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THE INDIAN ANTIQUARY
[ OCTOBER. 1924
The Mechitarist plan only concerns itself with the ecclesiastical side of the question, and from the point of view of the Christian religious festivals the difficulties that arise are not great. But the table above given will show at once to any one, who will consider it from either the social or administrative point of view, that the difficulties are really many meaning by difficulties" changes in age-old habits of thought and practice.
E.g., one can imagine much trouble being raised over the new name for the 13th month, and the place where it should come in the Calendar. For the purpose of this argument, let us follow the Mechitarists and place it between the older and the newer Roman months, i.e.
between August and September. Aud let us call it Sexiber. . Similarly let us put the annual intercalary day at the end of September, for a reason to
be given later, and make that the eight-day week as a matter of convenience. Let us call this intercalary day-actually the 29th September-Sanctuary Day. But however convenient ultimately this procedure might prore, it would of course create disturbance in all sorts of social matters that can be easily foreseen in administrative, legal and commercial life, because one week in every year would have an extra day not counted in the Calendar.
Again as regards Loap Years, if we add, on the same principle, one day to the last week of December and make it an intercalary day called, say, Leap Year's Day, we shall have the same trouble.
One can imagine a great torrent of talk over such points, but the really great trouble would occur over the change of 12 months of irregular length to 13 months of regular length. Let us take for instance the public and ecclesiastical holidays. Good Friday would fall on 13th April, Easter Sunday on 15th April, Easter Monday on 16th April. Lent would commence on Wednesday on 4th March. Whitsunday would fall on 8th June, Whitmonday on 9th June, Bank Holiday on Monday, 2nd August, Christmas Day on Wednesday, 25th December, Boxing Day on Thursday, 26th December. The latter half of the year would thus be a long while without a holiday and it would probably end in the 29th September, falling between a Saturday and Sunday, being turned into a Bank Holiday. As-it would be an intercalary day, not counted in the week, it would automatically be a real holiday, a dies non, on which no writ would run, no bill mature, and so on, and for that reason it might well be called Sanctuary Day. The annual holiday months would be August and Soxiber. • The above dates would be the fall, however, according to the New Calendar of 13 months of 28 days each ; but on the existing Calendar, and with a fixed Easter, the public and ecolesing. tical holidays would fall as follows:--
Ash Wednesday .. .. 1st March. Whitmonday .. 29th May. Good Friday 7th April Bank Holiday
17th July Easter Sunday .. .. 9th April. Sanotuary Day ..
7th Ootober. Easter Monday .. 10th April. Christmas Day .. 28th December Whitsunday .. .. 28th May. Boxing Day . .. 29th December.
The two holiday months would be from 1st August to the 28th Sexiber (16th July to 9th September of the existing Calendar).
Other "new" things would happen, e.g., as the 12th August would fall on 27th July, grouse shooting would have to begin 16 days later or 28th August, a Saturday. So partridge shooting would be commenced on 10th September, a Sunday, and pheasant shooting on 9th October, a Monday. Other sporting meetings and date, and close seasons would have to be altered accordingly. But even these minor things would create a great deal of controversy. .
