SAMOAN TIME.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 16635, 18 January 1922, Page 7

SAMOAN TIME.

CORRECTED MESSAGE. In connection with tho message published yesterday on Samoan time several words were omitted. The message in its complete form is as follows, sage in its complete, form is as Inflows : Tho question of Samoan time is exercising tho Colonial Office and Greenwich authorities- New Zealand proposes to alter the international day lino to bring Samoa west of the line, and make the time uniform with New' Zealand’s. It is now a day behind tho line. The Admiralty approves of this, hut the alteration would make a day difference between New Zealand and American time in Samoa, causing obvious complications in.the Islands. Therefore a decision hna been postponed.

The meridian of Greenwich is internationally recognised as the “ zero,” not only of longitude, hut of time calculation, and places in all other longitudes arc reckoned ns vi fast” or ‘slow” on Greenwich time. When it is noon at Greenwich it is midnight on the meridian of 180 degrees, which passes from polo to pole, a little to the cast of New Zealand. At that time, if it is Sunday night to the oast of the meridian, it is Monday morning west of it. The meridian lies almost wholly at sea ; but it is no respector of nation- • alism, and it cuts through various i island groups as well as across the eastern extremity of the Asiatic Continent. In order to avoid tho complication of having two days at once in a territory, it has been internationally agreed that the line shall be conventionally fixed so that, while it follows the meridian in a general sense, it swings east or west in places so as to pass round the divided territories. Thus it passed to the eastward through Behring Strait, and westward to bring the Aleutian Islands into the American day; and in the Pacific several divergencies are made. Samoa is on the eastern side of the line, and so ure the Cook Islands, so that to-day, for instance, it is Tuesday in those places. The oroposal to carry the liue east of British Samoa is intended to give the day in Samoa the same name it has in New Zealand, hut it is hung up in the meantime.