12 UNIVERSAL OR COSMIC TIME. 
warded to the leading men in railway direction, either as general 
managers, superintendents or engineers, and to men of scientific attain- 
ments throughout the United States and Canada. The papers thus 
circulated contained eleven questions; and categorical replies were 
invited to them. 
Replies were received and reported on at a Convention of the 
Society, held in Washington on the 17th May, 1882. The scheme 
submitted was generally and cordially approved. 
An emphatic and unanimous opinion was expressed, that there 
should be established as early as possible a comprehensive system of 
Standard Time for North America. 
Of those who replied to the queries, ninety-five per cent. favoured 
the idea that there should be a common agreement between the 
Standards of Time in all countries. That while we must primarily 
look to our own convenience on this continent, it is proper to aim 
at eventually attaining general uniformity among all nations. 
Seventy-six per cent. were in favour of reducing the Standards in 
North America so that they would differ only by intervals of one 
hour, and ninety-two per cent. were in favour of a notation of the 
hours of the day in a single series from 1 to 24, instead of in two 
divisions, each of twelve hours. 
' The character of the replies received indicated that a remarkable 
unanimity of opinion prevailed in every section of the continent 
heard from. The Convention accordingly resolved that an attempt 
should be made to obtain European concurrence to the selection of a 
Prime Meridian on which a Time-system could be definitely based. 
But, failing to obtain this recognition, the people of the Western 
Continent should determine a Zero-meridian for their own use and 
guidance, 
It was thereupon resolved to petition the Congress of the United 
States to take the matter into consideration. The American Metro- 
ological Society about the same time adopted a similar proceeding. 
The consequences were that a Joint-resolution of the House of Re- 
presentatives and the Senate was passed, authorizing the President 
of the United States to call an International Conference to fix on 
and recommend for universal adoption a common Prime Meridian 
to be used in the’ reckoning of Longitude and in the regulation of 
Time throughout the world. 
On the meeting of the American Association for the Advancement 
