Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1821-03-16

''s. Top roeuse posGise s.-.1-i1s OF l.ass.
copper or such olLer materials as may be
deemed advisable; of tue yard. busbel. wine
aud beer ealions,troy and avoirdupois weights.
to he depoited in such public Office, at the
seat Of government. as may be thought most
suitahIe.
- To furnish the Executive authorities of
every state aud territory with exact duplicates
OF the national standards deposited at the
seat OF Kvern,uent.
"A. To require. uuder suitable penal sane
tons. that the weights AID measures nsed at all
the eustom-hcuSes, aud land surveys, aud
post Offices. asd, generally by all officers under
the authority ct tue United States. in the eAv
ecuii0n OF their laws, should be conformable
10 the natioual standards
S. To declare II penal TO make or 10 use
with iuteHt TO defrsnd. any other weights aud
measures than such as shall be contornable TO
the standard
In coincidence with this course of proceed.
IRE. the Secretary suggests il az desirable
that there should he procured exact copies OF
the standard measures in the eXcbeQuer of G..
Britain. Aud upon our system. thus reg uiated he
further proposes to eDgraft the standard from
nature OF the new French system the metre by
defining in the act Of Congress the exact pro.
portion OF the foot measure to that metre.
which may be ascei tanned by comparison
OF the identical measure, to be used as the
standard linear measure of the Union, With
the standard metre, in plstins, deposited III
the national archives of France.
The Secretary OF State lin several parts of
his Report, dissents from the universal pp-
plcatiop OF decimal arthms tic TO the multi.
Piles and Subdivisions OF weights aud meas.
nrrs. In the computation OF mere Rumbers
he allows that il affords great facilities. But
as nature, in the variety OF her forms, and the
comp ositon of her substances aud forces. does
not ALWAYS conform TO the decimal ratio, aud
| the wants and habits of man are az little con-
formable To il, he considers that other ariih-
| metical proportions may, with advantage, he
| employed; among which be reckons the duo
| decimal az more convenient than The decimal
| because the former admits of more useful di-
! visions analogous to the usage OF human so.
| cietS aud the modes of human knowledge
| without the necessity OF Tesorins TO fractions
| MIR. Adams has not thought the question OF
| coins nad currency embraced hy the rpsolm-
/ tons of Congress, in pursusncn- of which the
| Report has been made ; aud he has not there
tore entered f0i maily into the consideration of
| that topic But, in the Appendix which &C
! companies the Report, there lie an interesting
Note, on the proportional value of the
| pound sterling aud the dollar" Impressed
! with the views which the Note presents in re .
| lation To- an important sshject, we shall pre-.
| sent il tn our readers al lsi .e in our next or
| u future paper.
/, The Appendix contains some other useful
| documents, among which there is a table
| showing the difference in the Weights aud
! measures in use at the Customho uses Of the
| United States. In general. however, the pape,s
| which il compr,:es are only such asverifv ,ite
| facts which are stated IN the Report