SATURDAY, MARCH 11, 1909.
THE MORNING ASTORIAN, ASTORIA, OREGON.
3
The MORNING ASTORIAN
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ASTORIA SAVINGS BANK
Capital I'ald In 1100,000. Surplus and Undivided Profits ::5.00l
Transacts a general banking hmriness. Interest paid ou time deposit.
J.Q. A. IMiWI.BY. 0. 1. PBTRHKON.
President. Vios Prcsideut. Cashier. Aasuuasmer
Jft8 TENTH STREET. ASTORIA. ORE.
HOTEL PORTLAND
fcThe Finest Hotel
PORTLAND
The TROY Laundry
l.s the only Whiio Labor Laundry in the City. Does the Ucst
of Work at very reasonable Prices, and h in every way worthy
of your putroniige. Cor. 10th and DUANE STS. 1'hone 1991
iximimrrii
FRESH AND CURED MEATS
Wholesale and Retail
ShijiH, Iogginn ('amps and Mills mipplied on short notice.
L1VR STOCK BOUGHT AND SOLD
jj WASHINGTON MARKET
run n ixxixxixxxxxxixxirixirTixiin mi nxumi'xxi
Reliance
Electrical
(VMM
Works 1 ;
vr
hl Z-tsA9z? Loser
n C Ul ia
ANDREW ASP, BLACKSMITH.
riavng Installed a Rubber Tiring Maohine of the
latest pattern I am prepared to do all kind of work
in that line at reasonable price. Telephone 291.
CORNER TWELFTH AND DUANE STREETS.
fflZEALllFlIBluEuO
Of New Zealand
W. P. THOMAS, Mgr., San Francisco.
UNLIMITED LIABILITY OF SHREHOLDERS
Has been Underwriting on the Pacific Coast for twenty-five years.
MnmiMMWnnmMlltMMMMHNMHM
EUMORE $ CO.. Sole Agents
t
Astoria. - Oregon.
FUANK 1'AlTON. J. W. OA NER,
In the Northwest
OREGON.
txzxxxzxxzxzi
CHRISTENS0N tL CO.
We are thoroughly prtired for making
Miiiimtit und eieouting order for
all klnda of electrical Installing and
repairiiitf. Supplies in atoek. We
ell tbe Celebrated SHELBY LAMP.
Call op Phone 1161.
l
428 BOND STREET
A O Beer.
I
IT
YEAR OF CONFUSION
IT WAS THE LONGEST ON RECORD
AND HAD FIFTEEN MONTHS.
Tfc War Jallae Caa.ar I tfca real
44 B. C. lralshloa.il Oat the Cal.a.
far Moddla Earlf AHeaiat to A4.
Ja.t the Laaar Crcl...
The longest rear la the world' blato
17 wae year that contained fifteen
lontbs. The original cauae that led
tp to thla was an early attempt to ad
just the lunar month which begaa
with each new moon In their relation to
the solar year. Twelve revolution of
the moon take 354 day, about eleven
day less than a true year. The an
cients tried at first to correct thl by
Inserting, generally every other year,
special Intercalary month, Junt a we
do an additional day In leap year, la
the Itoman calendar, from which out
own ha descended, these correction
were always made at the end of the
year. The earliest ftoriiun year began
In March, a we see by the numerical
LaUn name of several of our months
September (seven), October (eight) No
vember (nine), Iecnbcr (tcn and we
still add our lotercalary day in leap
year Just before the ancient New Year
day.
In tliua the month dropped their la
nor character and becume of Irregular
length, varying from thirty-one day1 In
March to twenty-eight In February.
