Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1893-01-12
THE CALENDARS.
A History of tho Evolution OF the
Solar Year.

I
From the most casual glance at a
planisphere, or celestial globe, one is
led to associate the noble and subj me
science Of astronomy with shepherd
life. In the pastures of the newly.cre-
ated world the first human beings had
very little society, and all they saw
from day TO day was their focks graz
ing and frisking about them. There
were several signs, however, by means
OF which, II they were only observant,
they could have roughly calculated the
flight of time. Thus the departure OF
the birds in the autumn and the fall OF
the leaves warned them of the approach
Of winter. and fixed an epoch recur-
ring with periodic regularity; but in
their wanderings in search of new
pastures, the necessity of an uncrring
guide became of paramount inn
portance, and naturally the heavenly
bodies came to be adopted as a great
compass OF wondrous directing and
alternating machine, fixing the regu-
lar periodic flow of time. Thus the
heliacal rising OF one certain star her.
aided the advent of the shearing season,
while the appearance Of the pleiades in
the east preluded the seedtime; and
thus two dates Of the utmost impor-
tance to a primitive and pastoral people
came to be fixed And as in this sim
pie astronomy the shepherds traced
the annals of the stars among their
flocks and herds, 10 in like manner
they traced the history of their Aocks
among the stars.
Thus the course of the sun came to
lie amid sheepfolds and their surround
ings. At one time of the year the 20
diacal constellation Taurus the bull,
the lord of the herd, marked where
"thc father OF the day" was located.
At another time the ram, the master
Of the fold, served to designate his po-
sition.
The lion, the terror OF hcrdsmeu, was
also placed in the sky, together with
the Dire AIDED scorpion, and besides these
concomitants Of the life q shepherd,
he placed likewise above him still dear
err associations, such as the children of
his household, Gemini; the virgin, Vir-
go; the ear Of corn, Spica Virgins; and
his instruments OF huSbandry, the pillow
and the sickle.
The best possible proof Of how far
the stars had entered into the life of
man may be found in the worship of
the Sabeans OF antiquity, who adored
the starry hosts as infinite God. But
this epoch OF mystery evidently pre-.
coded the dawn of observation, and the
most important period in connection
with the subject OF time-meusuring
commenced when men began to turn
the celestial sphere into a mighty rus
tic habitation, modelled on the basis of
their own immediate surroundings.
Even the dog, the type Of watchful-
ness, was translated to the heavens;
the bright star Sirius, whose hcliacal
rising in the days of ancient Egypt pre-
saged the overlooking of the Nile, a
periodic event of the greatest national
Importance.
Thus, from the earliest times the
heavenly bodies in their seasons have
been regarded as grand time-measur-
ers; but long before the stars had been
observed for astrological or other pur-
. poses the sun and moon, more intimate
ly connected with mans existence, came
. to be regarded as time-marking ma
: chimes; and IL is on the motions of these
two celestial bodies that all calendars
. have been based.
II would be reasonably expected that
the sun, which is the great source and
supporter of life upon the earth, and
the regulator of the seasons, would be
: generally adopted al n measure Of
: time, but men were also struck by the
constant and regular return of the
phases of the moon, and from this fact
were led to use the moon as the basis
for their calendar
The Mussulman year is purely lunar
and consists Of the period embraced by
twelve revolutions Of the moon arounC
the earth, or three hundred and Fifty
: four and one-third days. The Israel
ties never adopted the solar year, moi
even when they lived so long in tn,
I land of Egypt; for we find them, 81
soon as they were settled in the prom
ised land, using the lunar montl
and the lunar year. The ancient jew
? ish year had only three hundred an;
fifty-four days; twelve days wer'
added sometimes at the end o
the year, and sometimes month o
thirty days after the month Adar, In or
der to bring 1t into agreement with tn,
solar year. But the Jewish calenda
received a reform In the fourth centur!
after the Christian era, and II Is thi
improved calendar which i3used by tn
Jews Of our day for fixing their fes
II | Nwals nud ralic,ious ro~ .... r.. II
/. extremely ingenious, and Is based o
4, the course OF the moon. The year
4 composed of twelve lunar month
when common, and of thirteen luna
u months when embolismic; and thcs
e years succeed each other In such wa
it that after a period OF nineteen year
~ the commencement OF the Jewish yea
!, arrives a. the same eposh as the sofa
20 year, The Jewish year is therefore
Is lunar-solar year, and the civil year {
h. this remarkable people, in commo
y with oil Oriental nations, commence
( with the new moon OF September, an
4. the sOOissiastiOsl yssr u tas new po0