What was the purser's pound?

What was the purser's pound?

It was a fourteen-ounce ration counted as a pound, with the purser keeping the other two ounces.

A sailor received fourteen ounces of meat as a pound, although a full pound contained sixteen ounces. The purser retained the remaining two ounces as an allowance for supplying the food. He could use that retained portion for himself. The short issue gave sailors less than the quantity they believed they were owed and became a grievance in the mutinies.