a measure of capacity for things dry; as grains, pulse, dry fruits, &c. containing four pecks, or eight gallons, or one-eighth of a quarter.

Du Cange derives the word from buffellus, bustellus, or biffellus, a diminutive of buz, or buza, used in the corrupt Latin for the same thing; others derive it from buffellus, an urn, wherein lots were cast; which seems to be a corruption from luxulus. Buffellus appears to have been first used for a liquid measure of wine, equal to eight gallons. Octo libra faciunt galonem vini, et octo galones vini faciunt buffellum London, quae est octava pars quartieri. It was soon after transferred to the dry measure of corn of the same quantity—Pondus octo librarum fragmenti facit buffellum, de quibus octo conficit quartarium.

By 12 Hen. VII. cap. 5, a bushel is to contain eight gallons of wheat; the gallon eight pounds of wheat troy-weight; the pound twelve ounces troy-weight; the ounce twenty-three and a half; and the sterling thirty-two grains, or corns of wheat, growing in the midst of the ear. This standard bushel is kept in the Exchequer; when being filled with common spring water, and the water measured before the house of commons in 1696, in a regular parallelopped, it was found to contain 2145.6 solid inches; and the said water being weighed, amounted to 1131 ounces and 14 penny weights troy. Besides the standard or legal bushel, we have several local bushels, of different dimensions in different places. At Abingdon and Andover, a bushel contains nine gallons; at Appleby and Penrith, a bushel of peas, rye, and wheat, contains 16 gallons; of barley, big, malt, mixt malt, and oats, 20 gallons. A bushel contains, at Carlisle, 24 gallons; at Chester, a bushel of wheat, rye, &c. contains 32 gallons, and of oats 40; at Dorchester, a bushel of malt and oats contains 10 gallons; at Falmouth, the bushel of stricken coals is 16 gallons, of other things 20, and usually 21 gallons; at Kingston upon Thames, the bushel contains eight and a half; at Newbury 9; at Wycomb and Reading, eight and three-fourths; at Stamford 16 gallons. Houghton. Collect. tom. i. n. 46. p. 42.

At Paris, the bushel is divided into two half bushels; the half bushel into two quarts; the quart into two half quarts; the half quart into two litrons; and the litron into two half litrons. By a sentence of the provost of the merchants of Paris, the bushel is to be eight inches two lines and an half high, and ten inches in diameter; the quart four inches nine lines high, and six inches nine lines wide; the half quart four inches three lines high, and five inches diameter; the litron three inches and an half high, and three inches ten lines in diameter. Three bushels make a minot, six a mine, twelve a septier, and an hundred and forty-four a muid. In other parts of France, the bushel varies: fourteen one-eighth bushels of Amboise and Tours make the Paris septier. Twenty bushels of Avignon make three Paris septiers. Twenty bushels of Blois make one Paris septier. Two bushels of Bourdeaux make one Paris septier. Thirty-two bushels of Rochel make nineteen Paris septiers. Oats are measured in a double proportion to other grains; so that twenty-four bushels of oats make a septier, and 248 a muid. The bushel of oats is divided into four picotins, the picotin into two half quarts, or four litrons. For salt four bushels make one minot, and six a septier. For coals eight bushels make one minot, fifteen a mine, and 320 a muid. For lime, three bushels make a minot, and forty-eight minots a muid. See Measure and Weight.