Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1910-11-19
NEWARK'S STANDARDS ARE
O. KID BY GOVERNMENT.

Five months q the EVENING
| STAR directed attention to the fact
that gross fraud in the matter of
weights and measures was possible be-
cause this State has had no official
| set of standards for the last twenty
five years. The discovery was made
by William A. Smith, of the firm of
Coult & Smith, on May 81 of this year.
One of Mr.. Smiths clients, a large
wholesale dealer in food products, de-
sired to ascertain without doubt the
legal standard weight for a barrel OF
flour.
An examination of the statutes
failed to disclose any State law giving
the standard weight for a barrel of
flour. AS sueh a statute would have
to conform with the United States
standard, a duplicate set of which
should have been in the possession of
the secretary of state, Mr.. Smith APP
pealed to the latter official for the de-
sired information.
The counselor was informed hat dur
ing the fire of 1885, which partially
destroyed the State House, the New
Jersey set of United States standard
weights and measures were so badly
damaged they had to be sent to Wash
ington for repairs. According to Sec
rotary of State Dickinson the New Jer-
sey set of standards never came back.
State without Standards.
Mr.. Smith then communicated with
the Washington authorities, and was
informed by the chief of division OF
standards of the department of COM
merce and labor that the records OF
his department showed that the New
Jersey standards had been returned
This resulted in further communication
with the secretary of states Office, ant
the information that while the stand
ards probably had been returned they
never reached hat office.
1t was later stated unofTicially that
the standards had been received by a
State House attache al the basement
entrance, where all heavy freight is re-
ceived, and permitted to remain in the
cellar for several years and were prob
ably sold during a general cleanup
Inasmuch as the United States stat
ute OF 1888. under which the standard
was adopted, provided that the several
subdivisions OF a State might have du-
lplicate sets made to conform with the
set furnished by the national govern
ment. Mr.. Smith applied first to the
county clerk of this county and then
to every other county in the State.
Mr.. Smith found that sixteen Of the
twenty-one counties had no standards
at all, and that five counties-Bergen,
Burlington. Cumberland, Middlesex and
U~nion-had incomplete sets of little or
no value. AT the time hat the result
of Mr.. Smiths discovery was published
the EVENING STAR directed atten-
ton to the fact that in the absence Of
the official standards provided by law
1T might BIZ difficult to sustain a convic-
ton for using fictitious weights and
measures.
City Counsel Nugent agreed with
hat view. and upon his advice City
Sealer John H. Sullivan took to Wash
ington the set of standards in use here
and had them tested and duly approved
by the division of standards. AS a
result, Newark is the only municipal
lty in the State which possesses a set
of standards made official by approval
of the United States government in
accordance with the law of 1888.