Semi-weekly Louisianian. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1871-1872, 1871-12-31

daughters apiece, parti-colored
having one cheek white and the
other black, who never saw eacf
others face, nor live above twenty.
four hours"
The problem of Time is most diff
icult to solve all nations adopt
some particular year as chronolo.
gical basis.
Our Christians era dates from the
time when Christ was born, but was
not introduced as basis of reckon.
ing until the Sixth Century. Some
chronologists reckon the year be-
fore the birth Of Christ, while Others
compute from the actual year oul
Saviour was born.
The Romans adopt the year, and
even the day, which history assigns
as the date of the foundation OF
Rome.
A change was effected in the
calendar by the two first Caesars,
which was afterward slightly altered
and still forms the standard for
computing the length and divisions
of the year.
The Olympiads or Greek mode
depended on chronological groups,
each four years in length, and
which began in commemoration Ct
an event connected with the Olym-
pic games.
The Mohammedan era dates from
the fight Of Mohammet to Medina,
and is known as the Hegiyu or fight.
The creation of the world has
been adopted as the commencement
of a universal era,' but authorities
do not agree as to the number of
years which elapsed between that
event and the birth of Christ, there
being one hundred and forty diff
ferent computations of this interval.
The earliest calenders, as the jew
ish, the Egyptian, and the Greek,
did not place the commencement of
the year at this point, that is in
January 1t was not done till the
formation of the Roman calender,
usually attributed to the second
king, Numa Pompillius, whose reign
ended 627 B. G. Numa added two
new months to the old ten, and
called the first Januarius, in honor
of Janus, the deity supposed to pre-
side over doors, who might very ma
turally be supposed to have some
thing to do with the opening of the
year.
This deity was represented as
! man with two faces, one looking
backward and the other forward,
implying that he stood between the
old and the new year, with regard
to both,
| On New Years Day the Romans
sacrificed to Janus, a cake of new
sifted meal, with salt, incense, and
wine, and all the mechanics began
something Of their art Of trade; the
men Of letters did the same as to
books, poems, ETC., and the consuls,
though chosen before, took the
chair and entered upon their Office
this day.
The ancient Jewish year opened
with the 25th Of March, and in
England it was not until 1852 that
the first of January became the
initial day of the legal year.
In Scotland the change was made
in 1000 by a decree of James vi.
1t was effected in France in 1864,
and in Holland, Protestant Ger
many and Russia in 100, and in
Sweden in 1853.
According to Verstegan, this
month was originally called by the
Saxons, Wolf-monat, that is Wolf
month, still later, the month was
called by the same people Agae'
Yule, that is after Christmas; while
we retain the Saxon names for the
days of the week we have entirely
abandoned those Of the months.
The institution of Christmas box.
es is undoubtedly akin that Of New
Years gifts, and like it has descen
ded to US from the times OF the an
cient Romans, who at the season o