Sextilis of 30, September of 30, October of 31, No.vember of 30, December of 30; in alb 304 days...

2. The Roman year of Numa confifted of twelve months. Januarius, had 291 days, Februarius 28, Martius 31, Aprilis 29, Maius 31, Junius 29, Quintilis 31, Sextilis 29, September 29, October 31, November 29, December 29; in all 355.

The months called Quintilis and Sextilis, from their order in Romulus's year, were changed into Julius and Auguftus*, in honour of Julius Cæfar and his fucceffor Auguftus...

3.3. The Julian-year confifts of twelve months, viz. January of 31 days, February of 28, Murch of 31, April of 30, May of 31, June of 30, July of 31, Auguft of 31, September of 30, October of 31, November of 30, December of 31; in all 365.

Every fourth year, in the Julian account, has 366 days, February then having 29, as we have before obferved.

The Gregorian, year has the fame number of months and days as the Julian, the only difference being that each month in the former, begins eleven days fooner than in the latter.

4. The Jewish year confifts of twelve months. Nifan or Abib has 30 days, Fiar or Zius, 29, Siban

*Qur July and Auguft.

or Sivan, 30, Thamus or Tamis, 29, Ab 30, Elul 29, Tifri or Ethanim, 30, Marchefvan or Bul, 29, Cifleu 30, Tebeth 29, Shebat or Schebeth, 30, Adar 29; in all 354.

This is made to agree with the folar year, by adding eleven, and fometimes twelve days.

It may not be amifs to obferve, that as the form of the year is various among different nations, fo likewife is its beginning. The Jews, as most other nations of the East, had a civil year, which commenced with the new moon in September; and an ecclefiaftical year, which commenced from the new moon in March. The Persians begin their year in the month anfwering to our June. The Chinese, and most of the Indians, begin it with the first moon in March; and the Greeks with the new moon that happens next after the fummer folftice.

In England, the civil or legal year formerly commenced on the 25th day of March, and the hiftorical year on the first day of January. But fince the alteration of the ftile, in 1752, the civil year, in this country, as I obferved before, has likewise begun on the first of January.

From what is faid of the patriarchs having lived so many centuries, and some even to the age of nine hundred years, may we not believe that the

years were then shorter than at prefent? By no means. For we learn from Mofes, that the year confifted then, as now, of twelve months. . In his history of the deluge, he tells us, that after the rains, which began on the 17th day of the Second month, had fallen upon the earth for the space of forty days and forty nights, it was only in the Seventh month that the ark, which floated upon the waters, refted upon Ararat, a mountain of Armenia; and, in the tenth, that land began to appear.

The changes and varieties that happen in nature, by the annual/revolution of the earth round the fun, are called the seasons. Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter are the names of the feafons, and each feafon continues three months. Spring begins on the 21st of March, Summer on the 21ft of June, Autumn on the 23d of September, and Winter on the 21ft of December.

СНАР,

THE

CHA P. LV.

OF MONTHS.

HE firft and principal divifion of the year is into parts called months, which are usually *twelve; and these are either aftronomical or civil.

An aftronomical or natural month is that which is measured exactly by the motion of the fun or moon, and is accordingly either lunar or folar.

: A lunar month is the time the moon takes to revolve round the earth, which the performs in twenty-seven days, feven hours, forty-three minutes, and eight feconds.

A folar month is that space of time in which the fun runs through one of the signs of the Zodiac. Now as the apparent motion of the fun is fometimes flower and fometimes fafter, thefe months must consequently be unequal. But, as he constantly travels through all the twelve signs in 365 days, five hours, and forty-nine minutes, the quantity of a mean folar month is found by dividing that number by twelve. And hence it appears that each of these months, one with another, contains thirty days, ten hours, twenty-nine minutes, and five feconds.

Civil months are those which are framed to ferve: the uses of life, being made to confift of a certain number of whole days, approaching nearly to the quantity of aftronomical months, either lunar or folar.

Civil lunar months confift alternately of twentynine and thirty days; fo that two of them are equal to two aftronomical ones, excepting the odd mi

nutes,

,

Civil folar months ufually confift of thirty and thirty-one days alternately, except one of the twelve, which every fourth year has twenty-nine days.in others but twenty-eight.

CHA P. LVI.

OF WEEKS AND DAYS.

A Month is divided into four parts called wecks,

each confifting of feven parts called days.

Of these months there are thirteen in a Julian year, and one day over; of weeks there are fifty-two, and of days 365, as before obferved.

The