Spanish-American War

The first notable conflict occurred in the far East. In February Commodore George Dewey, commander of the American Asiatic Squadron, had been instructed by assistant secretary of the navy Roosevelt to assemble his vessels at Hongkong and be prepared for operations against the Spanish naval forces in the Philippines. On April 26 a despatch was received by Dewey announcing that war had begun and directing him to 'use utmost endeavors' to capture or destroy the Spanish fleet. In the early morning of May 1 he entered Manila Bay with seven war vessels and

two

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pathy of the Continental European powers was generally with Spain, and a movement to intervene in her favor would probably have taken place if it had not been for the attitude of Great Britain. By the end of July about 11,000 troops, mostly volunteers, under command of Gen. Wesley Merritt, had arrived, and after a few comparatively bloodless conflicts, in which the army was assisted by the fleet, Manila was forced on Aug. 13 to capitulate.

Meanwhile still more decisive events had been taking place in the West Indies. Captain W. T. Sampson (acting rear-admiral) with

Spanish-American War

which was making her way round South America from California. In the thought that perhaps the Spanish fleet would put in at San Juan, Porto Rico, Captain Sampson visited that port with his fleet, and, not finding Cervera, bombarded the fortifications and then withdrew. The Spanish fleet had reached Martinique on the preceding day, and from thence, with the exception of one of the destroyers, went to Curaçao, and finally toward the end of May entered the harbor of Santiago de Cuba in southern Cuba, where it was a few days later blockaded by both the American fleets, Sampson assuming com

auxiliaries, and within a few hours destroyed the forces_opposed to him (see MANILA, BATTLE OF). The city of Manila was now at the mercy of the victor, but as he did not have the troops to occupy the place he contented himself with seizing the arsenal of Cavite, instituting a blockade, bringing over from Hong-kong Emilio Aguinaldo, a former insurgent chieftain, to start a new revolution, and waiting for reinforcements. Aguinaldo

suc

ceeded in his attempt, and soon a large force of natives, partly armed with weapons from the Cavite arsenal, was besieging the city from the land side. Throughout the war the sym

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Spanish Fortification at El Caney, Cuba. (Copyright, 1901, by Detroit Photographic Co.) the North Atlantic Squadron blockaded Havana and other ports as soon as the war began, while Commodore W. S. Schley with the 'flying squadron' was held in reserve at Hampton Roads. At the end of April five Spanish cruisers and three torpedo-boat destroyers under Admiral Cervera sailed westward from the Cape Verde Islands, and for some weeks the destination of this fleet remained a mystery. Much unnecessary nervousness was felt in some of the American coast towns that the Spaniards meditated a descent upon them, and there was a better grounded fear that the fleet might attempt to intercept the battleship Oregon,

mand on June 1. The more effectively to bottle up the harbor and prevent any of the Spanish vessels from escaping, Lieut. Richmond P. Hobson (q.v.) and seven men, early on the morning of June 3, attempted to sink a steam collier, the Merrimac, in the entrance of the harbor; but, though the attempt was made with great gallantry, the vessel drifted too far into the harbor to block Cervera's exit. To assist the navy, an army of about 15,000 men, mostly regulars, under Major-General Shafter, was despatched from Key West, and on June 22 landed at Daiquiri 16 miles southeast of Santiago. On the 24th Gen. Wheeler, with a

Spanish Legion

Spanish Legion. See EVANS GEORGE DE LACY.

Spanish Main, name applied indiscriminately to the Caribbean Sea and to the Spanish possessions washed by it on the coasts of Central and S. America. The latter was the original meaning.

Spanish Reformed Church, originated in Mexico, after the establishment of the Mexican republic, from a Protestant mission introduced by Miss Rankin in 1866. The converts approached the American Episcopal Church, and Dr. H. C. Riley was consecrated first bishop of the Mexican Reformed Church (1879). Since then two other bishops have been consecrated. The movement then spread to Spain. Lord Plunket, bishop of Meath, and afterward archbishop of Dublin, appealed in its behalf in 1881. There are reformed congregations at Seville and Malaga. The reforming movement has also reached Portugal. A liturgy has been drawn up from the English Book of Common Prayer and from ancient Mozarabic sources.

