While the weights and measures of Paris had established themselves in Rouen and Caen, local measures more in agreement with Norman customs were in general use. Thus the Paris bushel = 793 cubic inches was scarcely used. A typical Norman measure was the Boisseau étalon de l’abbaye de Jumièges, containing, as nearly as I could measure, 1648 cubic inches. Now this is very approximately a cubic foot of the reduced Paris 11-inch standard usual in Normandy, akin to the 11-inch foot of Jersey. This cubic foot was very nearly the Roman cubic foot or Quadrantal; for the reduced Paris foot, = 11·72 English inches, was very nearly the same as the quarter of the aune, which was 4 Roman feet very approximately.
There was another standard Bushel—the Boisseau étalon de la Ville de Bolbec—containing, as nearly as I could measure, 2534 cubic inches.
There is also a peculiar measure for apples, the barattée or churnful, usually of 25 pots.
In Normandy as in the rest of France weights were not related to measures. It was always known what was the usual weight of corn in the bushel; thus the Paris bushel was supposed to hold 20 French pounds of wheat.
Some heavy pounds, brought possibly by the Normans, disappeared gradually before the Paris Troy pound. Wool-weight brought from England was used; the sack being 36 stone of 9 French pounds or about 350 averdepois pounds.
Such was the system of measures and weights used in Normandy, and surviving there in great part. The slightly differing systems of the Channel Islands are simply variants of this system, a rough sketch of which I have given by way of introduction to them.
Jersey and Guernsey (the latter including Alderney and Sark in its government) are each practically autonomous. The Islanders keep their Norman laws, customs and dialects, and retain their systems of measures, weights and currency. These are being gradually modified by increased intercourse with England; and French influence tries hard, especially in Jersey, to introduce the metric system.
Linear and Land Measures
1. Jersey.—For ordinary linear measures the English standards are used, the yard and the pied du roi; that is the English foot. There is also an ancient ell of 4 feet.
For land measure the Jersey foot is 11 English inches (but divided into 12 land-inches); and 24 of these feet make a perch = 22 English feet. This peculiar standard is evidently an adaptation of the Norman custom (which prevailed in France) of making 24 short feet of either a quarter aune, or 11 pouces, the perch or verge, which became officially the perche d’ordonnance of 22 French feet.