<1r>

The Iulian year now in use is very irregular, February has but 28 days & ye other months 30 & 31 days wthout any regular order or reason for the irregularity.

The best form of ye solar year is to divide it {into} by ye 4 cardinal periods of ye Equinoxes & Solstices into 4 {eq} quarters, so that ye quarters of ye yeare may begin at ye Equinoxes & Solstices as they ought to do, & then to divide every quarter into 3 equal months wch will be done by making the six winter months to consist of 30 days each & ye six summer months to consist of 31 days each in excepting the leap year & one of them (suppose ye last) to have but 30 days in excepting one of ym (suppose ye last) wch in ye leap year shall have 31 days in ye other thre years but \only/ 30 days. /or p \And/ At ye end of every hundred years {illeg} omit the intercalary day in ye leap year excepting at at ye end of every five hundred years. For this rule is exacter then ye Gregorian of omitting it at ye end of every hundred years excepting at ye end of every 400 years. And this recconing by five hundreds & thousands of years is rounder then \the other/ by four, hundreds & eight hundreds & twelve hundreds. And this I take to be the \simplest & in all respects the/ best form of ye civil year that can be thought of. {illeg} Certainly tis much better then ye

The best form And this is all ye reformation of ye year wch need be made at first

If As for the Ecclesiastical year if the fixt Feasts be \still/ placed on the same days of the months as in ye Iulian year \of this New Year as in the Iulian year,/ they will come nearer to ye truth then they do at prsent. For they are now become about 14 days later in respect in this solstitial year then they were in the two later since \then they were in/ ye first century \in respect of summer & winter/ whereas in ye|this| new year they will will be but \only/ eight or 9 days too sooner. So that the Civil year \Calendar/ will be amend amended \almost half in half/ by this new year without altering \translating/ the fixt feasts to other days of the months.

But if it \may/ be allowed to translate them to other days of the months so as to bring them nearer to ye places where they were in ye first Century in respect of Summer and Winter the Calendar may be still amended as follows. Let

1. Let Lady day \(the first day of the Ecclesiastical year)/ be removed from ye 25t of March to ye first of Aprill & the Ecclesiastical year will begin with at ye Equinox & on the first day of the month as it ought to do, whereas in ye present Iulian year it begins neither at ye at ye Equinox nor on the first day of {ye} \the/ month but on ye 25t of March wch & 16 days after ye Equinox.

2. Let Michaelmas be removed from the 29 of September to ye 1st of October {illeg} & these two principal days of payment will fall on the Equinoxes & on the first days of the mont \months wch begin the/ spring & autumnal quarters of the year wch is very proper & {illeg} ready for recconing, & also more just for contracts. Let For ye summer half year \is/ eleven days more \longer/ then ye winter half year in ye vugar {sic} Calendar but in {illeg} this new one the difference will be but 5 days.

3 Let \In like manner/ To regulate ye \days of/ quarterly payments let yt St Iohn Baptists {day} be removed from ye four & twentith {sic} day of 24th of Iune to ye 1st of Iuly & Christmas \day/ from ye 25t of December to ye 1st or 2d of Ianuary or if {illeg} \perhaps/ to ye 2d yt it may be distinguished from New years day.

Thus will the year become fitter for civil uses & also the festivals placed where reduced very nearly t within a day or two to the places where they were in ye first Century in respect of summer & winter: whereas they now err 14 days from those places. And the like correction may be made <1v> {to} all the other \unmoveable/ Festivals, by setting them 7 or 8 days later.

Easter is determined by making it the first Sunday after ye first full Moon after \Lady day or/ the first of April. And the rest of ye moveable Feasts are determined by their distance from Easter as in ye Vulgar Calendar.

The \old/ Rule for finding Ester {sic} by the Prime & Dominical Letter is to be corrected at ye end of every Century \hundred or two hundred years/ by Ecclesiastical authority & so is the Rule for finding the new Moon by the Epact in ye margin of ye Calendar, & wth such correction both Rules may {illeg} be retained for ever.

