. the English, except for very accurate accounts, 
are content with the farthing as the lowest coin, as the tenth 
part of a penny is totally unnecessary for common use. 
The value of units of measure which contain factors of some 
one or more of the integers 2, 3, 5, 7, may be considered of 
sufficient importance for retaining as far as possible our na- 
tional standards. Transition and accommodation, rehabilitation 
and revision, appear far more desirable than abolition and de- 
struction. With this view, the problem of forming a decimal 
system (the advantages of which in certain cases are generally 
acknowledged) is entangled with difficulties of no ordinary 
kind ; so much so, that no surprise should be felt at the lapse 
of fifteen years already during the consideration of this great 
question. This question lies, intrinsically, between destruction 
and adaptation. To the latter the writer gives his adhesion 
alone. Adopt, with the ultra-decimalists, the metric system 
full and complete, and a dead-lock would be given for a time 
to every counter in the country, to every shop and every barn. 
A gradual transition can alone avoid a concussion between 
scientific scales and the old standards. On the other hand, if 
new scales can be arranged, admitting easy transformation and 
an optional and gradual transition, practical superiority would 
quickly establish the new system. 
Commencing with the gold standard, at present, the sove- 
reign (containing 22 carats pure gold *) is at sixes and sevens 
with all foreign coin. Two courses are open, either to depress 
its value to 25 francs, or raise the value of the franc, so as to 
make 25 francs equal to it in value. Whichever course is 
ultimately adopted, the conversion of English money into 
French will no longer require arithmetic beyond multiplica- 
tion or division by 4. But even supposing the sovereign 
remains worth 25 francs 20 centimes, the following method is 
so extremely simple as to be worthy of insertion here as a 
national question. 
Kegard 25*20, without the decimal point, as 2520 ; subtract 
from it a third of a seventh — 
7)2520 
3)360 
• 120 
• 22 out of 24 ; 18 carats standard means 18 pure out of 24 parts. 
