In the commodities market I beliieve grain and perhaps produce is still sold by the bushel. Last I heard, bushels of the various grains (corns) were specified by weight (mass). So a bushel of oats was perhaps something like 32 pounds and a bushel of wheat was something like 60 pounds.
I just did a quick google and found http://muextension.missouri.edu/xplor/agguides/crops/g04020.htm which gives the masses of various "sizes" of bushel. You can see there that the observed masses in a farm wagon of one's crop is corrected for moisture content. I remember that being done in Northwest Ohio in the fifties and sixties. The general bushel is defined by the Mendenhall Order of 1893 at a fixed volume. There are 4 pecks to the bushel and 8 dry quarts (of 2 dry pints each) to the peck, as every good metircphobe well knows. Just ask them! And of course they will know which quart (fluid or dry) is larger than the other. By the way, the liter is in between those two quarts in size. Jim On Sunday 2003 November 30 16:01, Bill Potts wrote: > I guess that 111 must have been a typo, John. The hundredweight (cwt) was > 112 pounds (8 stones). In school, in England, I was told that the Canadian > unit in that range was the "cental" -- 100 lb. Subsequently, I lived in > Canada for 20 years (1957 to 1977) and never heard the term "cental." I did > hear "hundredweight," though, as a reference to 100 lb. > > You ask if bushels and pecks are still used in Canada. Although I haven't > lived there for over 26 years, I can at least say "not officially." In that > same 26 years, I've never seen anything measured in bushels in the United > States. I have heard references (although not for some time) to things like > "a bushel basket of apples." However, "bushel basket" is a somewhat vague > term. > Bill Potts, CMS > Roseville, CA > http://metric1.org [SI Navigator] > > -----Original Message----- > From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Behalf > Of john mercer > Sent: Sunday, November 30, 2003 11:57 > To: U.S. Metric Association > Subject: [USMA:27721] Answers to questions > > > ThanksChris for the information. In Canada we never used the stone for > weight at all. In the U K what is used in place of bushels and pecks and > the 100 weight. Wasn't the 100 weight 111 Lbs? I know in Canada they used > to use the 100 weight for weighing live stock. I don't know if they still > use it, maybe somebody could tell me. How do they weigh live stock in the > U K? Another question is the bushel that used to be used in the U K the > same as the bushel still used in the States? Are bushels and pecks still > used in Canada? Thanks again for all your help. -- James R. Frysinger Lifetime Certified Advanced Metrication Specialist Senior Member, IEEE http://www.cofc.edu/~frysingj [EMAIL PROTECTED] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Office: Physics Lab Manager, Lecturer Dept. of Physics and Astronomy University/College of Charleston 66 George Street Charleston, SC 29424 843.953.7644 (phone) 843.953.4824 (FAX) Home: 10 Captiva Row Charleston, SC 29407 843.225.0805
