Omaha daily bee., 1910-07-29
CHEATING COMMON IN TRADE
instances Related by New YOrIr's
Superintendent of Weights and
Measures.

Frtz Reichmann, state superintendent
or weights and measures at Albany, N "
says that In 3O4 places visited In Manhattan
ana the Bronx, In New York City So per
cent Of the scales, II per cent of the
weights and So per cent of the capacity
measures were incorrect. He writes a very
important article on the subject for the
August American Magazine, from which the
following is taken:
Is IT, then, that all dealers or the ma
)or1ty Of dealers are dishonest? Far from
H. There is only a small percentages Of
dealers who are inherently dishonest. or who
might be said to have criminal tendencies
to wish to defraud their customers This
or course, they can do with impunity. in
asmuch as the customer takes upon faith
what Is given him; but there are a great
many dealers who know that the customer
does not know, and, having to meet keen
ana sharp competition, and seeing that
their nefghbors prosper by giving short
weight or measure acquire the habit and
90 likewise. They are the ones who need
protection and who would not give short
weight or measure II there were an efficient
inspection to keep the inherently dishonest
competitor in check.
"hen cranberrtes were selling at II cents
quart dry measure, and were so sold
by all OF the merchants in Rochester. an
enterprislng dealer advertised them for
10 cents quart and gave a LIQUID mart
trying to undo the good work of the ef-
fictent sealer OF that city. To meet This
competition at least fifteen other dealers
IN that same neighborhood Immediately
dropped their prices to 10 cents and were
using liquid measures. OF course. 10 cents
quart liquid measure is consiIera bly,
more expensive than II cents o ,1usrt dr-,,
measure. AS the local sealer Ems known
70 the proprietor Of the store he could
not very well secure the evidence and SO
ne called upon the state department of
weights and measures. with a witness
the state official entered the store and pur-
chased some commodities among them
some cranberries. The evidence of fraud
was easily secured and the proprietor con-
victed. Within three hours after con-
Viction all of the other fifteen dealers re-
turned TO the honest and full measure
Here clearly was case of dishonesty
necessitated through competition.
The above Illustrations are of dry meas
ure, and they must receive the grand prize
Tor instruments OF fraud because the bot
tom can be so easily raised, or decreased in
size. and the sides relapped and false sides
inserted. The customer rarely has an on
portunity in a filled measure to see the
inside, and with any sort OF dexterity a
crooked dealer can do the trick.
The prevalence of false dry measures
can be easily seen from the fact that two
Inspectors OF the State department in New
York counted over forty dry measures
along Second avenue In New York CITY I'm
three blocks. all OF which resulted IN a
shortage OF over so per cent. Cranberry
measures delivering IS cubic inches instead
OF 6L2 have been very common; white
lined graniteware liquid measures with an
inch or two OF white paraffin poured into
the inside are very deceptive and by no
means uncommon. One very prevalent form
OF weights and measures deception is 10
sell dry commodities by liquid measure in
stead of by dry measure. As a dry quart
Is 20 per cent larger than liquid quart
the loss due TO such practice is evident.
But do not be deceived into imagining that
because a person Is using small measure
he u charging proportionately less, Tor