The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1935-12-27
NEW YEAR RELIC OF SAXON
DAYS

The New Year begins precisely at
midnight, and almost everyone now
adays sees the New Year in by gen
eral festivities and many good reso-
lutions, which are promptly forgot
ten on January 2.
The festivities marking this oc-
casion, says Hereward Darlington,
scientist and author, are very anci-
emit, and in old Saxon days /. was the
custom to partake Of bowl of spiced
ale, which was passed around with
the expression "Wasshael," which
meant ito your health " Hence the
origin of the Wassail, or Wassel
bowl.
We now keep New Year on Janu-
airy the first; but the Chinese, Jews,
Turks and many others do not OBJ
serve it on this day. Even Christian
countries have not always SO observ-
ed it; the Romans began the year
with the March equinox. The later
Teutonic nations for a long time
continued counting the beginning of
the year from March rs.
1t was only in 1868, by an edict
of Charles TX, that France changed
the time of the beginning of the year
to January L. In 1900 Scotland
made the same change, and England
only did so in 1852, when the Greg
orian system was adopted there. 1t
will thus be seen that the New Year,
observed on January l. is relatively
new, though we are accustomed to
think that it dates back from time
immemorial.
1t was julius Caesar, in the year
46 B. c., who first reformed the
calendar-aided by the Egyptian
astronomer Sosigenes. He made it
few minutes too long, and second
correction was necessary. Pope
Gregory made certain changes in
1882, A. D., and additional minor
changes were made later on, from
the "old style" to the new style"
calendar" We now employ the new
style.
After the French revolution
France decided to set up an entirely
new order of things. A new calen-
dar was made. The Christian era
was wiped out, and was replaced by
the new French era, beginning Sep
TENDER %, 1892. Instead of our
week of seven days, week of ten
days was established--in accordance
with the decimal systematic tenth
day being set aside for rest.
Instead of the neurological names
of the months, others deduced from
the prevailing seasons of the year
were substituted.
Everything was to be based upon
reason The Notre Dame was con-
verified into a Temple of Reason"
Nine. Momero, the young and beau
tiful wife of a Jacobin printer, was
chosen to represent Reason" And
so it went.
The months were chosen and given
French names which were thought to
be characteristic of them. Thus,
autumn had vintage month,
foggy month and a sleety month.
Winter, snowy month, rainy
month and a windy month. Spring,
a budding month, f1owery month
and a pasture month. Summer, a
harvest month, a hot month and a
fruit month.
Each month began somewhere be-
tween the 18th and the 22nd-ac-
cording to our reckoning. Thus the
first month of the autumn trio began
on September %, and lasted until
October FL, etc.
With the restoration of stable
government in France, this calendar
was repealed, and the usual one sub
stituted But for a time, as we have
seen, New Year day did not begin on
January 1, in France, so late as the
last century, and it does not begin
on that date in non-C Christian coun-
! tries even today!