Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1902-12-06
WHERE THE DAY BEGINS.
Proof That There is Such Place in
the World is Submitted.

From the st. James Gazette.
Seeing that as one moves westward the
time gets earlier and earlier, so that when
| 1t is Monday noon in London 1t Is some time
| on Monday morning in America, it follows
that If this principle were continued with
out limit all the way round the world, at
the same moment that it was Monday noon
in London 1t would be also tweuty-four
hours later-t11at is Tuesday noon, in Lon
don. AS this is reductio ad absurdum, We
have to look for the limit, which does, in
fact, exist, on the principle that as one
moves westward the time gets earlier and
as one moves eastward gets later
Before the circumnaVigation OF the globe
there was difficulty. When on a Monday
the sun stood over London it was Monday
noon In London AS the sun moved (tO use
the popular phrase) westward and stood
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 reappeared on the eastern limit Of the
known world, bringing with him Tuesday
morning. 1t is evident, therefore, that while
west and east he dropped the attribute of
making the time at all places directly under
his rays Monday noon and took to himself
the attribute Of making it Tuesday noon.
AS the confines of the world were pushed
farther eastward and westward, respective
ly, the unknown abyss where this change Of
attribute had to be made got narrower and
narrower, until, when the globe was circum-
navigated, the place of change became SIM
ply a line The line exists, and Is the place
where the days begin. AS the sun crosses
this remarkable spot the time jumps TWEEN
ty-four hours onward-from noon on one
day to noon on the next day. The situation
of the line has been located quite fortui-
tously-namely, by the circumstance
whether any given place was first reached
by civilized man journeying from the east
or from the west. The discoverer brought
with him the almanac 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 he came from.
America was reached by civilized man
voyaging westward, and China by man
travelling eastward and the result Is that
the line that marks where the days begin
lies between these two, in the Pacific ocean,
and, instead of being straight line, zig
gags about, dividing islands which hap
pened 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 it were today, tomorrow or
yesterday. There must also be many is
lands there which. never having been per-
manently 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 be
people living so near this line that by 60
ing few miles they can leave today and
get into tomorrow, or by going back can
find yesterday. How convenient for trou-
blesome appointments!
Many other curious considerations occur
to one. but 1 have said enough think, to
hat
realze-that there IS a place in the world
where the days begin.