106 CONVERTING UNITED STATES WEIGHTS AND MEASURES. CONVERTING UNITED STATES WEIGHTS AND MEASURES. METRIC TO CUSTOMARY. By the concurrent action of the principal governments of the world an International Bureau of Weights and Measures has been established near Paris. Under the direction of the International Committee two ingots were cast of pure platinum-iridium in the proportion of 9 parts of the former to 1 of the fatter metal. From one of these a certain number of kilogrammes were prepared, from the other a definite number of meter bars. These standards of weight and length were inter-compared, without preference, and certain ones were selected as international prototype standards. The others were distributed by lot, in September, 1859, to the different governments and are called national prototype standards. Those apportioned to the United States were received in 1890 and are in the keeping of this office. 1543.24 15432.4 225.0552 1763.70 17637.0 257.2059 1981.16 19841.6 239.3567 The metric system was legalized in the United States in 1866. The international standard meter is derived from the meter des archives, and its length is defined by the distance between two lines at 00 centigrade, on a platinum-iridium bar deposited at the International Bureau of Weights and Measures. The international standard kilogramme is a mass of platinum-iridium deposited at the same place, and its weight in vacuo is the same as that of the kilogramme des archives. The liter is equal to a cubic decimeter, and it is measured by the quantity of distilled water which, at its maximum density, will counterpoise the standard kilogramme in a vacuum, the volume of such a quantity of water being, as nearly as has been ascertained, equal to a cubic decimeter. CONVERTING UNITED STATES WEIGHTS AND MEASURES. (Prepared by T. C. Mendenhall, of the United States Coast and Geodetic Survey.) 107 The only authorized material standard of customary length is the Troughton scale belonging to this office, whose length at 59.62 Fahr. conforms to the British standard. The yard in use in the United States is therefore equal to the British yard. The only authorized material standard of customary weight is the troy pound of the mint. It is of brass of unknown density, and therefore not suitable for a standard of mass. It was derived from the British standard troy pound of 1758 by direct comparison. The British avoirdupois pound was also derived from the latter, and contains 7,000 grains troy. The British gallon= 4.54346 liters. The length of the nautical mile given above and adopted by the United States Coast and Geodetic Survey many years ago is defined as that of a minute of arc of a great circle of a sphere whose surface equals that of the earth (Clarke's Spheroid of 1866), FAILURES IN THE UNITED STATES. Quarterly statements of failures and average of liabilities, 1875-1897. Years. 1884. Amount. Average. 1885. Number. 2,346 2,173 23,039 1887. 1886. 1,932 Amount. Average: $56,627,821 $24,138 23,874,391 10,986 27,227,630 14,090 19,010 24,464 1889. 17,081 2,276 1,938 73,022,556 37,674 9,366 1890. 1891. 1881.. 2,754 1892. 15,670 1,984 1893. 38,372,643 13,602 1894. 46,121,051 12,608 2,792 32,167,179 11,528 1896. 9,266 1897. 10,695 38,884,789 13,190 FOURTH QUARTER. 12,979 1875.. 2,042 34,844,893 17,064 1892. 3,384 47,338,300 14,784 1879. 1894. 4,304 64,137,333 14,900 1880. 1,259 20,741,815 16,474 1,841 2,744 SECOND QUARTER. 25,623,575 10,416 ACREAGE, PRODUCTION AND VALUE OF TOBACCO IN 1896. Fifty-Fifth Congress (Unofficial.) From March 4, 1897, to March 3, 1899. SENATE. Republicans, 53; Democrats, 31; PEOPLE'S PARTY. 6. G. A. Hobart (N. J.), vice-president, presiding. ALABAMA. ΜΟΝΤΑΝΑ. Thomas H. Carter... Helena... ...Butte........ ..1899 .1901 NEBRASKA. John M. Thurston.........Omaha........ WILLIAM M. STEWART..Carson City..... 1899 William E. Chandler......Concord... NEW JERSEY. ..1901 NEVADA. ..1901 ..1903 NEW YORK. DELAWARE. George Gray.. Troy .1899 ..1903 ..1901 Marshall..........1903 Richard R. Kenney.. ..Dover.............1901 HENRY HEITFELD.......Lewiston.........1903 Henry W. Corbett.... ... Portland..........1903 OHIO. OREGON. Shelby M. Cullom... INDIANA. ..Indianapolis.....1899 .1901 IOWA. David S Turpie... John H. Gear. Lucien Baker Matthew S. Quay... RHODE ISLAND. Benjamin R. Tillman.....Trenton...........1901 Richard F. Pettigrew....... KANSAS. ...Leavenworth.... 1901 ........ KENTUCKY. TENNESSEE. .1903 William Lindsay..........Frankfort........1901 Thomas B. Turley........ Memphis.. Arthur P. Gorman........Laurel.. Redfield Proctor.. George L. Wellington......Cumberland......1903 Justin S. Morrill. MASSACHUSETTS. Worcester........1901 MICHIGAN. James McMillan... ..Detroit...... ..1901 ..Kalamazoo......1899 MINNESOTA. Cushman K. Davis.........St. Paul..........1899 Edward C. Walthall.. .Grenada.... ............. Francis M. Cockrell. George G. Vest............Kansas City......1903 Thomas S. Martin..... ..Scottsville..... .1901 John L. Wilson WEST VIRGINIA. Charles J. Faulkner......Martinsburg.. Francis E. Warren.. .Cheyenne.........1901 .Proctor.. .1899 ..Strafford..........1897 VIRGINIA. John W. Daniel. .Lynchburg.......1899 WASHINGTON. Stephen B. Elkins Elkins .1901 ..1899 WYOMING. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES. * Republicans (in italics), 203; democrats (in roman), 119; populists (in SMALL CAPS), 29; silverites (in CAPS), 3; vacancies, 3. Whole number, 357. Those marked served in the LIVth congress. Those marked † served in a previous house. Speaker 19. Andrew J. Hunter... 20. James R. Campbell. 21. JEHU BAKER. 22. George W. Smith*. INDIANA. 1. James A. Hemenway*. 2. Robert W. Miers.. 3. T. W. Zenor. 4. Francis M. Griffith. 5. George W. Faris*. 6. Henry U. Johnson*. 7. Jesse Overstreet*.. 8. Charles L. Henry. 9. Charles B. Landis.. 10. E. D. Crumpacker. 11. George W. Steelef.. 12. JAMES M. ROBINSON. 13. Lewis W. Royse*. IOWA. 1. Samuel M. Clark* 2. George M. Curtis*. 3. David B. Henderson*. 4. Thomas Updegraff* 5. Robert G. Cousins*. 6. John F. Lacey*. 7. John A. T. Hull*. 8. William P. Hepburn*. 9. A. L. Hager*. 10. Jonathan P. Dolliver* 11. George D. Perkins*. KANSAS. KENTUCKY. 1. Charles K. Wheeler... 5. Walter Evans*. 7. Evan E. Settle.. 8. George M. Davison.. 9. Samuel J. Pugh*.. 10. Thomas Y. Fitzpatrick.. 11. David G. Colson*. LOUISIANA. 1. Adolph Meyer*. 6. Samuel M. Robertson*.. Paducah. .Newstead. .Russellville. .Hodgenville. ..Louisville. .Newport. .Owenton. .Stanford. .Vanceburg. Prestonburg. ..Middleboro. New Orleans. .New Orleans. New Iberia. Benton. Moorehouse. Baton Rouge. |