The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1876-04-04

out at elbows as 70 the past the present,
and the future. Pope Gregory XIII. had
the whole calendar -ciyal and lunar-re-
formed. So far as the tablesoi the moon
are concerned, due credit should be given
to Luigi Lillio, u distinguished Neapoii-
tan Doctor, who paued the way BY pro-
found suggestions. Pere Christian Clay
ius, an eminent Jesuit, executed me
work, Ialande, the astronomer, gave u
the finishing touches, and calculated tn It
Il would serve till A. D. 5000 when the
church or the almanac.nakefS VIII DC
obliged to explain why it Is that tne epi
act for that year two numbers inSseau
NJ one. Three classes Of difficulties beset
Father CIsyius, and he was obliged to de-
land b;s work in voluminous Latin treat
;.ss against such sharp critics as joseph
c".,;1sr First, .there were the mathe-
mo,icsl errors Of the existing calendar,
~G;cb had been accumlating for fifteen
centuries; second, there were the astrono-
mical considerations. connected with the
moons Irregularities; third, there were
certain ecclesiastical features 10 be look
ed after, chief of which was to prevent
Easter Sunday from falling on the day OF
the Jewish Passover. The third class Of
considerations was deemed the most i'm
portant; the second, the least. Hence the
calendar was purposely devised to give
for It's new moons date later than the
actual new moons; one day was added
throughout TO the mean moons date, and
fractions OF days (which had to be count
ed a. whole days were used further TO adj
vance the date. Consequently the new
moon Of the calendar is usually two days,
and sometimes three, later In date than
the astronomical new moon. Making
this allowance, however, the calendar Is a
marvel Of accuracy.
All things considered, the arrangement
is not so absurd as it may at first sight
appear. The reverend fathers Of the
Church, who battled over the question in
the fourth century, had no means for as
certainIng the astronomical dates when
the moon was new. The new moon when
first seen was doubtless the new moon 10
them, and nothing more. The 18th day
Of the visible moon brought them very
near to the middle Of the lunation, or
the full moon, since the difference between
sight and science is in this case usually
about two days. So that the prayer-Book
table and the epact really give with toll
cradle correctness the date Of the visible
new moon. But with all the care that
was taken to prevent Easter day from
falling on the Jewish Passover, that cir
cumstance has happened at least twice
since the calendar was adopted. Nor is
this strange II we consider what must be
the difference in the periods Of a body
whose distance varies at times by one.
seventh. As a fair instance this very
moon Of the present may be cited. From
new moon to full, its actual period is Is
days, 90 hours, p minutes; while the
other half OF the lunation-from full to
next new moon-will be 10 days, II
hours, 25 minutes; the difference between
the halves Of the lunation being II days,
Thus the full moon comes about 10 hours
before the average time for full, counting
from new moon; and this has had much
to do with misleading people who calcu-
lated the date of Easter day from the
full moon. In short it is the moon, and
not the calandar or the almanac, that is
| irregular,