The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1916-04-10
WHY LEAP YEARg
A Timely Chapter of Facts Astronomi,
cal and Historical.

Leap year. is the quadrennial pc
riod when the convenient but incorrect
assumptions of astronomy IN measuring
time are called off, and the false reck-
onings that the calendar has persisted
I in ever since julius Caesar 5 time are
set right, in plumb with nature.
In the very earliest times it was OBJ
served that during one period of the
year the days gradually increased in
length (using day for the period
during which the sun remains above
the horizon), and that they gradually
decreased in length for another period,
| to run the same course as before.
/ The Egyptians noted the length OF
| this period and called it 800 days.
! They observed that as the sun rose
earlier or later, it appeared at differ
/ ent points in the horizon. Let Us sup
pose that at certain day in March the
! sun rose just opposite a certain tree in
the horizon. Every day after it would
rise at a point a little farther to the
north of the tree, for about 90 days;
then its place of rising woatd for other
90 days gradually come back to the
place IN the horizon where the tree
stood.
/ 1t would then pass that point, rising
daily more and more to the south OF
the point where the tree stood, till IN
80 days more the sun would reach its
most southerlv rising point on the
horizon. Then it would begin to retro
grade. and in 365 days from the time
when the first observation was made
the sun would again appear to rise Just
opposite the tree marked on the horizon.
This gave the approximate length of
THE year, but as more accurate methods
began to be employed by the Greeks,
they noted that 800 days did not really
express the correct length of the year.
They found that on the 365th day the
sun fell little short of rising at the
place it had risen previously, and that
on the 366th dav it rose at point be-
vond it, In fact, that on the 365th day
the year was not quite done, while on
the 366th day it was more than done.
They also observed that the point at
which the sun appeared to rise on the
366th day was about three times as far
distant from the standard point on the
horizon as the point at which it had
risen on the 365th day; hence they con
icluded that 500 IA days was the cor
rect length of the year.
The Julian Calendar.
Natures year then consisted, it was
seen, of days and parts of a day, while
our year must consist of whole days. If
we call our year 800 days, then 1t will
be six hours short; if we call it 366
DAYS, it will be IS hours too long.
In the former case we should gain on
nature one day in four years. In the
latter we should lose three days in four
wears In either case it would come to
Ipass that by-and-by January would be
The midsummer month, and June fall
in midwinter.
As this would be perplexing and
would gradually shift everything from
its true anniversary, the Romans
fell on the expedient of making three
short years and long one-that is
three years of 365 days and one Of 36f
days.
This was adopted by the Romans il
the time of Julius Caesar as the correct
reckoning, under the name of "ThC
Julian Calendar - To dispose of the of
$ day, the oath of February was double
/ every fourth year, and the day so inter
' posed was called bisextile. BY this in
1 tercaIation the calendar and seasons
r were kept somewhat in harmony
We adopt another method and add ;
: day to February every fourth year
d whereas in the intervening years - Feb
s ruary alone has 2S.
= The Gregorian Calendar.
0 In process of time however, it wa
( discovered that the year had not beel
correctly measured, and that therefor