The year bad 355 days, some ten days
h-as than a true year. Later on the 1st
of January became both the New Year
and the Inauguration day of the Ro
man consul. These chief magistrates
of the Itoman republic, unlike our pres
idents, were fleeted annually, so that
Inauguration day then was more Impor
tant than It is at Washington, since It
was actually the beginning of a new
official or clvU year each 1st of Janu
ary. The Intercalary month was, bow
ever, still Inserted between February
and March, according to ancient cus
tom. The Insertion of intercalary
months and all matters pertaining to
the calendar rested in ancient Home
wltb the college of pontiff, which
formed the supreme priestly council,
the proper observance of the festivals
of the gods and other aacred days com
ing especially within the domain of re
ligion. Hut the pontiffs, with tbelr
chief, the Mintifex maxlmus, were too
ofteu douilnuted by political considera
tions. In early times they were chosen
exclusively from the patrician families.
Their privilege of Inserting or omitting
the intercalary month gave them great
political power, which, polltlclan-llke,
they used to the advantage of tbelr
own party and the Injury of the plebe
ians. On personal grounds they capri
ciously lengthened the year when their
friends held the chief magistracy and
hortened it when ttie opposition held
otllee.
This practice at length Involved the
calendar in such coiifuslon that In Cice
ro's day it was three months ahead of
true time. Thus the 1st of May fell In
blenk wintry weather at what waa
proMTly about the 1st of February,
while the 1st uf January came in the
fall season at what Is now the begin
ning of October. The ancient Romans
hud to endure the Irony of dating their
letters iu November when they were
trying to bear up under the biasing
bout of an Italian summer.
Hut In the year It. C. 4J Home's fore
most soldier, Julius Caesar, was able
to take the mutter In baud. Among
the many honors received by this cou
queror was the otllee of poutifex max
lmus, and as head of the priestly col
lege matters appertaining to the calen
dar fell within his province. Ills sol
dier's system took up the muddle in
the calendar, which he straightened
out with his accustomed vigor. To
Imagine a modern parallel we should
have to suppose some one like Napo
Icon on his elevation of the consulship
or General Grant fresh from the civil
war and his election to the presidency
undertaking to correct a confusion In
the calendar due to the manipulations
of politicians.
Caesar called In the aid of Sosigcnes.
an Alexandrian astronomer, to rectify
the error and prevent It for the future.
It wa In the year of Home 70818
B. C, according to our reckoning-that
the revision took place. It Is said, al
though this point Is not quite certain,
that Caesar intended to fix the 1st of
January In the following year 709 (B.
C. 45) on the winter solstice, the short
est day In the year. Thla arrangement
would have been as nearly perfect as
possible, far superior to that which we
observe, in which New Year falls some
ten days after the solstice and has no
reference to anything of a natural
character. If Cnesnr had taken the
shortest day for the 1st of January
he would have had a definitely fixed
himlmark Indicated by the movement
of the earth llself as pre-eminently
the correct point of time for this event,
for the sun sinks dully and the days
heroine shorter until Iee, 21 or
22, when, n If new born, the suu be
gins again to mount the heavens and
the days to lengthen. The Itoman
inline for this time was "Natalia soils
luvlctl" (the birthday of the uncou
quer suu), when that luminary's
decline was changed Into a fresh as
cension. It Is one of the greatest misfortunes
of the calendar that thla change was
not carried out. But the story goes
that about ten day later than the sol
stice there wa a new moon, which
was the starting point of the ancient
lunar months. It was still looked upon
as a good augury for a month to be
gin on the new moon, and as It waa
desired that the year 700, the opening
year of Caesar's new calendar, should
be Inaugurated under circumstances
that would be auspicious and com
meuLlhjchanj2Ltij. P'tHIc . ai'-jroval
ltwa"aeterTiifi7l that'tHe following
Jan. 1 should be on the day of tlx
now moon. But a the new moon
would come at different dates In other
year th good augury for that one
rear wa secured at the loss of far
more Important consideration for all
future time. So our New Year la
close to the shortest day, but not on
it, and derive Its present arbitrary
position, according to thla story, from
the new moon happening to fall on
that day In the year B. C. 45.
