Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1860-06-02
LEAP YEAR.

The year 1860 is "leap year," and consists of
three hundred and sixty five days. one day being
added to TO the shortest month"; February,
which will therefore have twenty y-nine days this
year. Leap year occurs every fourth year, and
is so called because it leaps over day more
than does any other year. 1t is also called
bsextile-from the Latin bis, twice, and sert,ls,
sixth-meaning that the sixth of the calends of
March corresponding to the 24th of February
was reckoned twice every fourth year by the
INTERPOLATION of day.
The necessity for leap year arises from the
fact that the solar year does not correspond ex-
actly with the civil year, in consequence of its
not ending exactly with given day, but with
fraction of day. If il were not for this ar
rangement Christmas in course of time would
be in midsummer and forth of July in the
depth of winter
The true year consiss of the time it takes
for the earth to make one revolution around
the sun, which is determined by its coming back
to the same point in the zodiac from which it
started, and this is accomplished in three hun
dred and sixty-five days and nearly six hours !;
hut, as the calendar must consist of complete
days, these six hours are omitted, and in four
years they make up whole day, which one is
added to the year, making what is called leap
year. This, however, is not strictly correct I;
a solar year is exactly 365 DAYS, 8 hours, 4S
minutes, and 577 seconds; consequently, in
putting on the six hours, we add IL minutes
Il seconds i'll four years. This in the course
of los l-2 years would amount to twenty four
hours, or a complete day. Every year the
number of which is dvisible by four without a
remainder is leap year, except the last year of
the century, which is leap year only when di.
visible by 400 without a remainder Thus the
year 1900 will not be leap year.
| The Roman year originally had but ten
months, as'may be seen in the meaning of the
name Decor Der, which is ''tenth month"
March was the first month of the year IN the
time of Romllus, and December was the last
but Numa Pompilius, who knew astronomy
better, added January and February.
While Rome's great founder made the times his care,
Ten months he chose to constitute the year;
But Numus, better skilled in astral lore,
10 Romulus months adjoned two more.
The Egyptians were the first who approxi-
mated to the real length of the year, which they
made to consist of three hundred and sixty
days. Afterwards they added five days. as was
done by Thales, one of the seven wise men OF
the Greeks, Jews. .Syrians, Ethiopians, Romans,
Persians, and Arabs all had years of different
lengths.
The day on which the year commences is al
so different in different countries, but in all il
is held in great veneration. The Jewish his
torical year commences with the new moon near
the verna equinox, March 22,) and the civil
year with the new moon near the autumnal
equinox. The Mahomedans began their year
ON the day when the sun enters Aries 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 February, at which
time the verdure in that country began to ap-
pear. William the Conqueror, having been
crowned on the first day of January, gave oc-
casion to the English to begin their year on that
day, in order to make it correspond with the
most remarkable date in their history.
Though the historical years began in England
on the festival of the Circumcision, or the first
day of January, on which day the German and
Italian year begins, yet the civil or legal year
did not commence till the day of the Annuncia-
ton of the Virgin, the 25th of March. The
part of the year between those terms was
usually expressed in both these ways: either
174S-9 or ia SO. But by the act altering
the style the civil year now begins with the lst
of January. The old style followed the Julian
method of computing the year by the calendar
established by julius Caesar, in which every
fourth year consists of 366 days and the other
years Of 365. This Julian arrangement of time
makes, as we have seen, eleven minutes and
some seconds in year too much. Pope Greg
ory XIII. reformed the calendar by retrenohing