The Portland daily press., 1899-07-14
RUSSIA TO DROP Ig DAYS
The Car Decides to Adopt the eregor-
fan Calendar.

tMashington Correspondence of New York
Sum-
Consul-Generai Holloway reports from
st. Petersburg % the state department
that the Russian government has, after
many years discussion. decid ed to aban-
don the Julian calendar and adopt the
Gregorian. now In use the world over ex-
cept inRRussia and Greece. A commission
OF 10 members, including nine astrono-
meis will arrange the details of the
change, and IL is hoped that the new
calendar will go into operation In 1901.
The adoption by Russia OF new call
endar. said one of the state department
officials. "will be an event of the first i'm
portance to commercial interests both in
Russia and elsewhere, as the old style cal.
endar. which is now 12 days behind that
In universal use, has proved serio IS an
noyancs TO Russians doing business with
foreign countries and to outsiders doing
business with Russians. as correspon-
denos has to be doubie-dated and there is
g great deal of confusion as to dates.
"It is not an easy matter to put into
operation a new calendar. especially when
the old one is nearly two weeks behind.
Endless complications arise in CONNER
cial transaction, such as payment Of
rents, notes and bills, to say nothing of
historical dates But the autocratic gov
ernment of RussiN may be able to sur
mount these difficulties with as much
ease as did Pope Gregory XIII. who es-
taolished the Gregorian or new style cal
endar In 1888 by ordainipg that the 5 h
OF October s.at year should be called
the 155h. thus icontinently dropping 10
days from the month. so that the DAYS
from the 5sh to the 14th inclusive never
saw the light. This arrangement was
Immediately adopted by the Catholic
countries of Europe, but the Protestant
nations held out against 1t until 1900 and
England until 1851.
"Ihe first attempt to introduce the
new calendar into the latter country was
resisted by the bishops, who were opposed
to the slightest semblanee of submission
to what they con side ed the arrogance of
the pope In presuning TO set the calendar
Alright. ENGLAND was, in fact, the last
Greece, where the q reek church Is pre-
dominant, to adops the improved clien-
dar. Some indication of what the Russian
ministry may encounter in the way OF
popular opposition to the reform Of the
calendar is afforded by England's exreri-
enoe In the 18th century. Singuiarly
enough, 1t was not an astronomer or man
of scienoa who set afoot the reform in
England, but the eleg .nt Lord Chester
field, author of the famous letters. who
introduced and promoted the legislation
required to put the new calendar In force
In one OF his letters to his son he humor
ously describes his attempts, notwith-
standing his ignorance of astronomy, to
convince his parliamentary colleagues of
the desirability of adopting the new cal
endar. His efforts were ably seconded by
astronomers and men of science and even
tualiy proved successful, the necessary
legislation reaeiving the sanction Of Par
lament in 1851.
"Ihe bill vnriously known as the calen-
dar amendment act and Lord Chester.
fisld's act. dropped II days out Of the
month of September. Ii5s by calling the
day after the I'd the 18th. The interyen-
ing days thus suffered total eclipse.
People went to bed ON tho night of tbs I'd
and got up on the morning of the 18th.
Some OF them therefore Imagined that
they had been cheated out OF so much
time, that the days lost ON the calendar
were actually annihilated. Ths alleged
loss OF time became political Issue. An
WAS made to defeat the son of
one Of the promoters OF Sthe Chesterfield
t<Ns9
by raising the election cry, sGive US back
the II days We have been robbed Of The
incident was quickly seized upon by the
Of the day. Hogarth. In one
or his pictures representing an election
feast, introduces a banner carried by one
Give us back our II days.. When the as
tronomer Bradley, who lent his assistance
to the preparation of the act, died Of
lingering illness the common people as
cribed his suffsrings to n Judgment from
heaven for having had share In that In-
pious undertaking. In marked contrast
with these proceedings was the action OF
the Quakers In this country who met in
Philadelphia in 1851 and formally adopted
the new ealen1ar by resolution without
any sort of objection.
"The Russian government may put a
new calendar into effect In several waya
1t may follow the method of Gregory and
18th, or initiate 1.-The British Parliament
and decree that the Sd of some one month
shall be followed by the 10th, In either
Case dropping 10 days ct once. Or it may
drop one day out of each year, as was
done by the Netherlands. until the re-
quired plumber Is dropped, or It may drop
two or three days each yaar Probably
the first method would present fewer OBJ
jections and cause less confusion. In any
oase the business world would hate 70
make the necessary adjustments of rents,
commercial paper, and indeed OF all oom-
nercial transactions recorded on dated
documents. The month out Of which IL
days are dropped will pressnt the apPsar-
anee to future historians of containing
pleteiy suspended. II will be period
without mar rriages, births or deaths, but
everybody Will adin fe days on HIS ! next
birshday without having lived en- hour