mentioned and six hours more. And so the correct commencement of the
next year will not begin till after midday and ends in the evening. The
third year begins at the first watch, and lasts till the sixth hour of
the night. The fourth begins at daybreak.

10. Now as the beginning of each year varies, one commencing at the
sixth hour of the day, another at the same hour of the night, to
prevent the calculation from throwing all science into confusion by its
perplexing diversity, and the months of autumn from sometimes being
found to come in the spring, it has been settled that those six hours
which in a period of four years amount to twenty-four shall be put
together so as to make one day and night.

11. And after much consideration it has been so arranged with the
concurrence of many learned men, that thus the revolutions of the year
may come to one regular end, removed from all vagueness and uncertainty,
so that the theory of the heavens may not be clouded by any error, and
that the months may retain their appointed position.

12. Before their dominions had reached any wide extent, the Romans were
for a long time ignorant of this fact, and having been for many years
involved in obscure difficulties, they were in deeper darkness and error
than ever, when they gave the priests the power of intercalating, which
they, in profligate subservience to the interests of the farmers of the
revenue, or people engaged in lawsuits, effected by making additions or
subtractions at their own pleasure.

13. And from this mode of proceeding many other expedients were adopted,
all of which were fallacious, and which I think it superfluous now to
enumerate. But when they were given up, Octavianus Augustus, in
imitation of the Greeks, corrected these disorderly arrangements and put
an end to these fluctuations, after great deliberation fixing the
duration of the year at twelve months and six hours, during which the
sun with its perpetual movement runs through the whole twelve signs, and
concludes the period of a whole year.

14. This rule of the bissextile year, Rome, which is destined to endure
to the end of time, established with the aid of the heavenly Deity. Now
let us return to our history.

II.

Sec. 1. When this day, so little fit in the opinion of many for beginning
any great affair, had passed, at the approach of evening, by the advice
of the prefect Sallust, an order was issued by general consent, and with
the penalty of