The Wenatchee daily world. [volume] (Wenatchee, Wash.) 1905-1971, 1910-02-23
URGES A PUBLIC
SCALE
s. w. STRATTON, DIRECTOR OF
THE BUREAU OF STANDARDS
AND WEIGHTS OF THE DE-
PARTMENT OF COMMERCE AND
LABOR WRITES WORLD.


\ s. w. Stratton, director of the Blu
reau of Standards and Weights, con-
nected with the United States De-
partment of Commerce and Labor,
writes the Daily World under the date
of February 18th, regarding the re-
cent councilmanic agitation for the
installation of public scales in this
city, as follows:
I'VE have before US clipping from
your issue of January 18th in which
an argument which occurred before
the common council on the matter of
installing public scales by the city,
is reported. We note that one of the
coal dealers of your city has protest
ed very strongly against the estab-
lishment of public scales in order that
the weights of coal sold in the city
may be checked.
In reply to the arguments which
he has advanced against the plan,
we may only say that much short
weight in coal has been discovered
when the subject has been investi-
gated in other cities, and we believe
the protection of the public in this
matter is very important. We also
note from the clipping that your city
has no official inspector of weights
and measures at the present time.
Unless it is your intention to weigh
all loads of coal sold, many unsus-
pecting purchasers not requesting
that coal bought by them be weighed,
would undoubtedly continue to be
defrauded by the dealers who may
make practice of so doing. An or
dinance appointing an inspector of
weights and measures and giving him
the right to re-weigh any article sold
in the city, is, we believe, necessary
before short weight not only in coal
but in all other commodities as well
may be eliminated.
Without an examination of your
charter, which is at the present time
not available, we are unable to de-
termine how far your city may go
in this matter; but We believe that
if an ordinance were passed specify
ing that all scales occupying any por-
ton of the public highway, be desig-
mated as public scales and be open
to the sealer of weights and measures
without charge, the expense to which
the city would be obliged to go in
this matter would be largely re-
duced.
"The objection made by one of
your coal dealers that the installa-
tion of public scales would be re-
Election upon the honesty of coal
dealers, is, in general, not good
one, since every intelligent merchant
realizes that business may only
thrive where legitimate competition
| is present and where merchants are
| all placed upon the same basis. Few
| honest merchants are found who do
! not welcome the thorough inspection
of their apparatus in use and the
| quantities delivered by them, mas
much as they realize that only by
fair and impartial inspection of all
apparatus alike may fraud be elm
| mated from competition.
GAS to the Importance of this mat
| ter, we can only say that the ques-
tion of honest weights and measures
| deeply concerns every person in the
community and that no higher duty
rests upon a municipality than to
protect it's citizens in matter in
which they are unable to properly
protect themselves.
Respectfully,
IS. w. STRATTON, Director"