Park Record | 1918-08-09 | Page 7 | When Banks Are Closed - Holidays That Delay World's Business"

ra 1 LL J l lJ air r a I r l i t Delay World 1 r rs' rs s' s 7 r rt t k th tF l' l i e eQ ef f Q q b i 1 r ra rn x n a 1 T a 1 I r s ti New Hew York City's Financial District Decorated In Honor of a Fore Foreign War Mission Only 84 Days Day in 1918 in Which the Worlds World's Bus Bustness Bust Bust- lj- lj ness ness ness' Is la Not Interrupted Somewhere by Holidays I and Sundays Sunday I r CURIOUS HOLIDAY FACTS l t There Thero t. t no national legal hol hoi Iday In the United States Massachusetts does doea not observe ob ob- serve erve New Year Years Day as a. a legal holiday Five Christian countries do not observe Christmas as a legal le- le gal pal holiday t I New Years Year's Day Is the only holiday observed throughout the world 1 vet different dates datu are observed ob ob- served as New Years Year's Day In different parts of the world International business will be Interfered with by holidays or Sundays on days dayi In 1918 of these days day being holidays 1 This 1 his hla leaves leavea only 84 days daya In which universal banking busl bus ness nesa Is le possible November with 26 holidays In different parts parta of the world leads lead the months March with 19 has ha the few few- eat holidays Brazil leads lead the nations of the world with holidays The United States comes cornea next with 64 M. By GARRET SMITH IDLE man plays plas or prays the the- W WHILE worlds world's ds d's business will bo be Interfered Interfered Interfered In In- with on 81 days das during 1118 18 In la other words there will be only 84 days das In Inthis Inthis inthis this Sr i year that are not Iu Sun days of ot special holidays In one or more moro Important commercial regions of ot the earth Nor Js Is s tills this an unusual condition creat created d by the war We the theare Weare Weare are accustomed to jump Jum remarkable conditions Into the category of war evils these days On the contrary some of the fighting nations have bave for forthe forthe forthe the time lime being stripped their decks of or minor and unusually superfluous bolt holi days Ever ver since man was condemned to earn his bread by the of or his Ills brow he has bas been putting In a n lot Io t of ot spare time trumping up methods method of ot be beating the game Next Neit to working Into the boss boss' job the Invention of ot the holiday has bas been one of his ablest little achievements In this line Likewise Likewise Like Like- wise ever since bosses and holidays evolved along about history's sunrise sunrise sun sun- sunrise rise the former have been cursing the latter as troublesome breaks inthe In Inthe the years year's work By Dy the Middle Ages holidays ha bad become so BO numerous numero numerous numerous' that they seriously Interfered with Industrial pursuits A valuable re- re suit of th the the Reformation f not generally appreciated was Wal the abolition of a a tarp large portion of these holidays But Dut as time went on political politico and religious milestones accumulated again agala Today oday while the years year's over ove- over over-j toad loo a in any any on one country Is by br no means as at serious as In the tie Middle L Ages the growth of ot International finance flunce has made the worlds world's sg aggregate re regate gate aate of closed dOled days daYI a serious factor and an expensive one Not until now however b. b has any attempt been made to compile compile list of holidays boll holi days for tor the guidance of bankers and This task ha has hall Just been completed by the Guaranty Trust rust Company of ot New York city The results re- re have been published In a book booklet let that should 1 be a valuable addition to the reference library of every bank bankIn In the th country doing more than than a purely pure pur ly Ir 10 local 1051 81 business Importance of or Bank Holidays Holiday Suppose n a bank has a n commercial paper raper collectable In Peking eking or Athens fOr yr r CR Cup Cape T Town fawn wn on January 0 5 It H U Is i French Citizens Citizen Celebrating the the- Fall of the Bosnia Important to know whether the bank bankIn In 10 that particular city will be open that day Does any anyone one around the face 1 know whether January 6 5 r Is a bank holiday In Peking or Athens or Cape Town Usually no one does Ics Ic's hard enough to keep tabs on the 54 4 holidays rampant In these United Slates It therefore becomes necessary nary sary t to tOe send an on expensive cablegram to get the information This sort of thing happens happens' not once but many times In every banking house with an extensive foreign business Among the tho holidays the tho occasion Is generally th the anniversary ry of ot an on Important political went vent or the birthday of a national hero Such holidays are aro therefore local local lo lo- ecal cal while church holidays ar are are for the most most part general The former class prevails In Ih the newer and more democratic democratic dem derv countries while the older ohler ones con confine fino themselves largely to the tho church fasts Had and festivals W Where ere Holidays Are Thickest Contrary to the tile popular notion the new now democracies of ot the west enjoy u a greater number of holidays than their sister nations of the eastern hemi hemi- sphere Of Ot the 97 07 nations or dependencies dependencies dependencies depend depend- listed Brazil leads with 84 holidays The United States with 54 M Is a close second although she unlike Brazil practically ignores the church days lIas Another popular delusion delusion delu delu- sion slon Is shattered when we find that France has only 18 formally observed days pays and Italy only 23 23 We had supposed supposed supposed sup sup- posed the always alwa's outdid us Inthis in inthis inthis this particular Among the other belligerents bel liel Germany it is presumed will observe 20 days das next year presumed Oren Great Britain 10 16 Japan 15 lr and Russia 17 In most of these countries local holidays ordinarily observed live been abandoned during the tho war IThe I IThe The study of at holidays Is Is' Is fog to the historian Those of our own country offer n a particularly rich field It one knew v the tho meaning of all the