Methinks you over egg the pudding Bert, granted dialect + accent can quite often = foreign language, that doesn't mean its unintelligible. Given the wide exposure of regional accents on the BBC these days, I would have thought ther was less likelihood of misunderstanding now than there used to be.

Debbie, thanks for the update, I know Holland is metric. The point being made in the discussion I quoted was that the metric system lacked units which were easily translated to empirical. I must admit it was over ten years ago, so no doubt mechanisation has surplanted the need for the empirical by now.

Incidentally the term "berm" is used in NZ, which completely confused me as I, like Bill had only come across it in a geographical context previously. The Dutch were the second largest group of emigrants to NZ. so perhaps that is where the terms local use originated?

Pete M