New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1904-11-27

in old tomb. and is supposed to have been
buried with its Egyptian owner when he was con-
verted into mummy for future explorers to dig
up and dissect in the interest Of science and tera-
ture.
Next after this in point of age among the existing
specimens of ancient ananacs are some composed
in the fourth century. They Roman Church
calendars giving the names of the saints and other
religious information The Baltic nations which
were not versed in papyrus making. had calendars
engraved axe helves. walking sticks and other
articles of personal The days were notched
with a broad mark for Sunday. and the saints days
symbolized In various devices such as a harp
for St. David. a gridron for st. Lawrence. a
lovers knot for st. Valentine and on. The
Saxon almanacs are numerous, and contain histori-
cal well as ecclesiastical entries In these GU
rious records all the changes Of popular belief and
taste may be traced. They prepared to meet
the current demand and to constitute a systematic
story of what took place in successive periods and
how knowledge increased with the advancing years
Porphyry states that almanacs were known to the
Egyptians before the Arabs MontfauCon has en-
graved an Egyptian calendar. They were con-
Structed by the AleNandrine Greeks about the time
Of Ptolemy. Instruments of wood or other mate
rial inscribed with various symbocal figures and
characters to serve the purposes of almanac,
were used in early times by the Northern nations,
especially the Danes, who introduced them into
England. The Anglo-Saxons calculated by the In
crease of the moon. down on square pieces of
wood. about n foot long, and these they called
Almonaught. They were also designated clogs.
bacculi-annales. primstocks. primstares. prim-
staffs runstocks. etc. The celebrated astronomer
Purbach. PuerbaCh, published n series of al
between 1870 and 146l. but the first printed
was in 1881 Muller. or Regomontanus. published
the first that contained ecpses. about 1475 The
first almanac printed in England was by Wynkyn
de Wode. in the reign OF Henry VII James /
granted the exclusive right of printing almanacs
by letters patent to the two universities and the
Stationers Company. This declared to be lille
gal. by a decision of the Court OF Common Pleas in
IT'S Moore's Almanac first printed in 1898
The first almanac printed in Scotland was in 1917
duty was first levied on almanacs in NO. but the
same abolished in 1894
The word year, II exists in the Teutonic Ian
guages. is said to have It's origin in the word Yra
which In the Swedish language. means ring, and
is perhaps. connected with the Latin gyrus-a cir
Gle formed by wheeling round. The ancients
marked the return OF the seasons by the rainy and
the dry seasons. or summer and winter: also by
the migration of the different kinds Of birds. The
rising and setting OF certain fixed also served
indicate the different portions of the year thus
the rising of the Pleades in the evening showed the
approach OF winter. and the heliacal rising Of
Sirius. which the Egyptians called Sothis coin
cded with the rising Of the Nile. Hesiod directs
the husbandnen when to plough and when TO reap
by the setting of the Peiades. BY such rude OBJ
servations it was afterward determined that the
year consisted of at least S65 days Herodotus says
that the Egyptians claimed the honor of discover
asserted they learned from the stars The Jews
also had a similar reckoning at very early period
By this mode OF computation the seasons would
not return exactly 10 the same months of the civil
year. but, instead of being fixed certain months.
after a lapse of time winter would be found in the
autumn months and summer in the spring months.
The Roman calendar. a term derived from the
Latin calendR, very rude in structure until
the time of Julius Caesar. The ancient Roman
reformation OF Numa PompiliuS. was made 10 N
sst of twelve. When Caesar became dictator, by
the advice of SOsigencS, al eminent AleXandrian
astronomer and mathematician he adopted the
mode OF characterization of )ne day in four years.
which we still retain. This mode OF computing
time is called old style and the calendar contain
ing the account OF time according to the Julian
method of reckoning is called the Julian calendar,
which came into use on January l, b. c. Is. The
the Julian calendar was fist instituted to the
time of Christ; l. g. forty-sx years before Christ
The day OF new moon Immediately following the
made the first of January Of the first year Of
julius Cesar December % o. his forty-fitth year
is considered as the date OF Christs nativity. and
counted the first OF the Christian The year
preceding the birth OF Christ is called by chronoio-
mers II Is called the year IN order TO lntroduGe
the new system as established by Julius Caesar IL
was necessary TO enact that the previous year, l.
O.. Is Is. T., should consist OF AS days, for when
reason that year was called year OF contu-
sion" but by Macrobius. more appropriately. the
last year OF confusion The Gregorian year or
calendar established by Pope Gregory XIII
In 1852 for the purpose OF correcting the errors or
the Julian calendar. To this end Pope Gregory;
his time ordained that day should be added 10
the month or February once In every four years;
and that the Tooth year OF the Christian era ana i
every fourth century thereafter should be a bi-
sextile leap year thus every year Invisible BY
four without remainder should contain $50 days
maipder should contain only 365 days. BY this rule
the error amounts 70 less than day IN sou "a
10 NOT L. htr .