batter (or shooes, or the sun) "half a quarter high"

Mon Aug 29 13:16:31 UTC 2011

A couple of minor thoughts.

First, in terms of area, there is--currently, certainly not 150 years ago--a
standard "sheet". Backing sheet sizes are often referred to as "half-sheet"
and "quarter-sheet". A "full-sheet" is the size of a standard jelly-roll pan
(a.k.a. cookie sheet--well, not quite, but close enough) or a rectangular
cake pan in a commercial bakery. Occasionally, both the pans and the cakes
are referred to as "halfs" and "quarters", rather than "half-sheet" or
"quarter-sheet".

But this is not the meaning Joel found.

Second, the "quarter-high" need not refer to an absolute height (quarter of
a fixed quantity), although it may refer to the diameter of the
quarter-dollar coin that's been constant for quite a few years, or possibly
even a quarter-inch.

But consider this excerpt:

http://goo.gl/PLJrb
Eaches or pieces order fulfillment, design, and operations handbook. By
David E. Mulcahy. 2007
>
> A pick position bin box with a half- or quarter-high front barrier is
> precut or cut by a replenishment employee. This type of box has two side
> walls, a rear wall, open or closed top, closed and solid bottom, and half-
> or quarter-high open front. To provide strength and rigidity to the bin,
> tape is used to secure the bottom flaps, or specially designed box inserts
> are secured in precut holes. To create a half- or quarter-high open bin
> front on a vendor carton, a replenishment employee uses a knife to cut a
> square, smiley face, or V in the carton front. With a cut section removed
> from front of the carton, this creates a half- or quarter-high front barrier
> to retain SKUs that have a tendency to slide from a pick position. This
> method provides increased bin rigidity and stability and a location for SKU
> or pick position identification, increased SKU quantity in a pick position,
> and open space for easy and quick SKU transfer from a pick position to a CO
> container.

Aside from a somewhat bizarre title, the passage appears to describe a
standard display case box.

The simple idea is exemplified by standard gum and candy stack boxes at
supermarket checkouts and by cut-out boxes one usually sees on display
shelves in Costco (most of top and front removed to display the contents,
but also to keep it in place with the front "barrier").

We also get an example from "The Maine Sardine Industry" (USDA, January 18,
1921).

http://goo.gl/u3HhH

> PROPOSED SPECIFICATIONS.
> The following specifications, based on the division of the pack into four
> subdivisions, is offered as a working basis for a standardization of the
> pack of Maine sardines.
>

Standards.
> Cans.—Quarter size only, plain or decorated.
> Fish.—Not less than 5 to a can, preferably 6. Steamed; not necessarily
> eviscerated, though this would insure a better product; carefully packed
> brights up, to make a neat and attractive package.
> Oil.—Prime, summer yellow cottonseed, or corn, not less than 75 per cent of
> a gallon (3 quarts) to a case of 100 cans.
>

Extra Standards.
> Cans.—Quarter, high-quarter, and half sizes, plain or decorated.

etc.

This is very different usage, however, from earlier absolutes. For
absolutes, consider (1793) [weights omitted]

http://goo.gl/ZM9gD

> TABLE
> Shewing what Weight Horses are to carry, that run for Give-and-take Plates,
> from Twelve to Fifteen high; Fourteen Hands carrying Nine Stone.
> TWELVE HANDS---
> And half a quarter of an inch---
> And a quarter---
> A quarter and half a quarter---
> Half an inch---
> Half an inch and half a quarter---
> Three quarters of an inch---
> Three quarters and half a quarter---
> One inch---
> One inch and half a quarter---
> One inch and a quarter---
> One inch, a quarter, and half a quarter---

etc.

Similar tables appear in Racing Calendars for 1775 and 1786.

An 1832 cookbook does similarly with pounds rather than inches:

http://goo.gl/IMr9y

> CREAM ITALIAN. (1) Boil a pint and a half of milk in a stew pan, then add
> to it the peel of a young lemon, some coriander seed, a bit of cinuamon,
> rather more than
> half a quarter of a pound of sugar, and two or three grains of salt; let it
> boil till Imlf it consumed; then let it stand to cool, and have ready in
> another stewl»n a little Hour, beat up with the yolks of six egg*; stir it
> by degrees into the cream; strain tt through a sieve, and put it in the dish
> lor table, placing the dish in some hot water over the itre till the cream
> is set. Before serving, brown with a salamander.

