Los Angeles herald., 1908-03-25
OF WORLDW DWLDE INTEREST
WEIGHTS AND MEASURES
BY FREDERIC J. HAsKIN

tions, but the national legislature has
never followed them. The result is
that at the Philadelphia mint they use
the apothecary's weight for their drugs
and chemicals. the avoirdupois weight
for their coarse material and the troy
weight for their precious metals, while
they manufacture subsidiary silver In
grams. Former Assistant Secretary of
the Treasury Armstrong is authority
for the statement that three-fourths
of the time of the liquidators in the
custom house is taken in the transpo-
sition of the metric system units to the
equivalents of the American system,
and vice versa.
National uniformity is desirable, in
the opinion OF many people, but to some
persons international uniformity would
be even more desirable. 1t has been
calculated that there are sixty varie-
ties of inches and their foreign equiva-
lents In this and other countries, 1876
names for foot, So different distances
called miles and 30 sorts of pints. For
the pound and its equivalent there are
no less than 235. Early necessity for
measures of some sort caused many
odd standards to be set. A yard was
originally the distance between the tip
of the nose and the end OF the thumb
of q certain Saxon king, and an inch
was the length of three barley corns.
Shoes are still measured according to
the old Saxon standards. A No. l
child's shoe is 10 plus 13 barley corns.
or z 2-3 inches long. A mans No. Z is
plus 13 plus 13. or SO barley corns,
or II inches long.
In the early days of the republic the
different states adopted the British
standards of weights and measures,
which varied considerably among
themselves. In 1913 standard brass
yard was brought to this country from
England by B. r. Hassers first super
intendent OF the coast ana geodetic
survey and an American pioneer in the
campaign for uniform weights and
measures. In 1921 Albert Gallatin i'm
ported from France a standard brass
troy pound for the use of the United
States mint. From this Hassler de-
rived a standard avoirdupois pound. In
1856 the standard brass yard was re-
placed by bronze one sent from Eng
land.
During the French revolution French
scientists worked out the metric sys-
tenn after nearly a decade OF study and
investigation, the chosen unit a me-
ter, being nearly the ten-millionth part
of the distance from equator to pole.
III 100 a ilui1DSI VI SldiQdlQ lllCtciS
were made of iron by the French, one
OF which was sent to this country in
1906. In 1921 the standard platinum
Arago kilogram was sent here, The
international bureau of weights and
measures was established at Paris un-
der an International convention act
signed In 1875 by seventeen countries,
including the United States. This bu-
reau prepared new meter and kilogram
sta 40 ,.Ie 1f o,, oil NJ
per cent platinum and 10 per cent ir-
dium. Two OF each OF these standards
were awarded to the United States.
George Davidson brought one set to
this country in 1890 and o. II. Tittman,
the present chief of the coast and geo.
detic survey. brought another set the
following year. Both sets OF standards
were carefully sealed until opened In
the presence OF President Harrison and
Secretary OF State Blaine.
All of these historic standards are
now preserved in a vault at the United
States bureau of standards. Some of
them are sealed in alright cases so
that the air cannot affect their con-
sistency or change their weight. The
bureau of standards was established in
1901 to perform the work formerly al
lotted to the office of weights and
measures In the treasury department.
The home of the bureau Is on high
ground near Washington. where 1t is
as far removed from disturbing infiu-
ences AS practicable. There surveyors
tapes are tested on fifty-meter stand
ard bench, weights and measures are
compared to the metric standards.
watches and chronometers are tested
by clock operating in vacuum and
set automatically every day by wire
less telegraph from the naval obser-
vatory.
The bureau has apparatus which is
said to be capable of measuring or
weighing the one-hundredth part of a
milligram or the millionth part of
gram. The millionth of a degree of
temperature can be detected on a ther-
mometer which employs pure hydrogen
gas instead Of mercury. A dividing
machine can distinguish between the
ten-millionth parts Of a millimeter.
The bureau of standards is encour-
aging uniformity in weights and meas
ures by calling annual conferences of
the state officials who have charge of
weights and measures in their respect
i've communities. Already three of
these conferences have been held and
a fourth will take place this spring.
Much of the work of the scientific
measures seems superfiuous to the lay
man, but it is important from COM
mercial and humanitarian point of
view. For instance, 1t is conservatively
estimated that 10000,000 short milk
bottles are used in New York city alone
every day. 1t has been figured that by
this means the public is defrauded OF
So. 000,0 900 annually. To prevent contin-
uance of such things 1t Is urged that
each state create separate and dis
tinct office for this work, the person in
charge to be known as the state sealer.
and that the employees OF sealers' forces
be selected after civil service examina-