h times. The differences between
the nuts are usually so minute, and, what is more important, the
difficulties of correctly estimating size by the eye alone are so great
that it is practically impossible to do it. An expert on this point can
do it of course much better than one who is not, but even the expert is
only too well aware of his limitations and of the impossibility of
properly doing the above. The same difficulty is apparent with every
characteristic on the list and while judging by experts with the aid of
a score card, is, so far as I am aware, the method used in judging
fruit, farm animals, poultry, etc., the crudeness of this method is only
too evident to the experts themselves. Two or three years ago it seemed
very far inferior to what actually measuring these characteristics would
be, although such measurement at first seemed difficult, not to say
almost impossible. Much work has been done on this, and it is very
gratifying to say that this measurement has been found possible to an
extent that was not dreamed of before the work was started. Before
outlining the methods worked out to do this a little discussion will be
given on Prof. Lake's score card, the characteristics which it pointed
out, and the reason shown for changing some of them.

Size is a characteristic which is apparent to everyone, yet the actual
measurement of size in the case of a large lot of nuts presents
difficulties which seem practically insurmountable. A serious attempt
was made to measure the length, breadth and height of the nuts examined
and gauges were made which should do this exactly and quickly. These
were finely discarded and the characteristic "weight" adopted in place
of size. This has to quite an extent replaced size in considering farm
products. When we used to buy potatoes by the bushel we used to get a
bushel basket full, now we get the legal weight of a bushel of potatoes
and instances of this kind might be multiplied almost indefinitely.
While weight and size are not exactly the same thing, yet they are so to
a large extent in the case of a given commodity, such as nuts of one
species, and weight can be accurately and rapidly determined.

Plumpness is another characteristic which we all understand as far as
the difference between a nut with a plump well filled kernel is
concerned, and one with a shriveled up kernel, but when it comes to
arranging the kernels of a lot of nuts in order of their plumpness, the
one who t