The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1883-02-17
THE METRIC SYSTEM.

Whole thing would be perplcXlty and
a farce. What follows? We have blotted
out from the mind OF the nation the foot
and all knowledge of every measure into
which it enters as unit. We have ex-
hanged the yard, used in connection with
the arm more OF less in every family, and
the pace. the unit and guide of the farm
er for au approximate measure that will
not supply the place Of either. Every
lot of ground - feet front by 100 feet
deep must be described as follows: :.
meters, 6 decimetars and 2 centimeters
front, by 30 meters, dcc1meters and 3
centimeters deep. Thus, the description
of every such lot will require three diff
ferent units and six words. instead of one
unit and two words In all conveyances
and descriptions Of land, the translation
occasion great troublo aud difficulty. The
old familiar mi,e OF !, 80 PAGES is also
gone. and the distance frem Albany to
New York, 145 miles, will be known to
US, if known st all. as 800, ESQ meters.
Let us sec how We shall recognize the
earth in its new dimensions. It's diane
ter, instead Of 5000 miles in round num-
bers, will be IL So, coo meters, and its
circumference about 80, SO, 800 meters
and ,lecimeters. The acre is also gone,
aud with it all its mu!tiples and sub null
tipleS. Since the commencement of the
present century the public lands have
been surveyed and laid out in townships
Of 6 miles square, each containing, Of
course, Sc square miles. or 23. 0i0 acres.
The side OF each township, by the new
system, would contain 9, 504 meters, in
stead of 6 miles, and its area 92f. 600
ares. \ the lands from the Ohio river
to the Pacific Ocean have been surveyed,
decided, and recorded in the units Of the
square mile aid the acre. What will be
the labor and the confusion of translat-
ing every deed and record into the lau-
guage Of the meter and the are! We
should scarcely know our own farms by
their new names.
II the introduction of the metric sys-
tenn produced only change in the names
of the units, leaving their value the same
or if it altered the values only, preserv-
ing their names, the difficulty would be
com paratiycly small. But. unfortunate
ly, we must change both ideas and words
the foundation Of systems and the Ian
guaSe by means Of which these systems
are developed and made known. These
double changes, made at the same time,
are very serious, because there is no
thought or word in one language having
an exact synnnyma in the other. The
consequences of these changes to the
metric system would be the following:
l. They would strike out from the Eng
fish language every word and phrase and
sentence used in connectian with our
present units Of weights and measures,
and would impose the necessity of learn
ing new language for the one now in
use.
?. They would blot out from the know
ledge of the nation all apprehensions of
distance and area and volume acquired
through the present units, aud would
render necessary the requirement of SIM
liar knowledge by less convenient units,
having different relations to each other.
and expressed in a new aud unknown
language.
3. They would change the records of
orr entire land property, requiring them
all to be translated into rev and foreign
language.
1. We must not forget that prices and
currency are dependent upon and neces-
sarily adjust themselves TO weights and
measures, aud that all our ideas Of cost
aud value are fixed with reference to our
present units. The adoption of the met
rc system, therefore, would carry with
it al enter change in the money value
of ali articles of commerce and manu-
features, ana Of all agricultural produc-
tiUns; for these values would have to be
rcadiustel t. the new units, and to lie
expressed III the new language. Hence
the changes would eXtinguish all knowl-
edge OF money values, now so familiar
to the entire population i'll their daily
purchases and sales alti barriers, for those
values are al adjusted with reference to
the units Of weights and measures.
). Can We afford to make these changes
for the very small gain of changing our
present yard from 3G inches to 50 inches
and 37-f0O OF an inch9 Can we accept
any system As q substitute for the one
now in use, unless it makes some provi-
sion for maintaining the unit one foot?
All our measures of distances. tue yard.
the rod, the furlong. the mile, the league,
come from it. The square rod or perch,
the rood, the acre, are also derived from
it. Can we change the survey of an en-
tire continent. with the description of
every piece Of lana upon it, from the
unit one acro to the unit one are, forty
times less? Can we change, without
great confusion, the unit of volume, the
cubic foot and the cubic yard, SO familiar
to every school boy And. above all.
can we change our unit of weight, the
pound aveiriupoiS, which is equal in
weight to sixteen of the one thousand
equal parts Of i cubic foot of rain water?
6. Can we abandon, as mere aues-
ton of language, these short, sharp,
Saxon words for their equivalent express
ed in foreign language? Besides, the
foreign language which we introduce has
no exact equivalents to these words,
which have almost become things, and
which now form , part of the mind and
knowledge Of every people who speak
the English tongue OF are connected
with American commerce. These are
the great questions now discussed and
considered by the American people
They affect directly the interests Of all
classes. They affect our systems Of pub
lie instruction. our trade, our commerce,
aud the mechanic arts, in all their devel-
opments, and III all their applications.
Let us. then, approach these questions
with a deep sense of their Importance.
Let no hurried action embarrass us. Let
us remember that time is IA necessary eie-
n,ent in the accomplishment of every
thing that is truly great, and that these
questions can only be rightly and perma-
nently settled 10y the enlightened and