224 dr THE REFORMATION'

The day on which the year commences, is,also, different in different countries. Williamthe Conqueror, being crowned on the first ofJanuary, gave occasion to the English to begintheir year at that time, in order to make itagree with the commencement of their history.The Mahometans begin their year on the daywhen the fun enters the Ram; the Persians inthe month which answers to our June; theChinese and Indians with the first new moonthat happens in March ; and the Mexicans, ac-cording to d’Acosta, begin their year on the23d of February, at which time the verdure,In that country, first begins to appear. It mayalso be remarked* that* among the Romans, thefirst and last days of the year, were consecratedto Janus, which seems to be the reason why heis always represented with two faces.

The week is another division of time, of thehighest antiquity, which, in almost all coun-tries, has been made to consist of seven days;a period supposed by some to have been tradi-tionally derived from the creation of the world jwhilst others imagine it was regulated by thephases of the moon. But whatever it might be,that led so many different nations to adopt thisprimitive measure, it was certainly not univer-sally received. The week of the antient Greeks,according to Gaffendus, consisted of ten days,and that of the Romans of nine; but afterwards,