[Editorial Note 1] <2v>

Ianuary

 1 9 New years d. 2 10 3 11 Christmas 4 12 St Stephen 5 13 St Iohn 6 14 St Innocents 7 15 8 16 9 17 10 18 Circumcision 11 19 12 20 13 21 Twelft d. 14 22 15 23 16 24 17 25 18 26 19 27 20 28 21 29 22 30 23 31 24 1 Ian 25 2 26 3 27 4 28 5 29 6 30 7

February

 1 8 2 8 3 10 4 11 Convers S. Paul 5 12 6 13 7 14 8 15 9 16 10 17 11 18 12 19 Candlemas 13 20 14 21 15 22 16 23 17 24 18 25 19 26 20 27 21 28 22 29 23 30 24 31 25 1 Feb 26 2 27 3 28 4 29 5 30 6

March

 1 7 2 8 3 9 4 10 S. Matthias 5 11 6 12 7 13 8 14 9 15 10 16 11 17 12 18 13 19 14 20 15 21 16 22 17 23 18 24 19 25 20 26 21 27 22 28 23 1 March 24 2 25 3 26 4 27 5 28 6 29 7 30 8

April

 1 9 2 10 3 11 Lady day 4 12 5 13 6 14 7 15 8 16 9 17 10 18 11 19 12 20 13 21 14 22 15 23 16 24 17 25 18 26 19 27 20 28 21 29 22 30 23 31 24 1 Apr 25 2 26 3 27 4 28 5 29 6 30 7 31 8

May

 1 9 2 10 3 11 S. Mark 4 12 5 13 6 14 7 15 8 16 9 17 Phil. & Iac. 10 18 11 19 12 20 13 21 14 22 15 23 16 24 17 25 18 26 19 27 20 28 21 29 22 30 23 1 May 24 2 25 3 26 4 27 5 28 6 29 7 30 8 31 9

Iune

 1 10 2 11 3 12 4 13 5 14 6 15 7 16 8 17 9 18 10 19 11 20 12 21 13 22 14 23 15 24 16 25 17 26 18 27 19 28 S Barnabas 20 29 21 30 22 31 23 1 Iune 24 2 25 3 26 4 27 5 28 6 29 7 30 8 31 9
<2r>

Iuly

 1 10 Iune. Iohn Bapt 2 11 3 12 4 13 5 14 6 15 Pet & Paul 7 16 8 17 9 18 10 19 11 20 12 21 13 22 14 23 15 24 16 25 17 26 18 27 19 28 20 29 21 30 22 {illeg} 1 Iuly 23 2 24 3 25 4 26 5 Dog days beg. 27 6 28 7 29 8 30 9 31 10

Iuly|August|

 1 11 S Iames 2 12 3 13 4 14 5 15 6 16 7 17 8 18 9 19 Lammas 10 20 11 21 12 22 13 23 14 24 15 25 16 26 17 27 18 28 19 29 20 30 21 31 22 1 Aug 23 2 24 3 25 4 26 5 27 6 28 7 29 8 30 9 31 10 S. Bartholo.

Septemb.

 1 11 2 12 3 13 4 14 5 15 6 16 7 17 8 18 9 19 10 20 11 21 12 22 13 23 14 24 15 25 16 26 17 27 18 28 19 29 20 30 21 31 22 1 Sept 23 2 24 3 25 4 26 5 27 6 28 7 S. Matthew 29 8 30 9 *

Octob.

 1 10 2 11 3 12 4 13 5 14 6 15 S. Mich. 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 29 21 30 22 1 Octob 23 2 24 3 25 4 S. Luke 26 5 27 6 28 7 29 8 30 9

Novemb.

 1 10 Oct 2 11 3 12 4 13 5 14 St Iude 6 15 7 16 8 17 9 18 All Saints 10 19 11 20 12 21 13 22 Pouder Treason 14 23 15 24 16 25 17 26 18 27 19 28 20 29 21 30 22 31 23 1 Novemb. 24 2 25 3 26 4 27 5 28 6 29 7 30 8

Decemb

 1 9 2 10 3 11 4 12 5 13 6 14 7 15 8 16 S. Andrew 9 17 10 18 11 19 12 20 13 21 14 22 15 23 16 24 17 25 18 26 19 27 20 28 21 29 22 30 23 1 Dec 24 2 25 3 26 4 27 5 28 6 29 7 S. Thomas 30 8
[Editorial Note 2] <3v>

Make Ian 1 1701 the 2d day of the first month of the second cycle

Or make Decem 31 1700 the first day of ye first month of ye second cycle.

