The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1899-03-03
WILL It EVER BEGIN 2.
Doubt as to Whether There Will
Be a goth Century at Ali.
SOL LEWIS CONTENTION
He Maintains That the Next Centurs
Commences in 1ooO-He Has
George Washing .on's
Word for 1t.

If any one feels like entering into a
spirited argument let him break into
some one of the many debates that are
being held in nearly every part of the
city on the question Of the date of the
beginning of the twentieth century.
The Standard printed 1900 argument
on the 23d of February and on the eth
it published 1901 argument, advanced
by F. W. Blackford of this city. Now
this city is all at sea over the matter,
some contending that 1900 is the first
year of the twentieth century, while
others are lust as s.ncerc in their con-
illusions that the century does not be-
gin until Jan. 1, 1901. A believer in
the 1900 argument sometimes becomes
convinced that he is wrong after
1901 advocate get through explaining,
and vice versa. One man the other day
stuck pin in a pad of paper on
figure !. He marked successfully 1901
figures, starting from that pin. That
is, he began with the figure |, through
which he stuck the pin, and counted
up to and including 1901. On the 1901
he stuck another pin, and then shouted
loud enough to be heard at Rocker:
I've got it." OF course he explained.
The more he ''explained" the more he
found it necessary to explain. Finally
one of the crowd who had watched the
pencil process and arranged a similar
set of figures, but beginning at a cipher
instead of the figure !, Clipped in and
expla ined his system to show that the
century begins on Jan. |. 1900. There
was a hot time in that crowd, boiling
hot Men ragged and foamcd and swore
that everybody was wrong but them
selves The arguments We're contln-
ued next day and the next, and to-day
the factions are as far apart as ever.
Sol Levy of this city says that the
twentieth century will dawn when the
clock strikes ~ midnight Of the 31st
day of December. this year. He says
that he is positive of the correctness
of his assertion, for he has looked into
the thing from every standpoint. Be
sides. he says, he is a student of such
things.
THE twentieth century, said he yes
terday. begins where the nineteenth
century breaks off. When l was
boy, in the year 50, our school teacher
told us that we were then living in the
first century, SO called. She said that
when Jan. /, 100, came we would be-
K Ill lie III tlt SeCtlil Ntlllui y. w e saw
the matter little thought until after
George Washington was inaugurated
president of the United States Some
one in the crowd remarked that Wash
ington would be the shining light of the
century. and then one of the
boys broke in With When does the
century begin to do bust
ness?
George Washington said, My friend,
if you live to see New Years day, 1909.
you will have crossed the Threshold
of the nineteenth century.
Il have always taken Georges word
for anything he said, and ] believe he
meant what he said. On New Years
day. 1900, George was no more. but we
all remembered what he said about the
century. So on that day
we concluded that we We're in the
century. We are still living
in the nineteenth century and when this
century expires we will be doing bust
ness in the twentieth century. If any
man is in the dark in this matter let
him come to me and I'll set him Alright.
Now, let us reason thus: A CEN
tury is 80 years and IL months. In the
year 80 we We're living in the first GEN.