The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1908-03-23
TO REFORM THE CALENDAR.
The Ingenious and Useful Scheme of
British Scientist.
CBaltinOre sunJ

An ingenious, simple and useful scheme
for reforming the anomalies of the caIen-
dar has been prepared by Alexander Phil
ip. an English scientist, and has received
the favOTa bic opinions Of such eminent
men as Lord AvebuTy. Sir Oliver Lodge
and Sir William Ramsay
The defects of The calendar at present
in use are obvious at all times. The year
Of 365 days cannot be divided into twelve
months of equal length, or into an even
number of weeks of seven days, and the
Inconvenience arising from this are m
creased by the fact that every fourth
year consists of 800 days.
Mr.. Phillip points out IN a booklet be
has just published explaining his scheme
that under our present calendar Il Is
impossible to determine beforehand any
day Of the month as available for any
civil or conversely for any ecclesiastical
purpose. Accordingly all elections or
/ other annual p1bhc engagements or res
rivals are usually and so forth, OF Civ
/ en- month. it being impossible in sucn
cases TO determine the occasion by q
/ fixed date without involving a constant
alteration of week day and the occasional
/ occurrence of Sunday on the day Sc
! lected.'
/ Mir philip therefore proposes 10 give
/ the day a fixed relation to the week, the
/ month and the year Under his scheme
! the eleventh day of February, for in
stance might always be a Tuesday. and
any one day would be available for one
/ He suggests a few simple alterations
which would bring about this highly con-
! venient and businesslike state of things.
/ The first day of the year should. he says,
I be regarded as a day apart being re
/ garded as I 1906. ] 1907. etc II should
not be regarded as day Of the week
nor counted as belonging to any OF the
twelve months
/ For business purposes and public affairs
New Years day would not exist, and
Mr.. Philip expresses the opinion that as
I the day is already almost universally
treated as a holiday. this first step in
his plan of reform would cause no IN
convenience.
Leap day, on its occurrence. would go
into the same category as day not
counted. 1t would be known as IL 1908,
and so on, and would be interpolated he
tween the end of June and the beginning
OF july. and observed as quadrennlal
midsummer holiday
There would then be left S54 days. diyis-
ible into two halves of ~ DAYS ana Tour
quarters Of 81 days each. The day fol-
lowing New Year day would, or COURSE
The symmetry of the scheme is com
, pleted BY the taking of one day from
July and one from October and AIDING
| them to February thus giving the month
} 30 DAYS. Every quarter would then con
sist of two months OF 30 days and one
month OF 81 days. ,....
the wear is obtained by the further tax
ing of a day each from May and Au-
gust and adding them TO June and Septem-
t The year would then be equally divided,
, as follows, each quarter having 81 days or
- r-irst Quarter Third Quarter.
January 49,. 80 days July ...--...-..a9 Gay :
5 February 49,. 90 days August --------a - DAYS
5 March ........ 81 days September ..5i DAYS
D Second Quarter. Fourth tRuarter-
AnriI ...... 80 days October I'D days
MAY .......... 80 DAYS November 30 DAYS
/ lime ... 81 days December 81 DAYS
: The advantage Of a perpetual calendar
e with the day Of the week and the ddy
= of the month always the same, would
\ thus be assured -, -
: There seems to be no reason why a.
, internatfOnal agreement for the adoption
: Of a rectified calendar on the lines m
Dictated should not be very easily ei-
fected Mr. Philip says IN eonctlSlon.