The San Francisco call., 1898-03-17
Business Men DenOunce the Bill Creating a Censor of
 Weights and Measures.
An Unjust Municipal Office Which Fosters the Levying of BIackmal on Reput= able Tradesmen of
 the City.

against the law of 1891, which author izes boards of supervisors to appoint an officer in each county to inspect weights and measures and to charge merchants for the inspections made.
 The matter was never seriously thought of until yesterday, because Sec retary of State Waite and Secretary of State Brown have both refused to act as State sealer," which is the title of the officer who has charge of all the county sealers, on the ground that they believed the law to be sort of black mailing proposition.
 The Board of Supervisors of San Di- ego County is responsible for the re- vival of the question as to the justice and legality of the law, for that body has just demanded that the Governor appoint J. F. Neely inspector of that county. This demand Will doubtless be followed by similar actlod fa all the other counties of the State.
 Incidentally, it may be said in pass ing, that the fees for this unique off, cial in a city like San Francisco would make the salary of the President of the United States look like the earnings of a common laborer. Fortunately for the merchants of this city, there is not such an official in the city and county.
 The bill which created the thrifty of flee of State sealer, "a sort of guardian for fools," as one of the heavy mer- chants of the city said yesterday, was pet measure of the late Senator Jere- miah Mahoney. It has always been slTs6kA A6 c-fT tIrT0a n Q bill, and has never met with the ap- proval of the Governor or other State officials interested in public welfare.
 When called upon by the Board of Supervisors of San Diego to appoint their nominee to the fat office a few days ago Governor Budd consulted At tOrney- General Fitzgerald as to the legality of the measure. He received Q reply that left no discretion as to his duties. The Attorney-General said:
 Assuming for the purpose of this opinion only that the act in question is constitutional, I am of the opinion that when an application is made by the Board of Supervisors of any county for the appointment of such an officer it is obligatory upon you as Governor to make such appointment
 SO much as he disliked the task, and bad as he believed the harassing meas ure, Governor Budd was compelled to make the appointment.
 The odiOus law is full of specified tions that go to feather the nest" of this peculiar officer, who is a sort of censor of public morals. At the outset it provides for "but one standard of weights and measures of capacity TbrO11 O11t tho +I,o,-o ,.-o-o more than one standard now prevail ing.
 The next provision honors the Sec retary of State by making him ex-of- ficio State sealer of weights and meas ures," job as ridiculous in the eyes of all who have been Secretary of State since its passage as if they. had been made lord high executioners of the type so funny in "The Mikado."
 Proceeding along the path of equal and exact justice, the law next pro- vides for the safety of the people and the welfare of the States sacred keep CT of the seals by arranging that he shall procure, at the expense of the county, a complete standard of bal anCes, weights and measures, which shall consist of a standard balance, a yard, pound weight, liquid gallon and half bushel and the usual sub divisions of such weights and meas ures."
 These provisions were doubtless based on fear that the gallon and the pound, the yard and the bushel, diff fered in various counties. It was feared that there might be a disastrous con- fiict between the gallons of Milpitas and the standard of gauging pumpkins in Petaluma.
 The vigilance of the lawgivers is seen to good advantage in the watchful care of the next section, which shields the people against wolves in sheeps' cloth ing by arranging that the State sealer shall not starve. It provides that no person shall use weights and measures of any character until their accuracy has been certified to by the sealer at so much per certificate. This sum amounts to an aggregate that beats a claim in the Klondike.
 It is made a misdemeanor for anyper- son to sell goods, wares or merchandise 1lnIess the same shall have been meas 7lred or weighed by scales or rules hearing the official certificate. County sealers shall have the right. according to the new law, to inspect weights measures and beams "at any hour in the day time" and any person refusing the high officials demands may be fined not less than $50.
 And the State law has provided for it's own liberallv Section of the law gives the fees as follows: For sealing and marking every beam, $1; for deal ing and marking measures of exten- sion. at the rate of 50 cents for each ward. not to exceed a cost of $2; seal ing scales from pounds up to POO, 75 cents each; from 200 up to 300 pounds, inclusive, $1 50 each; 200O to 5000 pounds, $5 each; for sealing and mark ing liquid measures, if the capacity be one gallon or more, 50 cents; if less, 20 cents.
 Merchants in all lines of trade re- gard the law as a dead letter and look upon the officer created by the bill as q pestiferous nuisance. They do not hesitate to say that the spirit back or the law is as infamous as the motives that led Dick Turpin and his com