The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1904-04-06

ulsr superstition that it was invented
somewhere in the dark ages for
the express purpose Of giving women
a chance to propose. And as it takes
woman longer to make up her mind
to thing than it does man, that the
extra day in February was added to
give her that much extra time. And,
so far as the ordinary run Of humanity
goes-except the man who has note
to pay on March THAT explanation
covers all the difference that ''leap"
year makes to the world. anyh ow.
But it is interesting to trace back
the history of this queer fact chat one
year in four has an extra day-except
when it doesn't. It is generally be-
lieved that Pope Gregory XIII had
the fixing Of this matter, and that leap
year goes back only to that time
which is great mistake. Leap year
dates really to the time Of one julius
Caesar, who, though he died young,
was 8 pretty smart man, who left lis
impress on pretty much everything,
including Great Britain. Give Julius
Caesar credit, therefore, ye proposing
maids, for permitting you the chance
and the extra day. Julius did other
things in the calendar, too-like leav-
ing his name attached to the seventh
month, for instance but they are
neither here nor there now.
The history oe marking periods of
time is coinoident with man, so far as
can be reokoned. The first primitive
divisions were into day and night, and
light and darkness regulated them.
Some days were longer than others,
and some were short, but it figured
out that from one sunset to another
was "a hours-though they didn't
have hours then-and that was all that
was needed.
Then people wanted longer divjs-
ions, and they found that the moon
was faisaJ regular in its orbit around
the edrth-though they didn't know
that it oircled the globe in those days,
but thought the reverse was true
and they measured their time by it,
giving them months of 293 days.
Then the seasons came into the calen-
dar, and for a long time they were
used to make longer divisions. Still
longer periods were formed by groups
of these months, which, figured abouS
dozen, made one round Of the sun.
And for the non-caloulating minds Of
those times, these divisions did fairly
we'll.
Finally, however, it was seen that
this rough way of reckoning didn't
put the seasons in the right place as
the years went on. For spring was
whore summer ought to be, and when
it was time for autumn, winter was
just coming in. Something was wrong,
and new methods had to be applied.
And thus was born the 'leap" pro-
cess.
The Jews and the Greeks, the civ
ilized peoples of that time, had differ.
ent ways Of fixing things when they
got too far away. The Jews put in a
leap month seven times in every nine
teen years; the Greeks three in every
eight. The Romans came along later
with . ten-year month, but, believing
IL odd numbers, they finally worked it
up to 35s days. To make it even they
added January and February, and thus
got II months. But this didn't work
ont right, either, and the. pontiffs,.
Who ssn the calendar, interlarded oc-
casional odd periods Of time, fixing
them where they would do themselves
the most good, and tleir enemies the
most harm keeping themselves in
snap positions that much longer, and
making debtors time to them that
much shorter. Which shows that
graft is nothing new. And thus by
the time that Julius Caesar took
charge Of the whole mundane world,
summer was ambling along about the
middle OF October, and things were
badly mixed generally. :.
Along with dividing Gaul into three
4 parts, slaughtering the barbarians,
and running for emperor, Caesar un-
- }
dertook the job Of fixing calendar.
he employed one Sosigenes, an Alex
andrian astronomer, and together they
worked out q plan which, in the main,
holds today. He made what now is
reckoned as 46 3. @. TO consist Of .455
sd=ccss, whi5ht pnt matters right, and
then, 20 avoid further trouble, he or.
Bdained that the year should have s65
H. 8 SAf