half a a hun hundred tred days celebrated In Inthe inthe Inthe the United States with the collateral events e connected with each he would be well versed in the nations nation's history jOne IOne j I One of ot the first surprises In n store stora for tor such a student Is to learn that I the United States has no national holi holl- day dill The reader will at once think of Fourth of ot July and of th the dents dent's Thanksgiving proclamation nut But not even these are national Acts of ot Congress and Presidents Presidents' pr pro pro- I In this respect apply only to tine the District of Columbia and time territories The states usually follow suit but as as a matter of ot custom cue cus tom only and not of law Here Is a I chance to win some beta bets from your our friends I Americas America's Red Rd R d Letter Days Day American local holidays are ure rich In historical significance Of Ot such are the commemorations of ot Bunker Dunker Billand Bill and Bennington and New ew Orl Orleans ans and San Sail JacInto the all but tor forgotten ott n Fast Day of ot New England still surviving surviving sur sur- giving In New Hampshire Patriots Da Day In lii Maine and t Old Det Defenders Defender's Day In Baltimore Pioneer Day In Idaho and the various vadous Adm Admission Is lion Days Dayl pop pop- popular popular ular with other Western states Confederate Confederate Con Con- federate Memorial Day in the South Bouth together with the b birthdays of ot Lee Lea and other heroes of 01 the Confederacy Two states state have Independence Days Das of ot their ow own Texas eul observes her r separation sep from Mexico on Mardi March 2 North North Cl Carolina commemorates the Halifax Independence resolutions resolutions' on April 12 and the url decla deela declaration ration on 01 May Ia 20 i It remains for tor Frederick county Md Id to celebrate all aU alone the repudiation of ot the stamp act one of the most local celebrations of ot an tant taut national event on re record ord Among Amon the favorite month months for tor holidays hol days Iday the world over oyer November leads leada with 20 26 out of Its possible 80 da days May comes next neat with 2 25 and aud an additional ad ad- I Sunday not otherwise celebrated celebrated cele cele- thus actually tying November In the number of days closed to busl busi ness March on the other hand band Is the longest all around business month having only 10 19 holidays Thus Thus' at least two thirds of ot every month interferes in with the free play of International international international inter Inter- national business Even such generally observed festivals festi vals vale as Christmas and New Years Tears Day cant can't be depended upon by th the banker Danker without consulting the International Inter inte national calendar New Years Year's Day is the only boll holiday day dayI I universally observed But alas it falls fans on 11 different dates in different parts of the globe and some countries observe more than one of them An exhaustive study of these New Yea Year celebrations would give one a petty pretty fair knowledge of the ancient history Of ot the world worM Curiously enough one one of our own states Massachusetts does doel not noi make this a legal holiday though her citizens generally observe It Where Is la Not Observed Christmas Day due to Its religious significance nce is not so generally observed observed observed ob ob- served as New Years Year's Day It has moreover only three different dates It was wu not generally observed on December December De Do cember 25 until the fourth century The early church lacking any auth authentic authentic au au- th knowledge as to the date of Christs Christ's birth celebrated it without uniformity in May 1 April and Janu Janu- ary The Armenian Church still o ob observes obi serves January C. C Why the December December December Decem Decem- ber date oate was finally selected Is tam tain Some see in it a displacement of the Roman Saturnalia others de do- declare declare clare it a survival of the Feast of the Winter Solstice and still others point t to its coincidence with the old German German Ger man Yuletide Feast Countries where the old style calendar prevails still celebrate January 7 In the Puritan days Scotch Presbyterians Presby and English Nan Non Conformists rejected Christmas Day altogether as as savoring of and in New England Thanksgiving Day was devised de de- to replace it It seems a curious curious curi curl ous thing that there are today Christ- Christ tian countries where it Is not observed observed observed ob ob- ob- ob served legally Such are lire Norway Panama Peru Portugal and the African Union The last named however still observes observes ob ob- serves the old English institution English of Boxing Day on December 20 26 This was wag the day when the tho English gentry having had their own Christmas celebration cele celo- bration the day before turned their attention tor to- the poor by presenting them with Christmas boxes The day the day for general giving lag ing of ot Christmas gifts gUts Portugal Drops Drop Traditions Tradition The only country c on earth a study of ot whose whole holidays reveals of ot Its Ita ta political rectal racial or religious origin is Portugal The first attempt to lish Uh a republic in in Portugal was wal made on January 81 1891 1801 This Is I. reflected reflect reflected ed In n i its calendar of ot holidays which runs January 1 1 dedicated to cal cal- brotherhood January 8 dedIcated dedicated ded dod to the all those who fought and died to establish the republic re reo public in Portugal i Mays 1 May u B in In memory memory mem- mem ory ot of the discovery of ot Brazil by bT the Portuguese June 19 10 municipal hOllday holiday bolt holi day at Lisbon June 24 municipal holiday at Oporto October B 5 the date of the establishment of ot the Portuguese Portuguese Portuguese Por Por- republic j D December 1 I Flag Flair Pay Day to commemorate the Independence ence pf pt country December 25 Family Day These brief notations on holidays holiday touch only their distribution and antS dates Rack flack of ot these lies Ilea a wide Ide field filled with quaint and curious Information Information mation matton relating to the manner of cel col celebrating them s