The Calumet news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 1907-1938, 1911-11-17
OLD STATE LAW
NOT ENFORCED
COUNTY AND TOWNSHIP CLERKS
ARE OFFICIAL SEALERS OF
WEIGHTS AND MEASURES
BUT FEW KNOW 1T.

Away back i'm 1876 the state Of Mich
igan passed an act making the state
treasury the official sealer of weights
and measures for the state, the county
clerk for each county and the town
ship clerk for each township Zach
and everyone of these officials Is re-
auired to have in his possession
weights and measures conforming to
the state weights and measures. The
state has the necessary weights and
measures in great array, with all the
necessary equipment to tell exactly
whether a pound is a pound and
quart is a quart
The old law goes into details rela-
tive to the methods of defending the
people against under weights and
scant measure prescrbes fees for in
specting scales and prescribes pen
atty for any official sealer who fails
to perform his duties but does not
impose any penalty on the owner OF
theving scales and measures. Alto
gether it is nice law to read and
indicates a legislative desire to do
something for the benefit of the peo-
Pile. the only trouble being that it is
out of date, never was enforced and
probably could not be today.
once or twice a year some one APP
plies to the state treasurer for a test
of weights and the array of testing
balances and brass weights is hauled
forth from the cupboard i'm his office
lat Lansing. the remainder of the time
the fine apparatus is idle while so far
as is known only two or three counties
in the state have their official weights
and measures and il is not known that
any township clerk makes annual pill
grimage among the corner stores of his
I township as the law prescribes TO see
= that the scales in those establish
D ments are up TO the standard.
The law authorizes county and
township clerks to buy the official sets
T i'm case the supervisors and township
c boards fail to furnish them.
U The real astonishing feature of tn,
D. proposition, however, is that some en-
n terprsing township clerk has no
taken advantage of the terms of tn,
: act which has been i'm existence owe
a half century, to add a little to hi
income from his offcehsThe law pre-
" scribes that he shall put up writer
>, notices in three public places one
- each year notifying the people tina
= he can be found at certain pac
: to seal such "of their great and smaI
scale beams, weights and measures
> as they bring to him. NThe act ais
" authorizes the clerk to charge tire
- cents for each scale weight or meas
F" ure not found conforming to IN
- standard and two cents each found t
be standard. He is also directed {
visit each store and liquor shop an
examine their scales, weights an
- measures charging double the fee h
20 does to those brought 60 him. TIL
law authorizes the use of "vibratin
10 steel yards" a weighing contrivanC
~ better known 25 or 80 years ago tina
- now.
n Just how much penalty the counti'
or have lost is question of some mas
30 nitude. 1t specially provides tn
a each sealer may be fined s. for eaC
80 failure to perform his duty, and
go only two or three counties pay al
=. attention to the matter. there are
whole lot of county and township O
90, flcials who, having never heard
-, the law, are amenable to fines f
- failure to enforce il.
-, States officials say that lack of pr
* W '''o'' '''o'''" No'iui'io"s ma
ID. '"e ~" q u'''u '''''' many years Z"
~ and no legislator anxious to make
co reform record ever happened on to I
a. old statute or the standard weights a
IA, measures of the state.