Page:Popular Science Monthly Volume 84.djvu/352

348 attention of the officials and of the people, which frequently resulted in the establishing of inspection departments or of improving the one already existing. In consequence of this activity the Bureau of Standards received many requests from city officials and others for assistance in bettering conditions. To assist in meeting these demands the bureau prepared a model city ordinance on weights and measures, and gave advice regarding suitable standards and apparatus, and on other important matters.

Altogether, 184 cities or towns were inspected, ranging in size from New York with four or five millions of inhabitants, to Carson City, Nevada, with about 2,200; and it will perhaps be interesting at this point to give some of the results found, which includes to July 12, 1912, when the work was practically completed.

This shows that nearly 45 per cent, of all the scales tested were three or more per cent, in error, and when the rapidity with which a tradesman sells his wares is considered, even three per cent, is an important consideration; and when it reaches twelve, as it did in a number of cases, the loss to the purchaser is a serious one. It is not only the purchaser who suffers from the use of such apparatus, but the honest dealer is placed at a great disadvantage by reason of the fact that the possessor of such a scale can apparently undersell him and yet actually charge more for his goods. To show how apparently small errors run into money, we shall take the case of print butter. It will suffice for our purpose if we select states from different sections of the country, and base our conclusions upon what is found there. Let us take the states of Alabama, California, Massachusetts, Montana, Nebraska, New York, Texas, Utah, and the District of Columbia. The number of prints of butter of various sizes weighed in these states was 3,972, aggregating some 4,434 pounds of the commodity. The average shortage of all this