CWAIIA ILLTSTHAT 151) Willi.
Dividing the Time of
Mny 'JO, JiXX).
MM
Olio of tlui features of thu Purls oxo3l
tlon, reports tho Chicago Tribune, will bo
nn Intorniitloiiiil congress cf scientists to
consider the declmnl division of time uiul
the circle. The ill vision of time iiIjiio
niny be considered lure, because If the c ti
gress should arrive at some fungible re
sult a Ih not at all uinlkely It will bu
cf more fur-reaching popular ellecl than,
any abstract mathematical pro). tuition.
'.Moreover, scientists have long since
pointed out that the present tlivlU u of
time has Its (shortcomings.
I'rof. Paul Crtioger, a Herman scientist of
note, haB pointed out In the "Prometheus,"
a (Icruinu weekly devoted to progress In
trade, Industry and science, tho disadvan
tage of the present system of dividing tlnu
and so far r.s the papular side of this ques
tlon applies to Aniovleun custams tho
sclentlllc sidn being, of course, of interna
tional character his deductions will be rea I
with Interest even by lay readers.
One cf tho popular ohjcctlots to the pro
posed change Is the assertion, which appear
natural and almost a matter of court!, that
the great mass of the peoplo luu become
to accustomed to the Gx00xl2x2 dlvhlon of
tho day that It will bo exceedingly dllllclllt
to Introduce the decimal system, and that,
therefore. It would be almost a barbarism to
abolish tho tisane, with which people have
become familiar for eenturiiv, for the tolo
purp e of giving a scientific character to
one of thu most important, though scarcely
ever thought of functions of daily life
namely: The measurement of time.
People I, Ike DeeliuiilN.
Tho people may think differently about
tlila matter, for the peop!o nt large are not
sentimental. Tho descendants of the Pil
grim fathers, of tho hirelings of the hand
grave of HesKie, and of tho numerous nations
which camo later quickly accustomed them
selves to the abolition of pounds, shillings
and pence; of thuler, sllbergroschen and
pfunnlge; if gulden and kreutzer; of kronier
and heller; and to the adoption of tho docl
imil dollar and Its 101) cents. In fact, so
far as time Ih concerned, the great nias-u of
louimcn people do not adhere at alt to the
actual division of 00 plus 00 plus 12 plus ",
but will say, for Instance, "It 'a nearly half
past 1 o'clock," or "It is a quarter to 2," or
"It Is a few minutes after half-past 3." Of
c.urHa, those for whom accurate division of
time Is of moment railroad and business
men, bankers, racing and sporting men
will ' figure differently and will p.obably
speak of 1:2!), or 1:411, or 2:27, but these do
not form tho bulk of the people.
Thus It appears that tho groat mans of
peoplo do not adhero to tho division cf hours
into CO minutes, but count by quarter or
half hours, so that tho popular day has not
2 plus 12 hours, but 2 plus 12 plus 1, equal
ing 00 quarter hours, for tho quarters aro
all tho units of tiniei In tho popular mind
and not tho minutes. Tho people do not
like to count odd minutes, but speak of ."
or 10 minutes, and seconds aro not popular
at nil, except with peoplo whoso buslne s
or prodllintlon compols thorn to rockon with
tho subdivision of the minute. Of cour o
overy child knows that a minute ha. CO
seconds, but the second Is hardly evor con
sidered. Hence, all advocates of tho decimal divi
sion of time maintain that tho pioplo arj
4
D
POLE VAULT, NINE FEET NEIJRASKA
U, Hostwick.
Day by Decimals
not so much attached to the tltno-honoro 1
division, because- they do not use the lunr
as a unit of time; do not count with 00
minutes, and do not use the seconds. The
peoplo count by quarter hours and llgu e
tho minute from the quarter. Milt such a
designation has all the shortcoming which
a correct lueusurtiinont of time should not
hnve.
Two causes may ho cited why thu nuns
of tho peoplo do not reckon by the hour
with Its dlvhlon of CO minutes. Tho space
of nn hour is apparently too large ami the
UO-tlivlslun Is not comprehensive because it
does not corrmpond with the, decimal divi
sion of the dollar. Every child knows how
much I" cents Is, but nen tho adult does
not know without thinking what space of
time is expressed In I" minutes. He or
slut must first think that fin minutes .form
the unit of thei hour, and then calculate
that -17 Is a little more than three-quarters
of tho unit. This Ih In accord with a
common law, which applies to all time
and all peoples. Any arbitrary division
MNIM'P FOR 100 YAHDS' HASH
by LouIb II. Hostwick.
