Waterbury evening Democrat., 1892-12-16

the course of the moon. The year is composed of twelve lunar months when common, and of thirteen lunar months when embolismic; and these years succeed each other in such a way that after a period of nineteen years the commencement of the Jewish year arrives a. the same epoch as the solar year. The Jewish year is therefore a lunar-solar year, and the civil year of this remarkable people, in common | with all Oriental nations, commences with the new moon of September, and the ecclesiastical year at the new moon | i'm March.
 The Egyptians, who reached high state of civilization in the dim twilight | of remote antiquity, calculated the year as consisting of three hundred and sixty days, or twelve months of thirty days In the pursuit of astrol- ogy-that vain attempt to evolve the secret of the supposed mystic connec- tion between the celestial bodies and the destiny of man-the Egyptians were unconsciously laying the ground work of the sublime science of astron- omy; and in a period of continued ob- servation they found that the year of three hundred and sixty days fell short of 8 true solar year by five days. This new year came into force and com menced on the 26th of February, TAT B. C., and this day was the beginning of the era of Nebonassar. The year of three hundred and sixty-fve days was followed for period of seven hundred and twenty-three years; but in the year 25 B. c. supplementary day was added every four years, and this year of three hundred and sixty five and one- fourth days became 8 fixed year. and was adopted by the Romans when they conquered Egypt. This year was also adopted by the Copts, and the first year ot the era of the martyrs commenced on the 29th of August, A. D. 2sA
 The Greeks, the most cultured of the nations of antiquity, were rather slow to turn their powers of observation to tho sky. They employed at 1rst-bor- rowing from the Egyptians and the | BabylonianS-the year of three hun dred and sixty days. divided into twelve months of thirty days. Each month consisted of three decades; and this is the sole example in ancient his tory of . week of ten days. Meton, of Athens, in 432 B. C., having observed the summer solstice, found that 8 period of nineteen solar years con- tained two hundred and thirty-five 1unations exactly, and that at the end of this period the sun and the moon re- turned to the same point in the heav- ems. This discovery was considered so important that an account of it was carved in letters of gold upon the tenn pie of Minerva, and hence the origin of what is generally known as the golden number. For the purposes of chronol- ogy, the Greeks counted the years by means of olympiads; the first olympiad occurred 776 B. C., and the last in the year 40 of the Christian era.
 Tho Roman year, as instituted by Numa and regulated by the moon, con sisted of three hundred and ffty-eight days, divided into twelve months of unequaled length. But this year of three hundred and fifty-five days did not correspond to the periodic retur n of the seasons, and in the time of Jul jus Cesar the Roman calendar had fallen into great disorder. To correct this confusion, Cesar sought the as. sistance of Sosigenes, distinguished astronomer of Alexandria; and it was decided that the civil year should con- sist of three hundred and sixty-five days, six hours-in other words, that there should be three consecutive years of three hundred aud slxty-five days, and that the fourth should con- tain three hundred and sixty-six days, the extra day being intercalated
 between the 23d and the 24th of Feb. ruary; and as the 24th was the sexto calendas-six days prior to the 1st o1
 March inclusive-the additional day was called bis-sexto-calendas; hence z the origin of our word bissextile. This change took place in the year A : B. C.; and to correct the disorders iu the calendar, it was necessary that the
 previous year should consist of four . hundred and forty-five days. The J ul-
 ian year is still actually followed by : the Russians, Greeks, and some Orien
 tai Christians.
 . The year as fixed by Julius Cesar be-
 ing fully eleven minutes longer than
 the true solar year. another change
 was made in the year 15s2, when Pope l; Gregory XIII. ordered that Thursday the 4th of October, 1859. should be fol
 lowed by Friday the 18th of October \ This, as it has been called, the New Style, was not adopted in England til
 the year 1752. The quarter days arc Christmas, Lady Day, Midsummer ant Michaelmas; so, when the New Style
 came into operation, these day. u were advanced, so to speak, clever
 days, and thus became the 5th of Jan
 uary. April and July, and the 10th O October-most important days in con
 nection with stock and annuity busi ness Chambers Journal
 Wonderful Work of a Watch.
 T.