OFFICE OF THE AITORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS 

AUSTIN 

a# o? yewr letter et wwaber 22, 

e legl*lati*e hfat~.+sf Mttiler 

e, we have reauhad * aeswluriea 

in lmr or&LI3alopiaQm. 
P 

I)eparbmnt o? Agriculture, page2 

/- 

In 1919 tha law wae 

Bill 100. 249, Aate lglg, 36th 

wae oodified a8 Artidle me 

Penal Code. Seatlon 23 rsadet 

"aeat1on 23, Any pereon, who 

"! 

hlleralf, oc 

hla e4mloye, ov agent, or ae the emp aye or wont 

o? Ulother, 8hall ~88, In the buylq or roll- of 

8ny Wxmodl~, .9r retain in hie poe~eee1c.m 8-19 

weight or meae*, or wefghlng or meaeurbg irutrmment or ahall offer or expoee for male; or sell, 

axeept a8 hereinbefore epedf1eoll.y rllove13 ia this 

AQt, OF use OF rshia in him poeeeeebn eng weight 

or mamum or welghlng or mamrlng lnetruaent 

uhloh hae.not bean sealed by a rsrler within &m 

year, or who shall ditrpow of any oand~ed walgbt 

oraeamre, orwel$hlng ormeaeurtng lnetrmant 

oomtFbcI 

to law, ol' rraJ par*oa, who, by hae8olf 

hle arp oyo or *ant, or as the aapleye or egm i 

'or 

o? 

another, nhall 8011 0s offer or .axpare for 8al0, or 

us0 or ham ln him poareeriee4 for the purpose of 

relll.n# or uelng, anyc+dwLIe or lnatrmeat to be 

ueed to, or srlmlated to irlwxy, arvrM< or 

m4a*ume, ala 

welghiag or aearwing Ineta%eeente ahallbe prIma 

faele wideme of the fast that thy were intended 

to be uecd 3x1 the violation of lam. 

oure.) 

(Uhder8oorhg 

Hots t&at we have undereaorfbd aportion of thlr enaetmsntdeaeed eignlfleant whiahappaare8 in the PenaLCcdotor tho 

firet time in 1919. Thle pxovlelon was aeltted in fihe 1925 

oodiflaetlon of the Penal Code whiah aaublned 8evrbFal previous 

artlolem, araong them Artl8lee 990 find 9928, to tonn Artiole 

1037. At that time thla Az’tiale reed 88 follo~st 

“Any pereon, who, by himself, or hle emplgee 

or agent, ox em th? mployee or agent oi another, 

shall uee, in the buying or eelliag of any mmnodlty, or retain In his poseeselon, 

or meaeure, or wbl@+g or meeeurlng a fa1ee lnetrumen wei$lt , 

or shall offer or expose for sale, or sell, exaept 
Department of Agrloultxme; Page 3 

88 8peci1r~~a1l.y a2lcniad by lnw, or me or ro$a¶n 

In his poeeeeelm eny weight or meikeum or weI&- 

lng or aeeeurlng lnstrwnent contrary to Im, or 

by erty person, who, by htieelf, or hle employee 

or agent, or (LR the amplogee or egcnt of another 

shell sell or offer or expoee for ule, or we 

or have in hle poeeoselon for the purpeae of eollingor uelng, an7 device or lnetrmaent to bo wed 

to, or oalauleted to, fmlekfy nny weight or roamma, 

ahallbe fined not leas than 410.00 aor morekhan 

(200.00. Poemeelon of muah false weight or measures, or inlrtrumenta ehmll be prlau'fa~le wldeme 

of the fmet thmt they were intended to be used In 

the vlolmtlon of lmw. '( 

In 1929 Artlole 1037 was again amended ud thle 

nentaheng0d thepanaltlee provided in thelg25Code8ad 

in addltlon, theam l ignlfiemtlamguqeunde~o2edr 

"Any pereon, who, by hia8el.f or by hle resyvent 

or egentof mother poreon, ehall offer or expeee 

for ule, aell, urns, or ret&id in hle poroeaeloa 

eny falea we 

Y? 

te or meaeurw, or welghlng e.r 

reaeurlng da @&(I, in the buying or aolM## ai rrap 

ewmodit;l or thing nr In oalaulatlng or maeuring 

eervlee or la the determhation oiwelght or maau-e when a ehmme la side for ewh detcrraiastlon, - .-em. _ - - -*_ 

or wno enui arepoee or eny aoaaannea eaaaer,~re~te, 

memeures or we or meaeur dwiaee roa 

purpose of eellw or using, mny device or laetrument to be used ,b or aalouletad to fela%fy eny 

weight or meeeurej shall be guilty of a mieduuemnor, 

end shell be punished by a fine of not lcnn the.n 

$20 or more than $100, upon ths first aonvS.atloa 

in any aourt of acmpetent juriaidbtion; and uprrn 

a eeaond or eubeaquent aonvlatlon In any aourt of 

acmpetent jurlsdlation he shall be punlehad b? a 

fine of not less thm $50 or more than $200.' 