-NEIIR
which does not correspond to the ruling
system of counting lacks tho quality of be
ing perceived Intuitively. Any other than
tho decimal division conflicts with tho de
cadal units, 10, 100, 1,000, etc., which overj
child knows. An accountant may get along
swimmingly with other systems, but tho
people want units, which they may compre
hend without thinking.
New IMvInIoii.
Hence a new tllvlfil n of time which Is to
becomu popular must be bused upon tho fol
lowing principle:
1. It must ho decimal.
2. The time unit must not differ materially
from tho present quarter hour.
.1. This time unit must not he longer than
ten 'minutes.
All these principles can be happily
UNIVERSITY FIELD DAY Photo by Una
OK THE NEIIR
ASKA UNIVERSITY FIELD DAY Photo
observed by the division of the day Into
100 units, each of which may be termed a
"run." The run again Is tlhldcd Into 10
decarun, or "mar." Then the day would
have 100 runs Instead tf t!io present 'J!
quarter-hours and 1,00(1 mar Instead of tho
present 1,410 minutes.
1,410
One mar would be 1.1 1 minutes.
1,000
Ono run equaling 10 irar wotill equal II 1
minutit'.
One run would bo 15 lets II. I equaling O.ii
minutes equaling o.li plus CO less :iii sic mils
shorter than tho present quarter hour.
It will bo seen that tho now
tlmu unit, tho run, would differ
Immaterially from the present unit, tho
quarter hour, Thu mar. equaling 1.11
minutes, tllffeiH from XV, minutes only by
l.iiO lr 1.14 equaling O.Ofl minutes, or O.Oil
plurt CO equaling .1.0 sec nils. Thcro could
he, to facilitate nil popular Intro
duction of decimal time measurement,
thu run substituted for tho qunr
tor hour and 1 runs for 1 hour. Per
haps It might bo incro advantageous to ro
place tho hour by 5 runs, which would bo
exactly 1 hour and 12 minutes.
For scientific purposes, which requlro more
accurate measurements of tlmo, the jiuir can
l.o divided into 100 mllliruns or "sot." Then
tho the day will have 100 plus 10
equaling 100.000 Fut, Instead of 21
plus CO plus CO equaling 80.100
seconds, consequently 1,000 set nro
SCI seconds nnd 1 sot nro 0.80 1 stnonds. An
other, and piohably more pronounced ad
vantage of the set over the second will bo
that thu set pendulum will bo shorter than
tho present second pendulum. Ilenco tho
now set pendulum will bo found nioro
frequently In clocks and will make It pos
sible for tho layman to make sclentlllc
observations.
Tho laborer, the official and the child liav
to care, as a rule, only for tho beginning of
their work, or school tlmo. Now, whuthpr
this beginning Is now 8 o'clock, or 8:10, or
in future 31 run, makes no difference so far
as tho recollection Is concerned. Even a
child will readily understand tho valuo cf
a run as to tho course of tho huh or tho
different appointments of tho day. Twunty
llvo run would bo exactly fi n. m.; GO run,
12 meridian; 7fi run, fi p, m.; 0 run, 12 mid
night. From 2r-7.r run Is daytime; all runs
undor HO are forenoon, over fiO nro afternoou
For Instance, 11 n. in. Is 40 runs, 11 j. in.
Is !ifi runs, 1 p. m. Is fil runs, 1 o'clock at
night Is 4 runs, Hence all npp' IntmoutR
can bo made by complete runs, whuro at
present quarter nnd half-hours nro required.
Meeltliiileill III llleilll y.
Wutches and clocks, of courso, would ro
qulro structural changes, but tlieti chunsei
aro not so dllllcult nor so inntorlnl as would
nppmr at first glance. In regard ti tho
ordinary clock, for Instance, tho change
wheel of .Hi cogj) would have to bo replaced
by ono of 2f cngs, and tho mlnuto wheel of
PEKIAII III -MASCOT
Hl twick
SK I NIVERSITY Photo by Louis R
21 togs would need replacement by a hand
w heel of 10 cogs.
The dial of the new clock or watch would
have but one hand which couies around
the circlo divided into 100 ninivi and 10 hum
in one-tenth of u day, equaling 1
divnrun or derun. Henco only the mar
and the unit of the runs will bo shown. The
decerns of the run, dowirun or derun will ho
recognized without thinking, for an error
of 1 decarun, equaling 10 plus M.I, equaling
lit minutes, or 2 hours 21 minutes, will
hardly bo made. Consequently, one hand
would bo Hiillicii'iit, though a sec nd
ono could rcndl.y bo pr.vlded for, and tho
(simpler method of an additional dial would
lo hotter. This second dial, turning beneath
an opening in tho main dial, would shiw ton
figured, from 0 to H, mid would bo advanced
with each revolution of tho hand by one
figure.
