I. ELEMENTS OF TECHNICAL CHRONOLOGY. Χρονος εστιν επανορθωσις πραγματων και τηρησις. CHRONOLOGY is the regulation and preservation of facts. STOIC. VOL. I. B I. ELEMENTS OF TECHNICAL CHRONOLOGY. CHRONOLOGY in general, or "the Computation of Times," (as the original implies) may be divided into two species, Technical and Historical. Technical Chronology is the art of computing the several measures of time, natural or instituted, used by historians to record facts, in their Fasti, Calendars, or Chronicles. And these are, Days, Weeks, Months, Years, Generations, Reigns, Eclipses, Canons, and Cycles. This species is founded in Astronomy and the course of Nature; and therefore admits of proof derived from the known laws of motion in the Mundane System, and the doctrine of Probabilities. Historical Chronology is the art of computing, adjusting, and verifying the whole range of dates furnished by historians, according to certain cardinal Epochs, Eras, and Periods of time, so as to reduce the whole, if possible, to one entire uniform and consistent system; in which sacred and profane history shall be brought to harmonize or correspond with each other. This is a much more difficult process than the former; because the data afforded by sacred and profane history, in general, are frequently obscure, imperfect, mutilated, or corrupted in process of time, or length of ages, either by decay, accident, or design. The restriction, therefore, “if possible," is necessary, because the subject does not admit of rigid demonstration, but only of an approximation to truth, more or less near, according to the nature of the data, the correctness of the principles, and the skill with which they are applied. |