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, buffellus, or biffellus, a diminutive of bus, or busa, used in the corrupt Latin for the same thing; others derive it from buffulus, an urn, wherein lots were cast; which seems to be a corruption from buxulus. Buffellus appears to have been first used for a liquid measure of wine, equal to eight gallons. Osto librae faciunt galonem vini, et octo galones vini faciunt buffellum London, qua est octava pars quarterii. It was soon after transferred to the dry measure of corn of the same quantity.—Pondus octo librorum fragmenti facit buffellum, de quibus octo confugit quarterium.

By 12 Henry VII. c. 5, a bushel is to contain 8 gallons of wheat; the gallon 8 pounds of wheat troy weight; the pound 12 ounces troy-weight; the ounce 20 shillings; and the sterling 32 grains, or corn 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 parallelopiped, it was found to contain 2145.6 solid inches; and the said water being weighed, amounting 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 Abington 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