Alexandria gazette & daily advertiser. [volume] (Alexandria [Va.]) 1817-1822, 1821-03-15

Of the troy weight, and how the proportion
between these succeeded the old English
proportions; and points out the successive
| incongru:tes introduced by unenlightened
and perplexed enactmeuts, down 10 the
anomalies existing in the weights and mea.
sures in use in Great Britain at this day.
The secretary of state then enters upon
| an examination of the French system OF
weights and measures; notices their exces
sive adversely prior to the late revolution
and the proposal of the Bishop of Aulun.
the present Prince de TalIeyrand, in 1880,
10 the members of the constituent assembly,
for the foundation of new system, upon
the principle Of single and universal stan
dard The question having been referred
to committee of the AGA demy OF Sciences.
they, in their report, proposed that ten mil.
lonth part of quarter of The meridian
should be taken as the standard unit Of IL
near measure, that. as a second standard Of
comparison with it, the pendulum, vibrat.
ing seconds at the forty fifth degree of lati-
tude, should be assumed, T. that the weight
Of distilled water, at the point Of freezing,
measured by cubical vessel, in decimal
proportion to linear standard, should deter
ternine the standard Of weights and Of a
vessels of capacity. This report was ap.
proved by decree of the assembly; and
the scientific operations. necessary to the
execution Of the plan, were assigned to
four committees of the Academy.
The Secretary exhibits the progress Of
the requisite experiments until the modern
standard metre of France was fixed, The
cubic deeimetre, or tenth part of the metre,
Of distilled water, at the temperature Of its
greatest density, established as the kilo.
gramme for a standard weight, with its
thousandth part. being the gramme, for its
unit; and the capacity OF the vessel con.
tanning this water, under the name OF litre,
made the standard Of all measures, liquid
or dry. The metre was applied to SUPER
fetal and solid measures, according TO their
proportions; the chain of ten metres being
applied to land measure, and its square de-.
nominated an are. The cubic metre was
called stere. A vocabulary of new de.
nominations was then annexed to every
weight and measure Of this new system.
the multiples of units whereof were deci.
mally expressed in significant pre6xed
Greek syllables; their Subdivisions being
also dscimally expressed, by similar pre-
fixed syllables from the Latin language
The whole nomenclature consisting of only
twelve words; FIVE of which denote the
things, and seven the numbers.
This system of neurology is the one
at this time established by law in
France. But. Notwithstanding it is
simple and perfect in theory, the peo-
pie of that country have mainly reject
ed it in practice. The difficulty Of un-
learning old names associated with
ideas already formed, the conclusion
arising from the intermiXture of new
and old denominations, adapted, in
different degrees, to the same objects
the arbitrary sounds of the new names
TO the mass Of the nation, which has
little or no acquaintance with the |
Greek and Latin languages; in short,
habit, usage, and prior education, have |
prevented the ready adoption, within |
the kingdom, of the modern French
system Of weights and measures; inso. |
much that the government of France
has been necessitated to unite the old
system to the new, and to explain, by
proportional designations, the weights
and measures of the latter, by the
terms of the former, which alone are ,
familiar to the great majority Of tho
inhabitants. These obstacles, which
science and legislation have had to en-
counter in France, are illustrated by
the slow progress which the specific
denominations Of the coins of the Uni.
ted States have made in naturalizing
themselves in the coIloquiai phraseolo /
gy OF the different states of the Union;
in many Of which, twenty-eight years .
after the coinage of money at the ma.
tional mint, pounds, shillings and
pence, and the aliquot parts of the
Spanish dollar, are the denominations
used in general conversation.
Admonished by experience, the Sc.
cretary Of State, throughout his re.
port, Is cautious of yielding his assent
In radical oltarat;ooo n :I