itot, apart from this, the straighten
ag out of the calendar wa admirably
managed. The undoing of the tangle
wa a serious matter and made th
year 11. C. 40 forever memorable. Th
1st of January fell, a we have seen,
about three month too soon that is,
In the plensimt autumnal weather
shortly aftor the vintage days, that
were properly in the early part of Oc
tober. The year wa allowed to run
on until toward the close of February,
when the lMi rculary month wa In
serted at the usual place. This added
twenty-three days to the year, but did
not suffice. The calendar was still two
months out, and the 1st of March wa
giving Home the weather of Christ
mas. So at the end of November
(which came at what Is now the end
of September) two more months wer
Inserted, containing between tbem sixty-seven
days. Uy the Insertion of
these special months, which have nev
er since appeared In the calendar, the
mouth of Itecember was brought to
the season In which it uow falls, the
two intercalary months covering onr
October and November. These two
months were in a sense duplicated.
Thus in this year there had been added
to the regular 355 days nluety more.
This made the unprecedented total of
445 days, or fifteen months. The year
extended, according to ourpresent reck
oning, from the beginning of October
to twelve mouths following the next
Dec. 31. This started the year of
Home 700 (It. C. 45) at the time at
which our years now commence.
This remarkable year was scofflngly
called "the year of confusion," but Ma
croblus correctly say that It should
rather be culled "the last year of con
fusion." The strong measures that bad
to be taken were necessary if order wa
to be restored and the months once
again placed in their old time honored
seasons.
But all Caesar' changes were not
yet carried out The year had still 355
days, and this was ten and a quarter
days too short. It was determined to
avoid In future the insertion of an in
tercalary month. The old experience
with this arrangement bad been suffi
ciently uufortuuate. So the year was
raised to its present length of 305 days
and thus made a solar year by adding
two days each to January, Sextills and
December and one day each to April,
June, September and November, the
quarter day over belug adjusted by the
insertlon'of an extra day every four
years at the end of February. Our In
sertion of this day at the ancient termi
nation of the year is now our only re
minder of the one time Insertion there
of a whole month.
In thla way was the great soldier's
work curried out and the system of
chronology established that we practi
cally use t.xlii.v. It was an appropriate
tribute when Augustus chanced the
name of the nionili when Cuesar was
born so that we have a reminder of this
lu the n uiie of .1-:lii! ; Ui!vi iu place of
Its ancient designation ouintilis.
Hut, utter I'll, tl e year of Julius Cae
sar was not cuiToct enough, for the real
yeur Is eleven minutes twelve seconds
short of t c " !, y tind ti haurs of his
arrangement. Ti l : Is ery slight, mak
ing only about thrce-iiuartcrs of a day
In a century. ! t:i la tl:e sixteenth cen
tury the year v. :'s ten d ;.vs behind true
time, uud corrections were again made
In the calendar. It was still a Poutifex
Maxlmus who did this, for the bishops
of Home assumed that title after the
fall of the ci..i I.e. In l.2 Tope Greg
ory XIII. inane t'l.e necessary correc
tions by ordering tint the d.'.v after the
4th of October should be called the
15th, and to Miard ii-ahrit the error In
the future It was ordered that the year
completing each century should not be
a leap year except nt every fourth cen-tury.-Walter
J. KIdd Iu New York
Post.
A Taak la Subtraction,
At a smnll school In the backwoods a
well meaulug but misguided instructor
gave her pupils as a home lesson the
task of subtracting C2S) from 880,788,
8S9 until nothing remained. On the
way from school the children rejoiced
at so easy a requisition, but once at
work their rejoicing was speedily
turned to sorrow. After working for
hours without any perceptible diminu
tion of the flgnres the youngsters gave
up in despair. Parents then tried, but
with no better success. And small won
der. In order to complete the task the
number given would have to be sub
tracted 1,400,300 times, leaving o small
remainder. Some indignant parent cal
culated that, working nt the rate of
three subtractions a minute for twelve
hours a day, the task given the children
for an evening's exercise would require
a little more than a year and nine
months to accomplish.
u'OreHN.
"I It true," asked Mr. Qulso, "that
your husband ordered Dr. Smoother
out of the house?"
"Yes. Poor Jack had been carrying
the baby all night aud every night for
a week and wa run down to a thread.
I called the doctor, and ho told Jack
that he must take exercise."
