The Ohio Democrat. (Logan, O. [Ohio]) 1886-1906, 1900-01-25
Time "Controversy."

sided and widespread has it be-
come. The term plural in The
strict sense the Greeks gave It, o.
meaning more than two, would
seem to fit IL better. Now, while
do not think this matter ranks
with the "Fertiized Seed Wheat
question in Importance, nor fraugh,
with so much menace to the uni.
verse as John w. Iles' sworn state
ment regarding his "Electric Lum.
inaries," dislike to pass it by
without making the observation
that the logical DIR. Dollison prob
ably did not have, or having, did
not take the little time necessary
to think, or else he would not have
reached the conclusion he did In
the end of his article after so fair q
statement of the premises.
Now, If not presuming too much
upon the valuable space in your
paper, l wish to present few
points which may lead others to
reasonable thinking, while showing
DIR. Dollison where he dropped a
stitch in his argument.
The Doctor says "recollect that
years and centuries are never dated
i
till they end" For purposes of
making record of time and histor,
they never are. Now why does
the Doctor use 1900 years from
which tn deduct 1900 years to OBJ
tain the even 100 years, when the
last year of this 1900 has just fairly
begun, he says it cannot be counted
till it has ended. On his own
proposition he makes the mistake
OF using 1900 instead Of 1899, which
with 1900 deducted from it leaves
%, one year short of the necessary
100 years to make complete the
10th century.
The Doctor and agree on when
our present record Of time begun,
which waS the first moment Ammo
Domini, arbitrarily fixed for con-
venience by our calendar makers
at January lst IN the year one, and
this year one was called the year
one from the first day to the last
day of that year, during all this
passage of time, until the full num-
Der of days, 3654, necessary to
make year, had passed. Then
tho first year was complete and
laid away for record and year num-
ber two begun and ran it's course
through the same number Of days
until its quota had passed beyond
recall, when number two was re-
corded rs year which made two
years in history. All the rest of
the years since have passed the
same, and as the Doctor admits it
takes 100 years of full 3654 days
each to make a century, can he
possibly figure out that 10 centuries
have elapsed before all the DAYS
necessary TO make the last year
have passed by? Take a little
time to think, and there need be no
difference of opinion.
The Doctor is not troubled with
the cipher year feature of this con-
troversy, He Is sound on the point
that when time ceased being re-
corded as B. G. it instantly begun
as A. d and that time com
according to our present chronolo.
gy, at the first moment OF the first
day A. d., and that when 3G54 davs
had passed one year had passed.
The Doctor says "it seems strange
to me that men of learning etc.
should engage in discussion of so
plain a matter" yet trivial as it ap-
pears hope he will give it once
more a few moments of serious
thought, for its better to be right
than to be King, you know; still if
"he remains of the same opinion
still" he is in company with many
a famous man. In 800 A. d. when
Charlemagne introduced the calen-
dar which commences with the
birth of Christ, he too tn ought he
was beginning new century.
When Peter-the. Great decreed that
our chronology should be used in
his dominions after the year 1900,
he made similar mistake. The
Emperor William has decided er
cdthedra that the new century be-
gins January l, 1900, bot this de-
lnsioH is hereditary, as he shares
1t with his grand father, who was
of the same opinion. Lord Kelvin,
great mathematician as he is, also
holds the same view.
1t seems SO difficult to UNDER
stand that 1900, 1900, 1000, desig-
nate not the beginning, but the end
of century, that one naturally in
inAn Il. - ~.