Orange County observer. [volume] (Hillsborough, N.C.) 1880-1918, 1909-05-13
Staggering Statistics as to the Annual Loss Of the Poor
by Reason Of Fraudulent Weights and Measures
It Amounts to $2o,0O0,O0o a Year in New York State Alone
.--One CONSIGNMENT of 100000 Berry Boxes
Found Short Measure.

Albany, n. Y.-Poor people in this
State, who have to buy their food
supplies in small quantities, were
robbed of about 100000 last
year by reason Of short weights and
small measure, according to an esti-
mate made by Fritz Reichmann, State
Superintendent Of Weights and
Measures. OF that loss about S10,-
900 900 came from the people in New
York City, in spite of the municipal
bureau Of weights and measures, OF
whose head Superintendent Reich
mann has not a very complimentary
opinion.
"The people wholose most through
faulty weights and measures" he de-
| clared, "are the very poor, who have
to buy in small quantities. This State
is so far behind it's neighbors that 1t
naturally becomes the dumping
| ground of short weight and short
! measure goods. Russia, which we
consider a barbarous country, is so
much better governed than New York
| State in respect to it's weights and
measures, as to make us blush"
Primarily the reason for this great
| defrauding of customers by dealers is
not dishonesty, in Superintendent
Reichmann's opinion, but the imper-
feet laws, which leave each munich
pality to work out It's own destiny.
with merely a general supervision on
the part of a sadly handicapped State
department. Thus dealers in one city
supplying retailers in some other city
with different regulations as to
weights n measures, or perhaps
negligent inspection or no inspection,
may Internationally ~perpetrate a
fraud, which the retail dealers would
pass along OF intensity.
"To be sure," Mr.. Reichmann con-
tinued, there is much dishonesty.
deliberate and intentional, in every
large city and many small ones, and
it is to guard against this that the
sealers of weights and measures have
to watch constantly.
Berry Boxes Short Measure.
II stopped a consignment Of 600,-
900 berry boxes to New York City the
other day from one of our upstate
Cities" the Superintendent added
"They were short measure. The con.
signor said they were to be used fol
the wagon trade"
The staggering statistics which he
pAO0ONS0 Co v SAO IOIoA IL 4O0
from fraudulent weights and meas.
ures were compiled by taking twenty
foodstuffs, the average proportion Of
loss found by the departments tests
and the average consumption yearly
of the twenty articles chosen.
"They were twenty average com
modities-four, bread, meats. eggs
butter, coffee, tea, sugar, beans an6
the like" said he. "Those figures
too, are conservative. If anything
the amount would be larger rathe1
than smaller"
To take one example. He esti
mated that on dried beans the. con
sumner paid for some $4,000 wortl
of beans more than he received il
the course of a year.. What purport
ed to be a quart Of dried beans wa
purchased by n of the inspectors il
a grocery store for twelve cents. TIL,
beans and the bag containing then
were weighed and found to weigl
% 1892 ounces The bag weighe,
1872 of. an ounce, leaving for tn,
beans 20 1916 ounces. A correc
quart of beans is supposed to weigl
exactly thirty ounces. Thus on tina