Ms. 24A1r
Considerations about rectifying the Iulian
CKalendar
Times & seasons, according to as we learn byMoses intimates, were at first distinguistdistinguisht by yethe Sun & Moon,
a return of yethe Moon being taken for a month & a return of summer &
winter for a year recconed by returns of night & day new & full moons winter & summer. Whence the oldest years consisted of Lunar months, & where 12 months were manifestly too short, a thirteenth was added to make up the year. These months began not at yethe conjunction of yethe Luminaries but at yethe first appearance of yethe new moon wchwhich used to be between 18 & 42 hours after if yethe sky was clear. And because the new moon appeared in theat sunset evening the days of yethe Lunar months began in the evening
The just length of a summer & winter is the return of yethe Sun to yethe same
Equinox, that is 365 days & six hours, wanting about 11 minutes. And there being something more then 12 Moons in a summer & winter, & something more then 29 days in a Moon; the first ages took yethe next round numbers of 12 months to a year & 30 days to a lunar month & so made the civil year to consist of 360 days: & this was yethe roundest way of recconing & gave occasion to whence came yethe division of a circle into 360 degrees.
But this year being too short by five days & almost six hours, the Egyptians added 5 days to yethe end of it, & so made yethe year to consist of 12 full lunar months & 5 days or 365 days. And this year was in use in Egypt at least from yethe days of Amenophes or Memnon yethe grandson of Sesak Sesostris, & was seems to have binbeen received in the Assyrian & Persian Monarchies.
At length Iulius Cæsar in lieu of the six hours added a day once in four years to yethe year of 365 days & by adapting this measure to the Roman year made this Roman a new year to consisting of 12 months of various lengths without any good order or uniformity or agreemtagreement & wthwithout adjusting of the months wthwith yethe stay of yethe sun in the 12 signs; & the Senate in honour of Augustus took a day from February & added it Augustto August: & so Cæsar & yethe Senate together left us a year more deformed irregular and intricate then any either of the former the Egyptian, but better on this account that the same months keep better to yethe same seasons of the year.
And because this year is too long by about 11 minutes, that is, by a day in 166 128 years, Pope Greg. XIII about 118 years ago ordeined that three days be taken from it in 400 years by omitting the 29th of February in the end of every hundred years excepting every fourth. at yethe end of every four hundred. years And to bring the Equinox to the same 21th of March on wchwhich it fell in the time of yethe Council of Nice he took 10 days from this year whence arose the difference of 10 days between yethe old & new stiles in yethe Century wchwhich is now expiring.
Had he taken away 4 days in every 500 years & reduced the Equinox either to the 23 or 24th of March on wchwhich it fell in yethe age of Christ he would have made a better reformation.
And had Iulius Cæsar either added a day to yethe Egyptian yeare once in 4 years or divided the year into four equal quarters according to yethe four cardinal periods of the solstices & mean equinoxes & then divided every quarter into 3three months as nearly equal as he could make them, wchwhich he might have done by making the months of 30 & 31 days alternately & the last month of 31 days in leap years & 30 days in ordinary years, so that in the Leap year all yethe odd months should have 30 days & all the eaven 31, he would have made the Roman year of a regular & convenient form & well adapted to yethe motion of the sun & seasons of the year periods of summer & winter. And had he ordeined that at yethe end of every 100 years the last day of yethe leap year should be omitted excepting at yethe end of every 500 years this Iulian year might have been lasting as well as regular & just.