(Undersaorlng ourr.) 
Departnmnt or Agrlaulture, Page 4 

We should look also to tho leglelirtlve hiatom of 

Artlole 1042 of the Penal 00&e. This artials wsr~derlved frem 

seatjon 7 or Bouee Bill lo. 247,, mte 1919, 36th Leglmlature, 

Page 235, am? em orIgInally emetod z-etulr 

"Whewer In b 

-3 

my of the artlckl~e 0s 

~property nentloned in eotlen 5 0s thle Aat or 

acntinned in the Oovernor~r proeleaatlapn dafi.nW 

whet oonetltutee a unit In 8exfomity with the, 

prwlelons of Beetlone 5 and 6 of this A&, 8Md.l 

take any greatop nw3ebor of pounds thereof to :tbe 

bushel, barrel or oubia yard, or dlvlelble merehantable quantity of buehol, bevel, oubbie yud 

or lineal yard, or ln eolllng ary 0s said utleloe, 

eball~lvo an 

I 

lees number of pounds thereof to the 

bushel, barre , oubie or llmal 

merohantnble qumtl 7 of a buahe~~~fi%” 

orlI.nealPasd t&an 8 allowalbf thle L)kte, with 

lnteattogrin &a dvuktsgo the~w, exoeptwhecc, 

expressly authorleed to do mow ape&al aontraet 

or agrecraeat to thst effslt, eb8ll be lirble to 

390 Hundred Do 

The rwlelk of1925 eupplbd for thetoM "whowa 

la b\rw any utlcrle of p~oprtf mwtlanRd In 8wtioa 5 :ui9 

dot, or mentloned In the Qwernor~e prwlamatlon derln 

~~tlt&e 8 ua;t 7th 

the wards wdoreaored In Article 1042 *a% 

In o~onfontit~ with the provlrlone of 

nou'reeA8 t

. . . 

sell& any of the came, shall give imy lees ntnnber 

of pomade thereof to the buehel, barrel, aubla er 

lineal yard, or dlvlelble merahantable quaatlty of 

bushel, barrel, oubia or lIzma ~a-rd thnn IS alloved 

by the laws 0s this State, with intent to gain an 

advantage thereby, nhall be fined not less than 

twenty nor more than two hundred dollars." 
Department of Agriculture, Page 5 

We believe that in Arflole 1042 (l-5, Pea81 Qode) an 

or3.glnall.y enacted in 1919 aad at the present tlme.the on4 aets 

pre8orlbed are the taw or giv 

"rl: 

of a lea8 n*er a?.,' 

the bushel, barrel, aubti or linea yard ore dtM.8ible.r eG%aSe 

quantity of 8whrea8uraaentm than 18 pre8erlb8d ia th8 crlvll rtatute8 a8 the aorreat unit ior eaah mea1\WPLant, with intent 

to gain advantage thereby. thel~5eodiflRItionmqhave 

attempted‘tb sum* thlr 8ltuatlan by the addition ai the woml8 

"or by the aord;" 8tlll, aa the 8tatute new ceadm, %+ prohibit8 

only the glvlng or taking of a le88er or greater smqunt of a.emodlty uhen rold In rtandanl malts 8nd vhen the "8taMaxxl weight of 

vhlah . . 

State.A 

. by the oord . . . has been fixed bJ ~~E’iitr8.6f this 

The Legl8lature of thla State ha8 not yet undertaken to 

fix or detemine the number o? undo ln a aord of vood; nor to our 

lmovlsdge Is wood 8ol.d by the * 

Advert- to Artiole lm7, we tiedlately lleze upon the 

vords I 

UAny perron . . . rho shall 8ell or oiiar~ or expo8e 

for 8ale le88 than the quantity he mqtre8ent8 o? qq orb 

aodlty.. . -11 be guilty of a rl8daeaaor.' 

,-- 7 the8ewonl8rhl6h In1929 wpeamd lniwti9lelO37 for' 

the flrrt lme alme 1925be so ringled out, or 8houX$i they be read 

a8 relatlxqj only $0 a rale with iaX reamring dewtier) Jfe believe 

thq p-bit th'Etile~~of 8lesrer ameunt W 8 emodi~~than ,a8 

represmntsd without reapout to thm use of fal8e mteamuriag dsvlwa. 

Webelleve thl8oonstmaetlonmoreooasonantvlth the legglaia; stent, and thin sema to be the aonrtnrotioa adopted 

gH@n81 Appeal8 in the ua8e of Qindf v. State, -9 8. Y.(M) 

. 

Con*equently, in an8wer to your 8pealfla que8tlon you are 

advised that rhea a dealer in wood deliver8 to the pumha8er a 

quantity OS vood whloh he repre8ent8 a8 being a oord 8nd oolloet8 

et hi8 quoted prlae for a oord of wood and it f$ found upon mea8urlng the 8ame that lera than three-fourth8 of a cord has been dellvemd, such dealer of wood nay be prooeedad aya%n8t for a rlrdemeanor under Artlole 1037 of Vernon's Annotated Penal Oode. 

Veq truly your8 

ATTORREIOEH%RALOFTEJ(A1) 

JDSrdb 

APPROVH) F'EB. 4, 1941 

BY 

Same8 D. Smllen 

A@818tult 

,-- 

@EmID E. MAMM APPROVED: oPmIoMcOmITmE 

ATTOR~ @FiNERAL OF TEXAS By: B. W.B., Chalman