  We report on systematic measurements of the distribution of normal forces
exerted by granular material under uniaxial compression onto the interior
surfaces of a confining vessel. Our experiments on three-dimensional, random
packings of monodisperse glass beads show that this distribution is nearly
uniform for forces below the mean force and decays exponentially for forces
greater than the mean. The shape of the distribution and the value of the
exponential decay constant are unaffected by changes in the system preparation
history or in the boundary conditions. An empirical functional form for the
distribution is proposed that provides an excellent fit over the whole force
range measured and is also consistent with recent computer simulation data.
