Muscatine weekly journal. [volume] (Muscatine, Iowa) 185?-1890, 1860-01-27

Gag! Leap Year. 9G5I
The year 1860 is "Leap Year."
and copsists Of 500 days, one day BE-
ing added to the shortest month, Feb
ruary, which will, therefore, have
twenty-nine days this year; and on its
lastsaor additional day, is claimed By.
the kdies privilege which belongsati
all other times to the gentlemen - the
privilege of cropping the question"
Leap year occurs every fourth year, and
is so called because it leaps over day
more yhan doss any ordinary year. For
instance, in other years, if Christmas
dayscr New Years day fall on a Sun
day, it will fall on Monday in the fol-.
lowing year ; but in Leap Year it will
fall on Tuesday, being thus two days
later in the week, instead of one. 1T
is also called bissextile-from the Lat
in ,bis, twice, and sertas, sixth-mean-
ing that the sixth Of the calends of
March, corresponding to the Oath Of
February was reckoned twice every
fourth year by the Interpolation Of q
day. The necessity for Leap Year
arises from the fact that the solar year
does not exactly correspond with the
civil year, in consequence of its not
ending exactly with q given day, but
with fraction Of day. # it were
not for this arrangement Christmas in
course Of time would be in midsummer,
and the Fourth of July in the depth of
winter.2I io 2:Ef8 eit % sa9p9I2
The true year consists Of the time it
takes for the earth to make one revo-
luton round the sun, which is deter
mined by its coming back to the same
point in the zodiac from which it start
ed J.; and this is accomplished in 365
days and nealy six hours but as the
calender must consist Of complete days,
these Six hours are omitted, and in four
years they make up q whole day, when
one is added to the year, making what
is called asLeap Year. This, however,
is not strictly correct, for it is ascer-
tanned by accurate calculations that a
solar year is exactly 365 days S hours.
48 minutes, and ST. seconds conse-
quently, in putting on six hours, we add
II minutes, 12.4 seconds in four years.
This in the course Of 1885, years would
amount to "a hours or complete day.
Every year the number of which is d.
visible BY four without remainder is
Leap Year, except the last year Of each
century, which is a. Leap Year only
when divisible by 400 without a re-
mainder. Thus the year 1900 will not
be Leap Yea.
The Roman year originally had but
ten months as may be seen in the mean
ing Of the name December, which is
'Tenth Month" March was the first
month of the year in the time Of Rom
illus, and December was the last. But
Numa Pompilus, who knew astronomy
better, added January and February.
While Rome's great founder made the time
his care,
Ten months he chose to constitute the year
But Numa, better skilled in astral lore,
To Romulus' months adjoined two more.
The Egyptians were the first who
Appropriated to the real length Of the
year, which they made to consist of 800
days. They afterwards added five
days, as was done by Thares, one Of
the seven wise men Of the Greeks. The
Jews, Syrlans, Philippians, Romans,
Persians, and Arabs, all had years Of
different length. o nj e
The day on which the year com
mences is also different in different
countries, but in all it is held in great
veneration. The Jewish historical year
commences with the new moon near the
vernal equinox { March 22d), and the
civil year with the new moon near the
| autumnal equinox. The Mahomedans
begin their year on the day when the
sun enters the Arvies the Persians in
the month which answers to our June
the Chinese and Indians with the. first
new moon which happens in March ;
and the Mexicans on the 23d of Febru-
airy, at which time the verdure in their
country begins to appear. William the
| Conuueror, having been crowned on the
first day Of January, gave occasion to
the English to begin their year on that
day, in order to make it correspondent
with the most remarkable date in their
history.
Though the historical year began in
England on the festival Of the Circum-
cision, or first day Of January, on which
day the German and Italian year begins,
yet the7civil or legal year did not com
mence till the day of the Annunciation
Of the Virgin, the 25th Of March. The
part of the year between these terms
was usually expressed in both these
ways: either 1889 TIA SO. But,
by the act altering the style, the civil
year now begins with the LIST Of Janu-
airy. TIE old style followed the Julian
method of computing the year by the
calendar established by, Julius Caesar,
in which every fourth year consists Of
$3.50 days, and the other years Of 365.
This Julian arrangement Of time
makes, as we have seen, eleven minutes
and some seconds in a year too much.
Pope Gregory XIII. reformed the
calendar by retrenching ten days in o.
t6befy, 5S2, in order to bring back the
vernal equinox to tie same day as at
the Council Of Nice, A. D. 1885, This
reformation was adopted by act of Par