Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1919-03-30

~ may Se'ASA tHoe ~ w'AA HNSss Hse~
ly take very long time before cur
present CALENDAR will be changed, No
alteration Of any kind will or can be
introduced by any nation, until it is
ratified by all Of them. And the null
titudinous varieties Of the calendars
proposed are too bewildering to at
tempt prudent selection, and the
French academy testifes to at least
" of them. Each scheme has its de-
fects, and because they have not yet
been tried by actual experience, they
may become more CALLING than the
worst in our present calendar. We
know our calendar and are used to
it. And change is always disagree
able in lifelong centuries-old Gus
toms. Even the Gregorian reform
after centuries Of deliberation, made
only two small changes that ats
fscted the ordinary citizen, first
dropping 10 days in 1882 which hap
pened only once and Immediately,
and secondly dropping the leap year
day three times in four centuries, the
first one so dropped not happening
until ll8 years after the reform had
heen ordered. 1t did not dare touch
the days of the week nor those OF
the months.
February 80, 17lz.
An interesting case of calendar re-
form occurred at the beginning OF
the 18th century, when Sweden ac-
tually had a date called February
80, officially ordered as such, the
only on since the days of Julius
Caesar. The Gregorian calendar
had been accepted at once by all
the Catholic nations of Europe, But
the Protestant ones, such as Ger
many, England and the northern
countries, refused to adopt it. The
consequence may be imagined,
great misunderstanding and confu'
sion in regard to dates. This per-
sisted for century and mere. As
the year 1900 was approaching, it
was to be a common year Of sos
days according to the new Gregorian
calendar. and leap year of 366
days according to the old Julian cal
endar. This would increase the diff
ference of the calendars to II days,
the year 1900 would make it IL,
and the year 1900 Is days.
Things were becoming intolerable.
As the Gregorian calendar was uni
versally acknowledged to be the cor
rect one, was actually in use by
most of the nations of Europe, and
was sure to be eventually adopted
BY the whole world, it was certainly
the better policy to make the change,
the sooner the better. Sweden was
willing to adopt the Gregorian re-
form, but did not like dropping 10
or ii days wholesale from its cal
endar. 1t bethought itself. there
fore, of another expedient. 1t pro-
posed to drop the 10 or II days one
at time, by supressing as many
leap years. Accordingly it made
ruary only % days that year. 1t
intended to do the same in 1904,
l708 and so on until l744, which
would be the first leap year in its
calendar since 1896. It would thus
gradually, instead of suddenly, in
troduce the Gregorian calendar.
But after dropping the 10Th of
February in 1900, Sweden became
painfully aware of the awkward fact
that it had a third calendar alto
gether peculiar to itself, which was
neither old style nor new style. In
four years more it would have an
ether calendar again, and again an
ether in another four years. Forty
four years of Confusion worse CON
founded were looming up gloomi-
" before II. And even after that
long diserderly period would be
over, it would have the Catholic
calendar differing II days from that
OF its Protestant friends.
King Charles Fixes 1t.
King Charles XII then took the
law into his own hands He thought