Frostburg mining journal. [volume] (Frostburg, Md.) 1871-1913, 1898-06-04
FROSTBURG, Md, SATURDAY, JUNE 4, 1898.
Where the Day Begins.

Seeing that as one moves westward
the time gets earlier and earlier, so
that when it Is Monday noon in Lon
don it is some time on Monday morn
ing in America, it follows that if this
principle continues without limit all
the way round the world, at the same
moment that it was Monday noon in
London it would also be twenty four
hours later. e., Tuesday noon in
London. AS this is a re'iucti0 0d ab-
surtium, we have to look for the limit.
which does, in fact, exist, to the prn-
ciple that as one moves westward the
time gets earlier, and as one moves
eastward it gets later.
Before the decentralization of the
globe there was no difficulty. When
on Monday the sun stood over Lon
don, it was Monday noon in London
AS the sun moved Go use the popular
phrase) westward, and stood II little
later over Dublin, it became Monday
noon in Dublin. and so on until he
reached the western limit of the known
world When the sun passed over
that limit that was the end of noon for
that Monday, and nobody knew what
the sun was doing until he re-appeared
on the eastern limit of the known
world bringing with him Tuesday
morning. 1t is evident, therefore. that
while the sun was in the unknown
abyss between west and east he dropped
the attribute of making the time at
all places directly under his rays Mon
day noon, and took to himself the at
tribute of making 1t Tuesday noon.
AS the confines of the world pushed
further eastward and westward re-
spectively, the unknown abyss where
this change of attribute had to be
made got narrower and narrower.
until when the globe was eircum-
navigated, the place of change. be-
came simply a line. This line exists
and is the place where the days begin.
AS the sun crosses this remarkable
spot the time jumps twenty four hours
onward-from noon on one day to
noon the next day. The situation of
the line has been located quite for
ously-namely. by the crcum-
stance whether any given place was
first reached by civilized man journey
ing from the east or from the west.
The dlscoverer brought with him the
almanac from whence he came, and If
he came from the west the time in the
new country would be later, and if he
came from the east it would be earlier
than the time in the country that he
came from.
America was reached by civilized
man voyaglng westward, and China
by man travelling eastward, and the
result is the line which marks where
the days begin lies between these two,
in the Pacific ocean, and instead of
being light line, zig-zags about,
dividing islands which happened to be
discovered from the east from those
which happened to be discovered from
the west. There must still be many
islands IN that ocean where it is not
yet decided to which side of the line
they belong, and where if one were
put down one would not know whether
1t were to-day, to morrow or yesterday.
There must also be many islands there
which, never having been permanent
ly occupied by civilized people, change
their day from time to time, so that a
ship calling there coming from China
might arrive ON Tuesday, while another
ship calling at the same time from
America would arrive on Monday.
There must also be people living so near
this line that by gong Il few miles they
can leave to-day and get into to-mor-
row, or by going back can fiud yester-
day. How convenient for trouble
some appointments
Many other curious considerations
occur to one, but | have said enough,
| think, to sEow-what everyone, per
haps, does not realize-that there is Il
place in the world where the days be-
gln.-St James Gczette.
Ii Can't Be Done