The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1895-09-05
UNIFORM WEIGHTS AND MEA-
@T-VE~

The day OF a practically universal system
OF coinage is not far distant. and II the
United States keeps up its demand for It
that day will be fastened. An interna-
ttonai agreement. as to the ratio OF silver
TO gold viii be one great step in the right
direction u will be resisted h. the traf-
fckers I'm money just as free trade is ad-
vocated by those whose business IL is TO
import foreign goods. There is no deep
dyed conspiracy about IL, but a merely
human. albeit selfish, regard for ones own
interests.
In these days OF enormous exchange OF
commodities between nations and OF sys-
TEN by which the great centers OF com
ulerce are almost within hailing distance,
II f. absurd that the traffic Of the world
shall be saddled with a complex system or
coinage Cold and silver coins OF deter
mined interchangeable value should be the
money OF all the great peoples OF the earth.
Custom Is tyrant OF which nearly ev-
cry one is the willing subject. Else the
money measures and the measures Of all
commodities would not be as varied as
there are tongues and as complicated as
even design could have made them.
France il entitled TO the credit of having
initiated the metric system OF measures.
and the United States has been shamefuily
amiss in falling to adopt it. We have been
content to jog along In England's footsteps,
retaining nearly all the crude measures
and many OF their absurdIties. The metric
system as adopted In France is based upon
a unit represented by the forty millionth
part Of the earth's circumference. That
was named the metre. and is equal to near
~ forty inches. This. divided into tenths,
hundredths, thousandths. and multiplied
by ten. one hundred and one thousand.
gave the table of measures Of length, the
decimetre, for instance. being the tenth OF
the metre. the centimetre being the hun
dredth part OF the metre, The squares OF
these gave the units for measuring area,
such as we express by square yards. acres,
etc The litre, the base unit for measuring
volume. was derived from the same source,
il being a cube, each side of which Is
decimetre I'm length. Lastly, the gramme,
the unit of weight, is the weight of a cubic
centimetre OF pure water at that tempera-
ture at which its volume is most contract
ed. With the resulting system of tables,
the measurement of every kind of magnl-
tude can be expressed, and there is sim
pie relation established between weight
and cubic contents.
Interest in the subject is revived by the
fact that a parliamentary committee has
recommended that IL be adopted by Eng
| land, the change to take effect in two
| years. thus giving time 10 change weights
| and measures. Instead Of a clumsy and
| arbitrary set OF tables, the whole system
| of measurement will be represented by one
simple. scientific rule.
| The next step is to abolish the fractional
| differences between fve-dollar pieces and
| sovereigns, between dollars and crowns,
| quarters and shillings and francs. 1t does
| not matter so much about names II nation
| al pride stands in the way Of a universal
nomenclature. American slang Will prob
| ably insist upon its 'two-bits" and its
''V;" English slang on its bob and its
"quid:" al that we need agree upon is that
| an American dollar, silver or gold, shall be
| exactly the equivalent OF another piece OF
| money wherever civilization extends and
| common sense can be made TO prevail.