Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1915-01-01

Vagarous Romantic and Sometimes Amusing Hso
Twisted ALI Out of Shape Many Times and Never
Entirely Strengthened Out.
By R. C. F.


year differed from the solar year by lts
days and fraction, and an intercalary mont
was therefore inserted every second year %.
tween the 23d and Gath Of February. Even
that surgical operation left the calendar out
of joint.
The Calendar in Politics
The pontiffs, at some time or other Wer
intrusted with the care of the calendar. aua
they mixed it up with politics. wofully. Il
was their privilege to intercalate fewer or
more days as the celestial motions might
warrant. They abused their powerl To then
belonged also the opportunity of running
political machines. When they wanted 70
prolong the term of magistracy, or hasta
the annual elections, or reward favorites
punish political foes, they simply doctored ths
calendar. Think what that would mean IN
American politics today You think oft
can't. s5
So when Caesar took up the imperial reHl
he found the calendar in a mess The wlntel
months were coming in autumn, and autumn
was summer. Something had to be dona
and Caesar did it. He abolished the moon
and decided to go entirely by the sun SO
transit gloria lunae He also abolished the
intercalary month, which after serving for
long ages as a great convenience was at
last declared public nuisance.
In making up the table of months be
callated as follows:
Thirty days hath April
June, August, October and December;
All the rest have thirty-one,
Excepting February alone,
Which hath but twenty-nne, in fine,
TIL every fourth year (they didn't call 1t leens
year them gives 1t thirty.
That was Caesars imperious way But
Augustus didn't like 1t. His vanity was hurt
Why should his month have one less des
than July? Then julius took a day from
February and gave 1t to August It may
have made Augustus feel better, but Julius
because he wanted the months OF 80 days 70
alternate with the months of 81 days had %
reduce September and November to 80 dala
and give the extras to October and Deem
ber. And after all that fuss by the great
Caesar, the calendar question wasn't settled
1t kept bobbing up for centuries, and still
bobs.
The most important bob was in 1882, and
Pope Gregory XIII attended to it, The Jullan
calendar had prevailed among the Chris
tian nations until the accumulation of error
amounted to ten complete days. The tins
of the celebration of Easter, and hence OF AZ
the movable feasts. had been unfxed. POPS
Gregory taking advice of the astronpmeE
Clavius ordained that tn days should hp
deducted from the current year Accordinall
the 5th of October became the 18th, The
Julian calendar was further amended by e.
erecting that il q year ended IN two epheraA
should not be counted leap-year unless d.
visible by four hundred instead Of four
Why Worry
Caesars reckoning had dlsarranged mat
ters because he assumed a year Of s6bh days
whereas the correct figures ara sss days
hours, 4s minutes 4s seconds or II minutes
IA seconds less, What difference just 4
minutes IA seconds made. while generations
lived and died Under Gregory's maths
MATES there will be one day unaooounted q
about 1900 A. ID.
In some countries. however, even In I'd
rope. the Pope's mandate was not observed
Some OF the Low Countries didn't set around
TO change until the 18th century. and then
they had II days to subtract. In Great Brit
ain after commerce ana people had undff
gone great Inconvenience In foreign dealinet
Parliament equalized the style OF regkoniff
with the usage OF other leading Europeei
nations Russia Greece and Tuscany. hoe
ever still stick TO the old way, and ara nof
10 days ahead OF US. or behind is. aecordin
as you Judge by the calendar or by the sul
OF course, in different parts of the Horl
there are numerous calendar variations If
Chinese New Years for instance, comes
our February Is. The Jewish system e
study in interealarlcs
We-most Europeans ana Americans a.
like the ancient Egyptians Ia rees4diae n|ss
night az the beginning Of day Ths aalfoaa
msrs, after the exampie o PioIsmy and f4
Broadway celebFania begin t 81 n5on. 1hs
modern Greeks Ike the apelent chalaaanz
choose sunrise: ths Isallans ana bohenIsn
suppose ne dsr e begin al ssnses Home
1era g pc 'a century 6 haf - ola
aitls'o4z g iaa Day except Tanf|ze san
y" aIzas cas .srh