The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1918-01-30

with 26 out Of its possible 80 DAYS
May comes next, with - and an adj
diuonaI Sunday not otherwise cele.
brated, thus actually tying November
IN the number of days closed to bust
ness. March, on the other hand. is
the longest all around business
month, having only 70 holidays. Thus
at least tWo-thirGs of every month in
terfercs with the free play of inter-
national business.
Even such generally observed feS,i-
walls as Christmas and New Years
Day can't be depended upon by the
banker without consulting the inter
national calendar
New Years Day is the only holiday
universally observed But, alas. it
falls on II different dates in different
parts Of the globe, and some countries
observe more than one of Them An
exhaustive study of these New Year
celebrations would give one pretty
fair knowledge of the ancient history
of the world. Curiously enough, one
OF our own states, Massachusetts. does
not make this a legal holiday, though
her citizens generally observe it.
Where Christmas Is Not Observed.
Christmas Day, due to its religious
significance, is not so generally OBJ
served as New Years Day. It has,
/ moreover, only three different dates.
/ 1t was not generally observed on De
/ cember - until the fourth century.
The early church, lacking any au-
/ rhentic knowledge as to the date of
/ Christ's birth, celebrated it without
/ uniformity in May, April and, Janu-
I airy. The Armenian Church still OBJ
serves January g. Why the Decem-
Der cate was finally selected is uncer-
tain. Some see in it a displacement
of the Roman Saturnalia; others de-
clare It q survival of the Feast of the
Winter Solstice, and still others point
to its coincidence with the old Ger
man Yuletide Feast Countries where
the old style calendar prevails still
celebrate January {.
In the Puritan days Scotch Presby-
terians and English Non Conformists
rejected Christmas Day altogether as
"savoring of papistry," and in New
England Thanksgiving Day was de-
| viSed to replace it. It seems curl
Gus thing that there are today Christ
tian countries where 1t is not OBJ
served legally. Such are Norway.
Panama, Peru, Portugal and the
South African Union.
The last named, however, still OBJ
. ~
Boxing Day on December &c. This
was the day when the English gentry.
having had their own Christmas cele-
hration the day before, turned their
attention to the poor by presenting
| them with Christmas boxes. The day
later became the day for general Civ
ing of Christmas gifts.
Portugal Drops traditions.
The only country on earth a study
of whose holidays reveals little of its
political. racial or religious origin is
Portugal. The firstzattempt to estah-
fish a republic in Portugal was made
on January 81, 1891 This is reflect
ed in its calendar of holidays, which
runs: january 1, dedicated to uni
NPtSUI biOtilti nObAis 81. OtI-
icated to the memory of all those who
fought and died to establish the re
public in Portugal; May >. in mem
DRY of the discovery of Brazil by the
Portuguese; June 10, municipal holt
day at Lisbon; June "a municipal
holiday at OpOrto; October 5, the
date of the establishment of the Por-
tuguese republic; December /, Flag
Day, to commemorate the independ
ence of the country; December -.
Family Day"
These brief rotations on holidays
touch only their distribution and
dates. Back Of these lies a wide field
filled with quaint and curious ineor-
nation relating to the manner of eel.
ohrating hem