Emily Dickinson Lexicon

POUND, n.¹ [Sax. pund; Goal. Sw. and Dan. pund; D. pond; G. pfund; L. pondo, pondus, weight, a pound; pendo, to weigh, to bend.]

1. A standard weight consisting of twelve ounces troy or sixteen ounces avoirdupois. The troy and the avoirdupois pound are not however the same.
2. A money of account consisting of twenty shillings, the value of which is different in different countries. The pound sterling is equivalent to $4 44.44 cts. money of the United States. In New England and Virginia, the pound is equal to $3 1/3; in New York to $2 1/2.