1 882. 91 Trans. N. V. Ac. ScL 



5. The hours of the day to be numbered from one to twenty-four 

 without interruption, and the division of the day into two halves of 

 twelve hours each to be abandoned. 



6. For special purposes, as with a view to promote exactness in 

 chronology and to facilitate synchronous observations in science, the 

 day and the time of the day as determined by the prime meridian to be 

 employed as a kind of universal time-reckoning, under the name of 

 Cosmopolitan Time. 



7. For the sake of distinction, the hours oi Cosmopolitan Time to be- 

 denoted by symbols and not by numbers ; and preferably by the letters 

 of the English alphabet taken in their order, which, omitting J and V, 

 are twenty-four in number — these letters being also associated with 

 the standard meridians in regular order from east to west, so that F 

 corresponds to the 90° meridian passing near Calcutta, M to the Green- 

 wich meridian of 180°, S to the meridian of New Orleans, 270°, and 

 Z to the prime or zero meridian. 



In proposing these resolutions. President Barnard made the following 

 remarks : 



" The bounding lines between the successive meridians at which the 

 count of the hour shall change, it is not proposed to define with the 

 same geometrical precision which characterizes the meridians them- 

 selves. The idea is rather to follow any well-known natural or politi- 

 cal divisions which fall approximaely midway between the meridians,, 

 and which will serve as easily remembered refeience boundaries. On 

 the American Continent, such lines of demarcation are easily found. 

 The States and provinces which touch the Mississippi river will use 

 valley time; the Canadas, and the Statc-s of the Union which lie east 

 of these valley States, and most of which touch the Atlantic, will use 

 Atlantic time; the British provinces farther eastward will use eastern 

 time ; the Slates and provinces which touch the Pacific, will use Pacific 

 time ; and all those which lie between the Pacific States and the valley 

 States will use mountain time. 



The means by which we expect to establish this system on the 

 American Continent, are partly the voluntary action of the transporta- 

 tion companies ; partly the co-operation of municipal corporations 

 and chambers of commerce ; and partly local legislation. Already 

 many local organizations have taken steps for the establishment of 

 time-balls and other time-signals in furtherance of the practical intro- 

 duction of the system. The State of Connecticut has enacted a 

 statute making the use of New York time compulsory upon all trans- 

 portation companies within her limits. ***** 



The Governor-General of Canada, the Marquis ot Lome, has been 