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But such a year is not to be set on foot unless in an universal Monarchy. The question is now whether yethe old stile should be retained in conformity with antiquity or the new received in conformity with the nations abroad. Which ought to be done I undertake not to determin but if yethe new stile be resolved upon I beleive it will be best to receive it without the Gregorian Kalendar by an Act of Parliamtment to this purpose
1 That For avoyding the difference of recconing by yethe new & old stile wchwhich is troublesome in commerce between this & other nations, [The month of May – wchwhich shall be in the year of orour Lord 1700 shall have but 20 days & yethe month of Iune shall begin upon yethe day next after yethe 20th day of May] wthwithout any alteration in]it may be enacted that in the yeare of orour LdLord the month of 11 days of the Month of wchwhich follow next after the day of shall immediately succeed the day of without any alteration in the days of the week or in the form of the Iulian Kalendar [or days of yethe week [or Golden number]excepting that the numbers for determining the new & full moons may be omitted. And this Accompt or Stile to be thence forward received used & understood in all his MajtsMajestys Dominions in all Dates & recconings of times for keeping of set Festivals, Fairs, Birthdays & all other anniversary days & for performance of all covenants duties & services & payment of all interest rents salaries pensions wages Legacies & all other debts & dues whatsoever, with an abatement of interest rent salary pension or wages for & proportional to unto elevenallowance of 11 days in the first payment of any interest rent salary pension or wages wchwhich shall by vertue of any covenant grant act or deed had made or done before the said 20th day of May, become due on or after the first day of Iune above mentioned, that is to say with an abatemtment of the hundredth part of three years interest rent salary pension or wages.
2. Provided nevertheless that all debts wchwhich ought to be paid & all things wchwhich ought to be done on any of the eleven days of May wchwhich were to succeed the said 20th day & are hereby abolished shall be paid & done on the same day or days wthwithin yethe compass of the said eleven days wchwhich next succeed the said day of as if this Act had never been made.
3. For avoyding the double recconing by yethe civil & ecclesiastical years between the last day of Ianuary December & yethe 25th day of March, the Ecclesiastical year shall in all his MajtsMajestys Dominions, from & after the end of December wchwhich shall be in yethe year 1700 of orour Lord 1700 said 20th day of May begin on yethe the first day of Ianuary for ever & be no longer dated from the 25th day of March
4 And that yethe beginning of the year may not recede from but rather approach nearer to the winter solstice & the solstices, equinoxes & set Festivals approach nearer to the days of yethe year on wchwhich they fell in yethe age of the Apostles, it may be further enacted that yethe 29th of February be omitted in yethe end of every century of years, that is, in the years of orour Lord 1800, 1900, 2000, 2100 & so on perpetually for yethe space of 2000 years next ensuing untill the year of orour Lord 3000.
5 And because the Festival of Easter is appointed to be kept on yethe sunday next after the full Moon wchwhich falls upon or next after the day of the Vernal Equinox, let the one & twentithtwentieth day of March in computing the time of Easter be taken for yethe day of the Vernal Equinox untill the year of orour Lord 2000, & thenceforward let the 22th day of March in the same computation2rtation of Easter be thenceforward reputed & taken for yethe Vernal Equinox untill the year of orour Lord 2500, & thenceforward yethe 23th untill yethe year 3000
6 And whereas the Festival of Easter ought to fall on the Lords day next after the 14th day of the first Iudaic month & yethe Months of the Iudaic year are Lunar: for computing the time of Easter & the other moveable festivals it may be further enacted that the Lunar months used in that computation shall consist of 30 & 29 days alternately in three periods or cycles of Months perpetually to succeed one another, each of wchwhich periods shall consist of an odd number of months, the two first of 17 & the third of 15 & the first & last month of each period shall contein 30 days, so that all three periods summed up together shall make a larger period of 49 lunar months conteining 1447 days that isor four solar years wanting a fortnight. And the period of 15 months once in every 1000 years that is to say next ensuing the years of orour Lord 2000, 3000, 4000, 5000 &c shall have eight months deducted from it, & shall consist of the seven remaining months & no more: And the first day of the first lagelarge period Ianuary wchwhich shall be in yethe year of orour Lord 1701 shall be the day of the month of the great cycle of 49 months: and the Festival of Easter shall be kept on yethe Lords day next after the 14th day of that Lunar month whose 14th day falls upon or next after the day of the Vernal equinox according to the meaning of this Act.