Tha Father'. Idea.
Johnny Paw. what's the rest of that
quotation beginning. "Truth Is mighty?"
Father-"Scni!e." I reckon. Pittsburg
Tost.
CLASSIFIED
KATES:
First Insertion, One Cent a Word.
One Week, Each Line, 30c.
Two Weeks, Each Line, 45c.
One Month, Each Line, 75c.
Astorian Free Want Ads.
Anyone Desiring a Situation can Insert an Advertisement in this Column
f Three Lines Two Times Fres of Charge.
HELP WANTED.
WANTED MEN" TO LEARN BA li
ber trade; 8 weeks completes; posi
tions guaranteed; tuition earned while
learning. Write for terms. Holer's
Barber College, 844 Clay St., San Fran
cisco. WANTED INSTALLMENT COL
lector for merchandise accounts;
good salary and expenses. Address,
Manufacturer, P. O. Box 1027, Phila
delphia, Pa.
LOST.
LOST LADY'S CRESCENT CLASP
pin, set with small stone: finder will
please return to this office and receive
reward.
MISCELLANEOUS.
NOTICE FOR BIDS BIDS WILL
be received for the foundation and
basement of the New St. Mary's Hos
pital; plans and specification may be
seen at the office of the architect at
8t. Mary' Hosptal; all bids to be in
on or before the 25th of this montl;
right reserved to reject any or all bids.
March 6, 1905.
JUNK DEALERS.
HIGHEST PRICES PAID FOR ALL
kinds of old Junk. Bought and sold.
173 Tenth St.
L08T.
LOST ODD FELLOWS' GOLD PIN,
three links with round band. Finder
will be rewarded by leaving at Asto
rian office.
The New
aaB" aafci'
of doing the family washing the way which changes it from
dreary drudgery to a cheerful household duty is by using
CONTCNTMCNr
J. A. MONTGOMERY, Astoria, Or.
IPtl93aaXyi
433 Commercial Street
Sherman Transfer Co.
HENRY SHERMAN, Manager
Hacks, Carriages Baggag' Checked and Transferred Tracks and
Furniture Wagons- Pianos Moved, Boxed and Shipped.
Scow Bay Iron
Manufacturers of
Iron, Steel, Brass and Bronze Castings.
General Foundrymen and Patternmakers.
Absolutely firstclass work. Prices lowest.
Phone2451 . Corner Eighteenth and Franklin.
ADVERTISING.
FOR SALE MISCELLANEOUS.
NCUBATOR FOR 8 ALE 400 EGGS
capacity; also three 100 capacity
brooders; fl rat-class condition. Ad
dress A. Astorian Office.
HORSE. BTJGOY AND HARNESS
for sale. Address M. Astorian.
FOR SALE SHETLAND PONEY.
cart and harness. Apply to A. E. Al
len, Clatsop, Ore,
160 ACRES OF FIRST CLASS TIM
ber land for sale, in Pacific county,
near Columbia river. Address Box (90
Astoria, Ore.
FOR SALE LOT 1 BLOCK 14.
Adair's Astoria; for particulars writ
to J. P. Miller, Onleda, Wash.
FOR SALE STEAM TUG IN FTRST-
class condition; terms reasonable;
suitable for seining purposes. For
particulars apply at this office.
SCOW FOR SALE AT M'GREGOR'S
mill, 22x64; would make a good fish
scow. Inquire or Dan Gambel at milt
FOR SALE SECOND-HAND . FUR-
nlture. Inquire at room 2 over Pet
erson & Brown's store.
FOR RENT ROOMS.
FOR RENT FOUR NICE SUNNY
rooms. Inquire at Star theater.
MISCELLANEOUS.
OLD PAPERS FOR SALE AT THIS
Office; 25c per hundred.
Way
Laundry Trays
Install a modern 2tatkfcad"
Laundry in your home and there
will be no water to carry, no
leakage or damp floors, and no
tubs to empty or upset. It will
increase the selling value of your
home.
Phone Main 121
G Brass Works
IK