Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1892-01-07
NEW YEARS DAY.
HOw IT CAME TO BE JANUARY 1 AND NOT
S&E OTHER DAY
That Has Better Qualifications to FIJI It for the
Ending and Starting Of Years-Ths
Present New Years Day IS Of Com
Iara6vsly Modern Origin.
M.s YorE SIN.


nations as the point Of departure for be-
ginning the year that few people ever
think OF inquiring into the origin Of its
supremacy. Properly a year being the
period Of time occupied by the earth in
making a single revolution around the
sun, one day is as good as another from
which 10 commence il. il there be any
choice, 1t would be in favor OF the sum
mer sOlstice In June, when the sun Is the
highest In the heavens at noon and the
day the longest, or the winter sOlstice
In December, when the sun is lowest
at noon and the day the shortest. Then,
too, there are the equinOXes in March
and In September, when the days and
the nights are OF equal length. All
these for days have been used by differ
eat nations In Olden times as New Years
days, but, as in many other cases, cir
eumstanCeS have brought about diyerg-
ences from the practice. The Jews
stu adhere pretty closely 10 the autumn
equinox, and the Christian ecclesiastical
year Is regulated more or less by that Of
the spring. Our custom OF cOmmenc-
ing the year with January l was intro
duced by Julius Cesar, who adopted IL
because it happened TO be the day
OF the new moon which, at the
time, followed next after the old
Roman New Years Of the winter
solstice. Subsequently, the reckoning
OF the years gradually fell into new con-
fusion. partly from imperfect astrOnOm-
ical calculations, but more from the
independent lawlessness Of rulers, so
that the year, for centuries, began on
seven different days in different Euro
pean countries, and even In parts OF
countries, and 10 Is extremely difficult
for an unskilled person to determine
precisely in what year, according to our
calendar, any historical event in the
middle ages happened. Finally, in
1852, Pope Gregory NH. used his au-
thority at the head OF the Roman
Church to straighten things out, but
his new reformed calendar was not
adopted by Protestant Germany until
100, nor by Great Britain until 1852.
oddly enough, the reform, involving,
as it did, the dropping Of eleven days,
so that, for example, what would have
been the Sd OF the month was reckoned
as the 18th, was extremely unpopular,
and IL took all Of the famous Lord Ches-
terfeld's tact and persuasiveneSs 70
carry it through the British Parliament,
while mob hooted him in the streets,
CRYING out: "Give Us back the eleven
days you have robbed US OFF, Russia
has not even yet adopted the new sys-
TEN, and does not keep New Years
Day until the 18th Of this month.
But, however it came about, our pres
ent New Year day Is frmly established,
not only for historical and legal pur-
poses, but also in the world OF finance
and trade, as the usual day for summing
up the results Of the past years bust
ness, and for the balancing OF books
preparatory TO fresh start. Ipresume
that Ell of my readers who keep books
have by this time got them written up
and ready for taking a trial balance, II
not for making out a balance sheet.
The exceptions will be either due 70 the
complexity OF the accounts, or what
is more common, TO the necessity
OF detecting some error which spells
the symmetry Of the trial balance,
and profoundly vexes the soul OF
the bookkeeper. we'll remember how,
in my clerking days, IA elusive dollar,
or even single fugitive cent, would
give me hours upon hours Of work In
hunting for it, and when l found IL how
I was enraged with myself for not hav-
ing discovered 1t Immediately. IL is
wonderful, too, how an error Of single
figure will make itself felt in long &C
count, as the peas in the feather bed
were felt by the princess through three
haAu m nf than ann
proved her to be a real princess. l have
had so many experiences Of this sort
that / can entirely sympathize with
the steady old bookkeeper who went
on a spree for the first time in
his life because his trial balance
came out right as he first made it,
without requiring any corrections. The
sensation must have been as exhilerat-
ing as il was novel. Railroad compan-
les IN this State are required to begin
their fiscal year, as the United States
Government does, on the first OF July,
so that this evil day for their book
keepers does not come yet, and, per-
haps, since my time, some mercantile
houses may have adopted the custom OF
balancing their books on other days
than the first OF January, just as many
leases are now made 20 run from the
first OF February instead OF she time
hOnOred first OF May of our fOretathers.
: Fortunately for the bookkeeper, his
fluctuations begin and end with his fig
ures. Whether the balance to new &C
count Is on one side or the other IL Is all
the same 70 hin. 1t is enough that IL Is
the right balance for making both col
umns equal. To his employer II is
different thing. He is concerned with
Quite another result than mere sym
metry, and I fancy that this year in
great many instances, the result is lar
from satisfactory. My business friends
in this city tell me that, In point or
profits, 1891, has been the worst year
they baye had for a long time. II IS
not that they have lost so much but
they have gained so little that what
losses they have suffered have made an
enormous comparative hole in their
proits. and left them little to carry for
ward. The recovery which should nat
urally have followed the crash OF 1890
has delayed its arrival, and we are only
lust now beginning TO feel 10.
DissRreeable as Ii is 20 face the IN
pleasant facts which the balancing OF
hooks brings to view, the experience
cannot and ought not 10 be avoided. l
even recommend to my friends who are
not in business TO keep set OF BOOKS oy
double entry for their private aualrs,
and TO balance them once year, the
same as merchants and bankers ANY
one who has head enough to deserve ana
own property at all is able TO DO TINS
s,3tb very little instruction. The
ssvantase Of keeping a set OF
SooEs is that q man by It has