_January._ Of this first month, the opening day And seventh like a sword will slay. _February._ The fourth day bringeth down to death; The third will stop a strong man’s breath. _March._ The first the greedy glutton slays; The fourth cuts short the drunkard’s days. _April._ The tenth and the eleventh, too, Are ready death’s fell work to do. _May._ The third to slay poor man hath power; The seventh destroyeth in an hour. _June._ The tenth a pallid visage shows; No faith nor truth the fifteenth knows. _July._ The thirteenth is a fatal day; The tenth alike will mortals slay. _August._ The first kills strong ones at a blow; The second lays a cohort low. _September._ The third day of the month September, And tenth, bring evil to each member. _October._ The third and tenth, with poisoned breath, To man are foes as foul as death. _November._ The fifth bears scorpion-sting of deadly pain; The third is tinctured with destruction’s train. _December._ The seventh’s a fatal day to human life; The tenth is with a serpent’s venom rife. O. S. and N. S. THE GREGORIAN CALENDAR. The Julian calendar was framed about 46 years before Christ. Cæsar made the year consist of 365 days; and the annual excess of six hours, which amounted to one day in four years, was taken into account by making every fourth year (leap-year) consist of 366 days. But Cæsar’s correction of the calendar was imperfect, being founded on the supposition that the solar year consisted of 365 days, 6 hours, whereas the true solar year consists of 365 days, 5 hours, 48 minutes, 45½ seconds. Thus the Julian year exceeded the solar 11 minutes 14½ seconds,—which amounted to a whole day in 130 years. In consequence of this inaccuracy, the vernal equinox, which happened on the 25th of March in the time of Julius Cæsar, had receded to the 21st of March in the year 325, and was fixed to that day by the Council of Nice. Attempts were afterwards made to effect some change in the calendar; but a complete reformation was not made until 1582. Pope Gregory XIII. invited to Rome the most learned astronomers of the age; and, after the subject had been discussed ten years, it was decreed that the vernal equinox, which had receded ten days since the Council of Nice, and consequently happened on the 11th of March, should be brought back to the 21st of March, and that for this purpose ten days should be taken from the month of October, 1582. To avoid future deviation, it was determined that instead of every 100th year being leap-year, every 400th year only should be leap-year. By this plan—a diminution of three days in 400