In the United States there are, strict speaking, __1__
no national holiday, for each state must, through legislative enactment or executive proclamation, __2__
appoint the day which each holiday is celebrated. Congress and the president may establish legal holidays__3__
for the District of Columbia and for federal employees throughout the states and territories;
and by long custom,days that receive nationwide observation, such as Christmas, Thanksgiving, __4__
Labor Day, Independent Day, and New Year’s Day, are uniformly set __5__
apart by all states as legal, or public holidays. In 1968, federal legislation established Columbia Day __6__
as a legal holiday for the District of Columbia and for the federal government beginning at 1971. __7__
The law also provided begun in 1971 federal employees would be granted__8__
three-days weekends by observing Washington’s Birthday on the third Monday in February, __9__
Memorial Day on the last Monday in May, Columbus Day on the second Monday in October,
and Veteran Day on the forth Monday on October. By 1971, most of the states also adopted the new dates. __10__