53
WEIGHTS IN USE AMONG THE CHINESE.
In China, most unmanufactured articles are sold by weight, not excepting liquids, wood, silk, cloth, grain, and live stock. Grain is however retailed by measure. The minor decimal weights are used in weighing bullion, pearls, precious stones, valuable drugs, &c. There are three instruments for weighing, viz., the balances, steelyards, and money scales. Balances are used for weighing large sums of money; standard weights are furnished by the Board of Revenue at Peking, from 100 taels down to one cash, made of brass. The steelyard is made of wood, marked off into catties, mace, &c.; the largest of them will weigh two or three peculs; it is called dotchin by foreigners, a word corrupted from tok-ching, to weigh. The counterpoise is usually a piece of stone, and so common is its use, that no one goes to mar- ket without carrying a dolchin. The money scales are merely a small ivory yard like the dotchin, used to weigh money, pearls and small things.
The chik (cubit, covid, or Chinese foot) fixed by the Mathematical Board at Peking is 13.125 English inches; that used by tradesmen at Canton varies from 14.625 to 14.81 inches; that employed by the engineers of public works is 12.7 inches, and that by which distance is usually measured is 12.1 nearly. At Canton, an English yard or má is reckoned at 2 chih 4 isun, which makes the English foot equal to 8 fsun. The chih is reckoned in the new tariff at 14.1 English inches, which is about the average length of this measure in Canton; this rate makes the chẳng to be 141 inches, or 31 yds.; the usual length of a chẳng in Canton, is a very little over 4 yds., though some of
them are but a little over 11 feet. The foot-rule of tailors is called pái trien chik, and the shorter one of masons chau tung chih. The cháng varies ac- cording to the chih.
The weights known among the Chinese are as follows:
1 kernel of millet (—) is one 黍 shú :
10 skú
10 lui
or kernels make one A lui;
make one 銖 chú;
24 chú Elk make one tael Huy Giáng 16 taels make one catty F kin;
2 catties make one | yin; 30 catties make one 鈞 kiun:
100 catties make one pecul 120 catties make one stone
tán (lit. a load);
shik.
The money weights are liáng, tsien, fan, lí, or taels, mace, canda- erens, and cash, decreasing in a decimal proportion; the copper coin called cash is named tsjen, because it originally weighed a mace.