> RATAFIA. Pound, with a little rose-water, two ounces of blanched sweet
> almonds, and half a quarter of a pound of ratafia cakes, add the
> well-beaten yolks of six, and the whites of two eggs, a pint of thick cream,
> two glasses of white wine, and one ounce of pounded loaf sugar. Bake it in a
> dish, lined with puff paste, for threequarters of an hour.

etc.

Division of property also has similar language (1845)
http://goo.gl/aA2LJ
p. 251

> At this time, and in pursuance of the said Act, with that of Explanation,
> the following grants were made of property situated within the district of
> the present inquiry: To Thomas Lloyd, Carrowbeg and Ardsallagh, 122A.;
> Ardmore, one quarter; Cushina, half a quarter; Faus and Ardcock, 2 trines,
> 200A. ; Cloinshaghan, one trine, 88A.; ...

etc.

On a different page, you may also find

pp. 242-3

> In July 1617, the Earl of Kildare had a grant in fee of (inter alia)
> Trienfaus, being one-third of the four quarters of Faus, as parcel of the
> estate of Connor Roe, Mac Teigue Mac Owen Mac Dermott Roe, attained; ... ;
> Lecarrownehinch, 1/2 quarter, being one-fourth of Corbally; two quarters,
> three parts in five, of the half-quarter of Laveroe; ...

Similarly, for cutting cloth (1825)

http://goo.gl/OYoev
p. 309

> HOW TO CUT OUT SHIRTS.
> Yard-wide Irish.
> Sixteen yards make six shirts. The length for each body is two yards, and
> the width three-quarters, one nail and a half. Twelve yards make six bodies.
> Before the lengths for the bodies are cut off, take half a quarter and half
> a nail off the width of the cloth, which piece furnishes all the parts
> belonging to the six shirts (except eight sleeve-pieces, which are supplied
> from the sleeves) and is cut out as follows:—The width makes half a collar,
> a quarter, half quarter, and half a nail long. Four yards, three quarters,
> and half a quarter make the twelve half collars. One sleeve-gusset in the
> width, first taking off the selvage, will be half a quarter, and near half a
> nail square. One yard and three quarters make the twelve gussets. The cloth
> is not wide enough for the width of two neck or side gussets; but it will
> make the width of one, and a slip a nail wide, which will be the width of
> the piece for the inside of the sleeves. Two yards and a quarter in length
> therefore will make twenty-four small gussets a nail and a half square, and
> four sleeve-pieces and a half, half a yard long. The width makes the width
> of two wristbands or shoulderstraps, the wristbands one quarter long. One
> yard and a half will make the six pair. The shoulder-straps one quarter, and
> a quarter of a nail long. One yard and a half and two nafls make the six
> pair. This exactly uses all the piece of cloth.
> Four yards of the Irish cloth make six pair of sleeves, one and a half in
> the width of the cloth half a yard long, half a yard and half a quarter
> wide, first taking off a slip a nail wide from the width of the cloth for
> the eight sleeve-pieces wanting above, which, doubled in eight, makes them
> half a yard long, and with the four and a naif cut out before, completes
> twelve sleeve-pieces and a halt. This half overplus being a quarter of a
> yard in length, serves to cut out hearts for the bosoms.

So the language seems to be quite common for at least a century (1740s to
1860s...), but it means different things in different contexts.

VS-)

On Mon, Aug 29, 2011 at 1:29 AM, Garson O'Toole
<adsgarsonotoole at gmail.com>wrote:

>
> Here is an instance of  "half an eighth high" that might be useful in
> formulating a hypothesis.
>
> Title: He That Eateth Bread With Me
> Author: Hersilia A. Mitchell Keays
> Publisher: McClure, Phillips & Co., 1904
>
> But listen - I'll make you forget all about my being only five feet
> one inch and half an eighth high.
>
> http://books.google.com/books?id=fooOAAAAYAAJ&q=eighth#v=snippet&
>
> The book "He That Eateth Bread With Me" was also serialized in the
> newspaper Jersey Journal and the phrase above appeared on July 14,
> 1906 on page 8 (GenealogyBank page 10).
>
>
> On Sun, Aug 28, 2011 at 8:38 PM, Joel S. Berson <Berson at att.net> wrote:
> >
> > I have a letter written around 1842 that contains the following:
> >
> > "One day in every week was devoted to the making of cake and pastry
> > and I have been assured that the batter was half a quarter high as
> > light as a feather and as white as snow."
>

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