220 ROYAL SOCIETY OF CANADA 



Our confusing system of changing day names for the same fixed 

 dates each year, makes it needlessly difficult to decide in advance upon 

 any particular dates in the month for special purposes. We cannot 

 select the occasion and fix a yearly date without involving annual alter- 

 ation of its week-day name and the erratic occurrence of Sunday on 

 that date postponing the event until a day later. Therefore, fixed 

 market fairs, etc., are delayed and located as the first Monday, second 

 Wednesday, etc., of a month. The months sometimes contain five Sun- 

 days, at others four. Those vary from month to month, and year to year, 

 Eo that the number of working days per month is never constant in any 

 month. The varying four to five Saturdays in a month also affects 

 all estimates of commerce and industry, as workmen usually work only 

 half that day, whereas more steamships sail on that day than any other. 

 Those divergencies disturb the comparative value of all statistical 

 work now of growing importance industrially, and to the governments 

 whose imports, exports, immigration, etc., returns are distorted by our 

 changing almanac system. All these cause needless work and detract 

 from useful results, as one month's record cannot now be fairly com- 

 pared with another, nor with the corresponding records in previous years. 

 The confusing months inconvenience everybody. 



The most important anomalies and inconveniences thus created by 

 our antiquated almanac system may be summarized as below : — 



The months are unequal, involving fractions of weeks, changing 

 week-day names for dates, Christmas and other festivals, fairs, etc. ; 

 disturbing market days, periods for legislative, laws, universitv^ and 

 school terms; stock exchange settlements, payment days for bills of 

 exchange, trade accounts (now being tried at 28 and 30 days) ; moving 

 dates of recurring business and social engagements, etc. ; causing finan- 

 cial trouble to retail trades people, and householders, when five week-end 

 pa5Tnents for groceries, rent, etc., are required out of a monthly income, 

 or monthly rents out of weekly wages. These operate to the disad- 

 vantage of poor people, as the fiuctuations of the pawnbroker's business 

 testify. 



These inequalities, together with the unequal quarters of the year, 

 disturb the computations for interest, salaries, rents, and all periodical 

 payments. Other inconveniences beyond those named result, but those 

 suffice to show the growing need for improvements in our calendars and 

 almanacs for universal use. 



The changing week-day names through dates of the year, and 

 fractions of the week beyond the 28 days each month cause the trouble 

 and confuse ideas of time. 



Two main remedies are needed: — (1) Treat "Christmas Day," or 

 "New Year's Day," or the 365th day of the year as a holiday, either 



