[Sca-cooks] Baker's Dozen

[kingstaste at mindspring.com]

In an effort to combat rampant OOP/OT posts, I thought I'd post something
from a book that just surfaced in my house called "Why Does Popcorn Pop?" by
Don Voorhees.  It has chapters divided into various types of food, and
answers questions about various food related items.
This is from the chapter "The Staff of Life", and is the answer for the
question: Why is thirteen known as a baker's dozen?
Feel free to pick apart his answer if you like, I have no dog in this fight,
I just thought it was an interesting factoid to throw out into the mix.
Christianna

"Why is it that bakers should be so generous as to sell thirteen of
something for the price of a dozen?  Well, generosity has little to do with
the origins of this centuries-old practice.
	The bakers of England formed a trade guild as early as the twelfth century,
which later split up into the Company of Brown Bakers and the Company of
White Bakers.  These baking companies were subject to very strict
regulations.  A law passed in 1266 stipulated that exactly eighty loaves of
bread were to be baked from a standard sack of flour.  It was illegal to
sell loaves of bread that varied from a set weight.
	Bakers who sold underweight loaves to retailers could get into big trouble.
By adding an extra loaf of bread to every dozen loaves they sold the bakers
could ensure that they weren't short-changing the retailers.
	Another reason for the baker's dozen goes back to the time when butlers
would order all the food for a house.  In exchange for the butler's order,
the baker would give him thirteen of whatever was being purchased for the
price of twelve as a sort of butler's commission."