Or if the 1st & last cycle have 17 months & ye middlemost 15, make Decemb 31 1700 the first day of ye great cycle of 49 months.

NB. {illeg} Anno 1780 Mar 20 st. n. hor. 16 48′ post med noctem Luna \media/ fuit plena et hora 10$\frac{3}{4}$ circiter Luna plena \apparens/ fuit plena. Lit. Domin B. A. Epact 29 Aur. num. 14 Pascha Mar 26 \juxta cal Greg/. Rectius Luna plena Apr. 19. 5h post med. noct Pasch Apr 23 st. vetero n.

Item anno 1867. Aur num 6. Epact 1. Luna media plena Mar 20. 14h 49′ et iterum Apr 19. 3h. 33′. Litera Dominica F. Pascha Ap. 21. Had ye Dominical letter been D ye Pascha would have been on ye new moon Apr 219.

<4r>

The only feasts in the beginning till ye reign of Trajan were ye Lds day, Easter & Whitsonday. |See| Origen l 8 cont. Cels. Christmas began to be celebrated in divers places about ye year 190 (Theophilus Cæsariensis in epist. paschal.

On cer The Martyrs began to be commemorated on their passiō days about ye year 170 & these days at length {illeg} were celebrated as Feasts. T by ye institution of Constantine ye great Euseb. in vit. Const. l. 4 who also instituted ye observation of friday. Euseb. ib. The heathen Feasts turned into ye Christiā Theodoret l 8 de martyribus & Greg. M. l 9 cap 71 citante Hospin. De Origin. Christ. Fest. p 15.

The Greeks celebrated ye Epiphany or baptism of Christ on ye same day wth his birth, \the latines on Ian 6/ Hospin ad Ian 6.

Timothy \martyred/ on Ian 24. Pauli Conversio Ian 25. The burning of lights on Candlemas day \Feb 2/ taken from ye sacra of Ceres seeking her daughter Proserpina wth lighted torches. Feb 1 The Bacchinal rights turned into Christian carnivals in ye 3 first days of ye q|Q|uinquagesima or week before Lent. Matthias Feb. 24. Festū annunciationis Mariæ Mart. 25. St Mark |marty\red/| Apr. 25. The Greeks celebrated \to all ye Apostles/ ye feast of Peter & Paul to all ye Apostles, that \Iun 29/ the Latines yt of Philip & Iames \May 1./ At length the day is left Phil. & Iames alone. Quadratus May 26. Nativity of Iohn Baptist Iune 24. Peter & Paul on Iune 29 on wch day ye Heathens celebrated ye feast of Hercules & ye Muses. Iuly 25 St Iames. Aug. 24 St Bartholomew Sept 21 St Matthew. Sept 25 Cleopas. Sept 25 St Michael & all angels. Octob 18 St Luke. Octob 28 Simon & Iude. Novemb. 28 Adventus Domini. Nov. 30 St Andrew

[Editorial Note 3] <5v>

 Guns – Soleil Roial Count Tourville 104 120 106 L'Ambitieux Chevalier de Villette Vice Admiral of ye Navy 104 96 – L'Admirable Monsieur Beaujeu 90 64 90 La Magnifique Mr Cottologon Rere Ad. of the blue 76 76 – Le Sr Philippe Mr Infreville 76 80 84 – Le Conquerant Du Magnon 76 66 84 Le Triomphant Mr Bellemont 74 76 – Le Tonnant Mr De Septime 80 70 – Le Terrible mr Septvilla 80 72 76 – L'Amiable Mr Du Rale 68 50 68 – Le Fier Mr Larsethois 68 70 76 – Le Glorieux Le Ch. de Chateaumorant 60 66 64 Le Serieux Mr Bernier 60 64 Le Trident Mr Monteaud 56 52 – Le Prince Mr Bagneux 60 50 60 – Le Sanspareil Mr Fierille 60 70 60

Arrogant

Invincible

Strong

[Editorial Note 1] Folio 2 is written upside down and runs backwards from f. 2v to f. 2r.

[Editorial Note 2] A series of very rough draft tables and calculations, occupying f. 3r and part of f. 3v, is here omitted from the transcript.

[Editorial Note 3] Folios 4v and 5r are blank.