Report upon weights and measures / By John Quincy Adams, Secretary of State of the United States. Prepared in obedience to a resolution of the Senate of the third March, 1817.

  • United States. Department of State.
Date:
1821
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Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Report upon weights and measures / By John Quincy Adams, Secretary of State of the United States. Prepared in obedience to a resolution of the Senate of the third March, 1817. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    25/272 (page 15)
    Noah, we are told, built, by divine instruction, bis ark three hundred cubits long, fifty cubits broad, and thirty cubits in height. After the general deluge, the dispersion of the human species, and the confusion of languages which ensued, must have destroyed what* ever uniformity of weights and measures might have existed, while the whole earth was of one language and of one speech. After no- ticing this great and miraculous event, the historical part of the Bible is chiefly confined to the family of Abraham, originally a Chaldean, said to have been very rich in cattle, in silver, and in gold. In his time, we find mention made of measures of meal. Abimelech gives him a thousand pieces of silver. He, himself gives to Hagar a bottle of water, and buys of Ephron, the Hittite, the field of Machpelah, for which he pays him, by weight, four hundred shekels of silver, current money with the merchant. At this period, therefore, we find established measures of length, of land, and of capacity, liquid and dry; weights, coined money, and decimal arith- metic. The elements for a system of metrology are complete; but the only uniformity observable in them is, the identity of weights and coin, and the decimal numbers. In the law given from Sinai—the law, not of a human legislator, but of God—there are two precepts respecting weights and mea- sures. The first, [Leviticus xix. 35, 36] “ Ye shall do no unrightc- “ ousness in judgment, in mete-yard (measure of length) in weight, “or in measure (of capacity). Just balances, just weights, a just “ ephah, and a just hin, shall ye have.” The second, [Deuteronomy xxv. 13, 14, 15] “Thou shalt not have in thy bag divers weights, “ a great and a small. Thou shalt not have in thine house divers “ measures, a great and a small. But thou shalt have a perfect and “ just weight, a perfect and just measure shalt thou have.” The weights and measures are prescribed as already existing and known, and were all probably the same as those of the Egyptians. The first of these injunctions is addressed in the plural to the whole na- tion, and the second in the singular to every individual. The first has reference to the standards, which were to be kept in the ark of the covenant, or the sanctuary; and the second to the copies of them, kept by every family for their own use. The first, therefore, only commands that the standards should be just: and that, in all tran- sactions, for which weights and measures might be used, the princi- ple of righteousness should be observed. The second requires, that the copies of the standards used by individuals, should be uniform, not divers; and not only just, but perfect, with reference to the standards. The long measures were, the cubit, with its subdivisions of two spans, six palms or hand-breadths, and twenty-four digits or fingers. It had no division in decimal parts, and was not employed for itine- rary measure: that was reckoned by paces, Sabbath day’s journeys, and day’s journeys. The measures of capacity were, the ephah for the dry, and the hin for liquid measure; the primitive standard from nature of which was ?tn egg-shell: six of these, constituted the