Volume 18 , Issue 40

NW Okie's Journey

This week we take a look at the three Controversial Elections in American History: 1800, which created drama that it resulted in a Constitutional amendment; 1824, the election that went to the House of Representatives for decision amongst four candidates; 1876, the most contested of the three elections, pitted Republican Rutherford Hayes against Democrat Henry Tilden, who won the popular vote but was one electoral vote short of a majority. But ... First ....

Daylight Saving
Have you ever wonder about "Daylight Savings Time?" How, why and who came up with the idea? Don't Forget to set your clocks back an hour Saturday, November 6, 2016.

Found on Newspapers.com

Let us look back through the news archives, especially The Oregon Daily Journal, out of Portland, Oregon, dated 27 August 1916, Sunday, page 50, with the following headlines: "Daylight Saving," written by Marcus M. Marks, Borough President of Manhattan.

On an early morning walk along the streets of London, in 1784, the brain of Benjamin Franklin conceived the original idea of "Daylight Saving." In passing this idea on to the world at large he said: "In walking through The Strand and Fleet street one morning at 7 o'clock I observed there was not one shop open, though it had been daylight and the sun up above three hours, the inhabitants of London closing voluntarily to live much by candle light and sleep by sunshine; and yet often complained a little absurdly, of the duty on candles and the high price of tallow."

Soon thereafter in the Journal de paris he published an article, later appearing among his essays, under the title of "An Economical Project," which further elaborated the advantages of the plan of "Daylight Saving," namely, of "Turning the Clock Forward an Hour," so that everybody would live one hour longer by daylight and one hour less by artificial light.

Benjamin Franklin, likewise, was the author of the saying: "Necessity is the author of invention." To prove the truth of this saying in relation to daylight saving required the delay of over a century until the year 1916, when necessity required, and almost compelled, Germany, England, France, Italy, Norway, Sweden and Denmark to "Turn the Clock Forward an Hour" during the summer months, in order that daylight might be saved principally for economic reasons.

Several practical daylight saving tests had been already made i the United States, not only by several individual firms in New York and other cities and by the Untied States government at its Key West naval station, but also by several important cities themselves, including Cleveland and Detroit. These two cities, which had for several years used central time by ordinance, decided to adopt eastern time, thus practically adopting daylight saving so far as they individually were concerned. All reports from Cleveland and Detroit were most favorable, and the results had been highly beneficial.

To make the daylight saving scheme throughly effective and of the greatest benefit to all the people and to all business organizations, and to avoid confusion and inconvenience, the movement must be nationwide.

It had been suggested that all the advantages could be obtained without turning the clock ahead by rising and retiring an hour earlier. The answer was that we would not do it, and if we tried it we would find ourselves out of harmony with our surroundings. To be successful the change must be universal. There was also an element of psychology in this movement. It would be quire an effort for those accustomed to arise at 7 o'clock to get up at 6. But when the clocks says 7 habit asserts itself, and in a few days no one remembers that the clock had been turned ahead.

They also reported in 1916, "If our federal government decrees that clocks be turned backward an hour during the summer months there need be no changes in any time tables or other regulations. The simple device of adjusting the clock covers everything automatically. The change was usually made at 7 a.m. on Sunday, when, experience showed, it was least noticed.

On October 1 the change back was similarly accomplished.

Good Night! Good Luck!
We are "Stronger Together!"
Remember FBIgate of 2016! GO VOTE Democratic!
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