, 1875-08-31

4 largo number Of mon eminent in science
am1 literature nro circulating memorial III
favor Of gcnoral adoption Of tho metric
systom. Of weights nna measures upon tho
Fourth Of July, 1876. Every patriotic Amer
lean is to go to bed on tho oyoning Of tho I'd
weighing so many pounds, and arise tho next
morning with n weight Of so many hccto-
grams. Wl1et, ho lies down, ho will measure
certain number Of foot. When ho gets up,
his height will DO expressed in meters. In
stead Of sweetening his coffee with a certain
fraction Of mn ounce Of sugar, lie will drop
in milligrau1 Or centigra'n Of tho Raccha-
rino stuf. Ho will ask his astonished vito
whether tho jug ho is to carry to tho groccr
holds a decilitor or deka1itor, and will cx-
press fcryont hope TINT by another yenr lso
may lRyo saved enough 10 purchase
fow square myrin1neters of ground.
Wo foar this dream of m instantaneous
adoption Of the metric weights md measures
will never lo reaIizcd. The average man
will cling to tho faniliar nu,uos now in uso.
Ho will talk Of inches, feet, and miles, not
/ centi,notors, motors, and kilo1noters; of
ounces aud pounds, not otdccigrams and grams;
not litars and hoctoltcrs. It is doubtful,
indeed, whether al International decimal
| system Of weights and measures will ever bo
| adopted, notwithstanding its evident ad-
vantages.
onr decimal monetary system was easily
carried out, because it's u1fit-tlo dollar
was already in uso. If tho pound nvoirlupois
should bo takon NJ tho standard Of weight,
] c,,jv for nvoirf3tYfocfu h,,f frt
and apothecarios' measures, aud decimal
mu]tiples OF it SHOULD DO adopted,
| wo might perhaps havo decimal
system Of weights But it would not coincide
| with tho metric gystom because tito grain,
which il tho weight-uuit in TINT, is MI incon-
yenient fractional part Of the pound. Then,
| too, 1t would bo necessary to change the
! weight, and therefore tho yaluo, Of tho lolln1
md all our other coins in order that certain
number OF dollars might Just weigh pound.
In California grain is sold by tho contal {toe
| pounds). This Is stop towards the reform
but, whom the contd waH introduced into tic
dealings Of The Chicago Board Of 1,rado, il
waa speedily abandoned.
Tho same aorious difficulty hindors thu
adoption OF tho proposed metric measures oi
capacity. II the pint orqunrt coincided with
the liter or any Of Its multip1ies or Hl1bnulti
pies, tho thing might bo dono. is it is, tl@
to tho old, ard people would prefer to avoid
this bothorson,o trouble by cllnging to tho oil
entirely.
Tho greatcst obstacle to tie change, how
over, would bo in tho measures Of length
Every farm betweon tho Alleghanies and til.
Rocky Mountains is measured by survey.
based on miles Evory city-lot in the country
ia measured by snrveyH based on feet Tlles'
two lonomiuatious--fect md mites--aro in
terwoyen into numborloss transactions. They
cannot DO abandoned, But neither Of then
finds any equivalent III tho Fronch tables
Moreover, thoy cannot botl enter decima
tnblo. II tho foot is takou na the unit, th
rod would have to bo 10 feet, tAo furlong 100
and tho mile 1000; or tho yard would DO II
feot, tho rod 100. ths furlong 1,00o, md tn
milo 10000. Either change would involg
endless confusion. III tho same way, if th
milo is taken as the unit, the foot would hav
to be 1enRthenod or shortonod.
Germany changed from tho old system h
tho now, but tho change was duo to two con
ditions which do not exist hero,-a despoti
Government and Il disciplined people, Il til
change is over 1nado, 1t will probably be Il
tho way In which n national coinage IL sou,o
times changed, by calling in tho old piece
and isauing the new in exchange for them
But this process Is far oaaier in tho case g
coin, which circulates, Than III that of waighs
~. r4n {T1 mr.
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