Civilian & telegraph. [volume] (Cumberland, Md.) 1859-1875, 1860-02-23
Mistellantaug.
Leap Year.

The yess 1850 is leap Year" and con-
ssts of three hundred and sxty-sx days,
one day being added 10 the shortest month,
February, which will. therefore, have twenty
nine days this year, aud on its last. or add
tional day, is claimed by the ladies privil-
egc which belongs st all other times to the
gent,em"n-the privilege OF popping the
question" Leap year occurs every fourth
, year, and is so called because it leaps over a
| day more than does m ordinary year. For
| Instance, il other vears If Christmas daY or
N'w Ieart day ial! on d Sunday, it vii. fall
Monday in the following year out in
! Lap Year j. will fall on Tuesday, being thus
,wo days later in tie week, instead Of one.
, 1t is also called bisscxtile-fr the Latin biz.
, twice. gad g.Iius. sixtn-rnraning that the
sixth ol the caeuders OF March Correspond
ing TO the 24th nj February was reckoned
twice every fourth year by the interca!ation
Of day. The necessity for Leap Year
, arises from tie fact that the solar year does
Vt correspond exactly with tie c.vi. year,
in consequence Of ,ts not ending exactly with
a s!yeu day, but with T. fraction Of day
Ii il ve.c not Tor this arraUg UgcmeAt. Cari2t-
mss in course Of time would lie in miGsum-
rrer, and the Fourth Of Juiy in the dapLE
Q, wiuter. The true year consists OF the
( time it takes fyr tie earth to make one rcyo-
| lution around the -un, which is determined
| by its coming back TO the sane point in the
zodiac from which it started; and This Is A.
lcomplisAcd in three hundred and sixty-iye
days and nearly six hours; hut as the calen-
dar must consist Of complete days. these six
hours are omitted, AMI in four years they
make up whole day, when one is added TO
the year, making what is called Leap Year.
This, however, is no: strictly correct, for it
il ascertaiued by accurate Calculations that
II solar year is exactly three hundred and
,ixty-fve days, five hours. and forty eight
minutes and 57.7 seconds: consequently, in
putting On the six hours. wc added eleven
minutes 1874 seconds in four years. This in
the course OF one hundred and ffty-eight and
i half years would amount 70 twenfy-four
hours, or = complete day. Every year the
lumber o! which is diyisible by four without
a remainder il a Leap year except the last
wear OF the century, which Is a Leap Year
only "heu Giv.-'he by foIT Hundred without
= remainder. Thus the year 1900 will not
uc Lap Year.
Tie Roman year originally had Dut ten
months a, may be seen In The meaning Of
the name December, which * Tent h-mouth
March WAS the first Inouti. ut TIE ear in the
time Of Romuu., and December wa- the
las; b.. MuFa PympiiiEs, who knew as
,ronomy better, added January aud Febru-
aTy.
"waiis g9'ae'. great iouaasT IT sde he time hi,
care.
-
Bu: Euma. better skiIl'd In n.'rol!o-e.
To Romulus months aGj0ir 1.-Two more"
The Egyptians wern the frs. VINO approx
irlated To The real length of the year. which
they made 10 consist Of threa huudred and
si1ty days. They afterwards al.dei hye
davs as pas done by l'ha,es, one Of tie seven
wise men n The Greeks. The jews. Syr-
iaus Etaiopians. Romans, Per-aus aud Arabs
all had wears Of different lengths. The day
On which the year commences is a'-o differ
en-. in different countries, Du: ia I'll it is
held in gres: vcneration. The Jewish lis
torical year Commences with he new moon
near the yernal equinox March 90. and the
civil year with the new NOM near the au-
tumnal equinox. They reckon their years
bv moons or lunatiops. TIE Nahomedans
begin their year on the Jay wi.en the sun en-
,ers Aries; the Persians in the month which
answers to our June :Ae Chinese and IN
disns with the first ne~ moon which happens
IN March; and the McIicans on the 23d Of
February, at which time the verdure in their
country tegins ,n appear. William the Con-
aueror having been crowned on the frs; dav
of January, gave occasion to the English to
tegin their year gn that DAY, in order 10 make
~. - l. L.
in their history.
Though the historical year began in Eug-
lard On the festival Of the Circumcision, Or 1t
Of Jauuary, on which day the German and
Italian year begins, ye, tie evil Or legal year
did hot cour,=uee till the day Of the Annun-
cia,ion IL the Virgin, the 25th Of March.
The part Of the year between these terms vas
usually expressed in both these ways: either
1882 or ia 70. But BY the altering the
style. the civil year now begins with the Isl
Of January. The old style followed the Ju-
lan method Of computing the year, or the
calendar established By julius Cs,sar, IN which
every fourth year consists Of three hundred
and siIty-sjK days, and the other wears u
three hundred snr siIty-fYe. This Julian
arrangement Of time makes, a. we have seen
eleven minutes and sone seconds in veal
too much. Pope Gregory XIII. reformed
the calendar BY retrenching ten days in DC.
tober, 1852, ia order To bring back tie yer
nal equinox 10 the same day as a: tie Coun
ell OF Nice, a. ID. 32J. This reformation
sas adopted By act of Parliament Ia Gres
Britain in I75l, By which eleven days il
September, 1852, were retrenched, and ia,
third day was reckoned the fourteenth. Tai
mode OF reckoning is called new style. SVcl
was the fauaticisn Of the Pari:ans aud othe
Pro.es,auts at that time. that oecause the re
form ernz1ated from the Pope they dsnounee'
tire change. and said eleven days we're SOLE
from them. Many u the present time keel
"old Christmas day" or ;Ee d~y On whie
the festival would fall il the s.yls was 10
altered.