reckoning takes its start. It was
long before this was apprehended. When it began to be seen, various
epochs were selected by various writers; and at first each small
separate community had its own epoch and method of time-reckoning. Thus
in one city the reckoning was by succession of kings, in another by
archons or annual magistrates, in a third by succession of priests. It
seems now surprising that vague counting by generations should so long
have prevailed and satisfied the wants of inquiring men, and that so
simple, precise and seemingly obvious a plan as counting by years, the
largest natural division of time, did not occur to any investigator
before Eratosthenes.

Precision, which was at first unattainable for want of an epoch, was
afterwards no less unattainable from the multiplicity, and sometimes the
variation, of epochs. But by a natural process the mischief was
gradually and partially remedied. The extension of intercourse between
the various small groups or societies of men, and still more their union
in larger groups, made a common epoch necessary, and led to the adoption
of such a starting point by each larger group. These leading epochs
continued in use for many centuries. The task of the chronologer was
thus simplified and reduced to a study and comparison of dates in a few
leading systems.

The most important of these systems in what we call ancient times were
the Babylonian, the Greek and the Roman. The Jews had no general era,
properly so called. In the history of Babylonia, the fixed point from
which time was reckoned was the era of Nabonassar, 747 B.C. Among the
Greeks the reckoning was by Olympiads, the point of departure being the
year in which Coroebus was victor in the Olympic Games, 776 B.C. The
Roman chronology started from the foundation of the city, the year of
which, however, was variously given by different authors. The most
generally adopted was that assigned by Varro, 753 B.C. It is noteworthy
how nearly these three great epochs approach each other,--all lying near
the middle of the 8th century B.C. But it is to be remembered that the
beginning of an era and its adoption and use as such are not the same
thing, nor are they necessarily synchronous. Of the three ancient eras
above spoken of, the earliest is that of the Olympiads, next that of the
foundation of Rome, and the latest the era of Nabonassar. But in order
of adoption and actual usage the last is first. It is believed to have