The second question, that of tho diolmal
division of tho circlo or nngle. Is a matter
of indifference for tho great mass of po pie.
It cannot be said that the present divlshui
lu .ICO parts of tho clrcumforenco of a eirclo
or in 24 hoimi of a day has any advantage
over tho decimal tllvlnlon. Those old di
visions simply retard the progress toward
a universal decimal system.
Short and to the Point
"Are you one of the olllceis of the Treas
ury department?" asked the niaii with the
bloodshot eyes, relates the Chicago Tribune.
"I am assistant secretary of the treas
ury," was tho reply. "What can I do for
you?"
"Well, It's rather a confidential business,
v:id 1 don't want It to go any farther, hut
i've conio to pay the government soino
money that I guess I owe It fairly. 1 camo
back from Etiropo about a month ago with
Nome dutiable goods cun.e.iled about me anil
got past tho revenue olllceis with them. I
llguro that I beat tho government out of
about $fi and I've come t square up and
get tho mnttur oil' my mind."
"Well," responded tho assistant secro-
tary, "wo have what we call a coiiBcicnco
fund, and as this seems to he a rasu of
conscience"
"1 don't know that It's my conscience that
troubles me," said the visitor, "but I do
know there's a big bullfrog that stays in a
pond near where I live, and he keeps me
iii'itnua
wick.
RACE--NEBRASKA UNIVERSITY FIELD DAY Photo by Louis It, Ilout-
;t
awake night after night, with his Infernal
cough up! cough up!' and l'e got tired
of it."
A hostess of tilt" West Hud, New York, who
proposed giving a dinner to sumo of thu
doctors visiting in town, sabl to tho caterer
when she had Mulshed with her order:
"Now, Mr. X, 1 trust you will make this
dinner as line as possible, for my gueHlH
come from all over the country and I waul
them to see how well we tin things."
"Is It the doctors you're going to entoi
talu, then?" asked the caterer.
"Yes," responded thu hostess. "1 have In
vited n number of the doctors."
(live me my list, then," Haiti tho caterer,
and he forthwith proceeded to increase the
quantity of everything upon the menu and
to nearly double thu amount of wine.
"What do you mean by that?" asked tho
patron. "Why have you Increased tho quan
tity of everything so materially ?"
"I was nil light at llrst for the ordinary
guest, madam," said tho caterer with an
cxcatlicdra air, "but them sawbones tines
eat anil docs drink they does eat and
drink. Their trade seems to give 'em an
appetite."
Tho poet Wall Whitman was, as Is well
known, dependent during most of his life
upon tho kindness of his friends and adinlr- a
ers for support. A few yeaui biiforu his
death tine of these friends called upon him
lu his little house lu Camden, a suburban
town of Philadelphia.
"Well, Walt," he said, "how goes II HiIh
winter? Any HtiUsciiptlons no.'tlcd for
Christmas?"
"No," said Whitman; "no, I'm aL work
now. I'm In tho employ of (leorgo Chillis,
lie pays me $."o a month."
"You at. work! May 1 ask what Is our oc
cupation?" "Why, 1 ride in the strivl cars. 1 fall
Into talk with tho drivers and conductors
and lind out which of them have no over
coats and guct-s at tlielr sl.u and notify
Chlhls mid then he sends tho overcoats.
It's not hard woik," said thu poet, thought
fully. "Anil then, you know, II helps Chlldu
along."
One of tho applicants at Uio Federal
building In Now York, recently, for cltlzcn
.ihip papers was n handsome, plcturestpio ami
muscular yi ting fellow, wearing big gold
rings In hU ears.
"How long have you been In the United
States?" asked the clerk.
"I'ivo minutes," said Cubello.
"How did you get in hole so quick?"
"1 came from Naples," said Cubollo,
promptly, "When I got off tho ship 1 get
on tho automobile, and I come hero no
quick," and he pointed out the window at
a Ilroatlway cab that was passing. Ho
was given his preliminary papers and wont
away delighted.
"Now 1 can go to work on tho big tunnel,"
said he. "Which way in it to 117"
Reason for Parsimony
Chicago Post: "You havo repeatedly told
me." sho said with some show of Indigna
tion, "that I it nt all In thu world to you."
'Quito true, my dear," ho replied.
'Well, you havo it mighty strange way of
dunionstnitlng It," she umertetl.
"How bo?" ho asked.
"Well, you're stingy," sho answered;
"that's what you aro Just stingy. You keep
your money hoarded up llko a miser."
Ho looked at her in Htirprlso.
"Hut, my dour," ho mildly expostulated,
"why should I go about Investing in othor
thing when I already have what's nil lu
the world to mo? You really ought to tnko
a reasonablo view of these matters."