Daily independent. [volume] (Elko, Nev.) 188?-1915, 1892-07-08
THE WRONG DATE.
Congress Preparing to Celebrate
the Discovery Of America
pnta Which Go to Show That There Is
q Mistake Regarding the Time OF
the Landing OF Columbus
In America.

Congress has made arrangements to
commemorate the four hundredth ami
vnrsary of the discovery of America by
Columbus on the 18th of October, 1899.
Now, wish, says writer in the Phiia-
dnlphia Press, to call your attention to
the fact that if they do so they will fail
not only in the day of the month, but
the day of the week also.
Columbus landed on the island of San
Salvador on Friday, October IL, 1902,
old style, which was Friday, October
-, new style, which is very near the
true, or solar time, there being an error
III the Julian calendar at that time of
nine days. The Julian calendar, which
was then in use throughout Europe,
and the very best that had, ever been
gwen to the world, made the, year too
long by more than eleven minutes
hose eleven minutes n year had az
cumulated from the council of Nice in
80 to the discovery of America in 1902
Is nine days; so that the civil year was
r;ne days behind the true or solar
tiine-that is, when the earth in her
annual revolution had arrived at that
point in the ecliptic coinciding with the
list of October, the civil year, according
to the Julian calendar, was the 18th.
Now, to restore the coincidence, tho
nine days must be dropped or sup
pressed, calling what was enormously
called the 18th of October. the 21st.
Since the Julian calendar was corrected
by Gregory in 1852 we have so inter
calatcd as to retain, very nearly, the
coincidence of the solar and the civil
year.
In the Julian calendar the intcrcalary
period is four years; SO that, after
twcnty-ciTht years, the coincidence is
restored between the day of the month
and the day of the week, and for the
mkt twcnty-eight years events will
a''aiu occur in the same order on the
sURc day of the week. But in the GrcgOr
i;sn calendar both the intcrealary period
and the cycle is four hundred years, SO
tilat after four hundred years the coin
"idrncC is restored between the day of
the month and the day of the week,
and for the hcHt four hundred years
events will again occur in the same or
der ON the same day of the week.
For example, the one hundrcdth an
nivcrSary occurred on Wednesday, the
two hunGrcdth on Tuesday, the three
hundrcdth on Sunday, and now the
four hundrcdth on Friday. Then again
i'll 1892 on Wednesday, 20S2 on Tuesday,
noe on Sunday and 1902 on Friday
=. ain, and SO on. Now, as America
VAS discovered on. Friday, October II,
i02, and the cycle of four hundred
Gears, will be completed on Friday, De-
tDbcr 2l, 1892, so Friday, October 21, is
the day to be observed in the comment
Grafton of that event.
Should VIC make computations in old
style both for the day of discovery and
tic day of the anniversary, wn would
make the event to occur twelve DAYS
too soon, and on Monday, as the discrcp-
amy during this century is twelve days.
i:ussia, by adhcring to the old calendar,
is now twelve days behind the true
time in her reckoning. Should we
make the first event old style and the
second new style. we would be nine
days too soon, and the anniversary
you'd fall on Wednesday. But. as has
already been shown, calculation should
hr made in new style both for the dis
c'vCry and the anniversary, and the
event will occur on Friday. October 81,
1892.
No one thinks of observing. the 18th
~ 'Cbf"dly dS Vic DhrIhuity OF v ASH
inEtnn, though it IL recorded in history
hat he was born ON the nth of Feb
1unry. 1872. Twenty. years after his
birth, in 1852, England, under whose
government we were living; after suf-
ring the Inconvenience of using u diff
f'r"nt date from the most Of Europe
t'r Unr hundred and seventy years.
;,l"ptcd Che GrcGorinn rule of interca,
lItirn, and made the corrections by sup
}"'"%sing eleven days, Call the Bird Of
rptcnhar Of that year the I4th; conse-
ru"ntiy we call what was enormously
called the 18th Of February the end as
the birthday Of our Washingtoug
lie Doubted II.