1 20 TIME-RECKONING. 



throughout England and Scotland, although it is half an hour faster 

 than local mean time, and sometimes forty-five minutes faster than 

 solar time on the west coast of the latter country. 



In every country, local time is more or less arbitrarily established ; 

 it could not be otherwise, without causing great confusion, as no two 

 places, unless in the same meridian, have the same true local time. 

 In considering the whole subject, it is felt that if some simple rule 

 could be agreed upon for defining local time everywhere, it would 

 materially add to general convenience. 



It is suggested that each of the twenty-four lettered meridians 

 (Fig. 1) should be taken as standards for establishing approximate 

 local time, and that as a general rule all places should adopt the 

 local time of the neai'est of these meridians. This would divide the 

 surface of the globe into twenty-four " lunes," forming distinct local 

 sections. Although the twenty-four fixed meridians would be at one 

 hour's distance from eacli other, only in extreme cases would the 

 difference between the true and approximate local time be as much 

 as half an hoiir. In many cases there would be no difference, and 

 in no case could the diflTerence be of the slightest moment in the 

 ordinary business of civil life. Whenever exact time was required 

 for any purpose, cosmopolitan time, assuming it to be in general use, 

 would be available, or a third hand, such as shown by the dotted line 

 in the fiarure, mia;ht in certain cases be used. 



Cosmopolitan Watch Dial. 



Fig. ISTo. 4 represents a compound dial designed to indicate non- 

 local as well as local time, on the same face of a clock or watch, by 

 means of one set of hands. In this arrangement it is proposed to 

 have the Roman numex'als for local time inscribed on a movable disc. 



