IT is easy to understand why Shelley Wright (LET, August 6) has problems dealing with old imperial measure if she was not taught it at school. I know the feeling.

Not having been taught the metric system in my schooldays, I still think in terms of inches, feet, yards, and even of rods, poles, perches, and, of course, miles.

Worse, and I am aware that this is unforgivable, avoirdupois rears its ugly head whenever I contemplate various weights - 16oz=1lb, 28lb=1 quarter and so on.

Many of the old measurements now appear to be absurd - 4 inches=1 hand, 9 inches=1 span, 5ft=1 pace, etc. But we must remember that ordinary folk did not have calculators, nor did they consider them to be necessary.

The names used in imperial measure evoked a mental image of something tangible. People knew there were 12 inches in a foot and 36 in one yard. They could also measure, by rule of thumb, to a reasonable degree of accuracy. In other words, to them, it was simple.

When they ordered a pint of ale, they would not have been remotely interested in what the metric equivalent was in some obscure French or German hamlet. And if you were foolish enough to inform them that to convert inches into metres they should multiply by 0.0254 and the reciprocal was 39.37, they would have thrown you out of the pub. And deservedly so! Those people would not have had an extended education. But they knew what was meant by and also had the 'feel' for, say, 5lbs of spuds.

There is a strong rumour that the next bit of bureaucratic witchcraft to be inflicted upon us will be the metric clock. Now that will be a bonny mess - a 10-hour day.

Are you paying attention, Shelley? Try to remember that 14lbs=1 stone, except in the case of a butcher's stone which equals 8lbs. And do not forget that a baker's dozen is 13.

I hope that all is now clear.

RAYMOND NICHOLSON, View Road, Darwen.

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