Spanish Town, tn., Jamaica, W. Indies, 12 m. w. of Kingston; was formerly the capital of the island. Pop. about 6,000.

Spanish War Veterans, UNITED. An organization founded in 1904 by the consolidation of the Spanish War Veterans, Spanish-American War Veterans, and Service Men of the Spanish War. Membership is open to regular and volunteer soldiers, sailors, and marines who served during the war with Spain or in the Philippine insurrection. The society is a social organization, intended to keep alive the history of the war. It holds annual meetings. The headquarters of the National Encampment are in Cleveland, O.

Spar, a term popularly applied to crystallized vitreous, cleavable minerals, and in some instances adopted by the mineralogist to designate some of the most abundant species, such as calc-spar, fluor-spar. Formerly the spars were considered a group by themselves. The present chemical basis of classification makes them of very different relationships.

Sparaxis, a genus of South African bulbous plants, belonging to the order Iridiceæ. They bear large flowers, mostly yellow, and are often cultivated as greenhouse plants.

Spark Discharge. See ELECTRO-MAGNETIC WAVES.

in

Sparks, JARED (1789-1866), American historian, born Willington, Conn. He graduated at Harvard in 1815; fought against the British in Maryland in 1813; and during 1817-19 studied divinity at Harvard and was

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acting editor of the North American Review. In the latter year he became pastor of a Unitarian church at Baltimore; was ap pointed chaplain of the Federal House of Representatives in 1821; and in 1823 returned to Boston, bought the North American Review, and edited it during the years 1824-1831. In 1825 he began to edit the writings of George Washington, and result was published in twelve volumes in the years 1834-38. The first volume, which contained a life of Washington, was also published separately in 1839, and an abridged edition of the whole work in two volumes appeared in 1843. In 1830 he began to publish the American Almanac and Repository of Useful Knowledge; during 1839-49 was professor of ancient and modern history in Harvard; and was president of the institution during 1849-53. Among his numerous other publications are: Life of John Ledyard (1828); Diplomatic Correspondence of the American Revolution (12 vols. 1829-30); Life of Gouverneur Morris (3 vols. 1832); Correspondence of the American Revolution (4 vols. 1853), and Works of Benjamin Franklin, with Notes and a Life of the Author (10 vols. 1836-40). He was also the editor of The Library of American Biography (10 vols. 1834-8), containing twentysix lives, and a second series (15 vols. 1844-7) containing thirtyfour lives. As a pioneer in the field of American history Sparks is entitled to great credit, and his works have been much used; but unfortunately he had a habit of changing the wording of the documents which he edited and without of omitting passages warning, and in consequence his compilations have now been largely superseded by more trustworthy works. Consult his Life by H. B. Adams (2 vols. 1893).

Sparling, or SPERLING, the Scottish name for the smelt.

Sparrow (Passer), a genus of finches, which includes P. domesticus, the house sparrow. The members of the genus are widely distributed over the Old World, and may be recognized by the short, stout bill and the short wings. The diet of the house sparrow is very varied, but although in the early part of the year the bird is useful in that it feeds its young upon insect larvæ, yet the fact that the adults are excessively destructive both in gardens and to the crops of the farmer more than counterbalances this benefit. The sparrow is an active and pugnacious bird, and drives away useful insect-eating forms, such as the house martin. In plumage there is a distinct difference between the sexes, and

Sparrow-hawk

some variation in color according to the season. The adult male may be recognized by the black throat. Partial albinos are not at all infrequent. The nest is very roughly constructed, and is usually of straw or grass; but the birds are also partial to rags, especially if these are brightly colored. There is always a thick lining of feathers. Several broods are reared in a season. There are from five to six eggs in a clutch, these being bluish-white, speckled or blotched with brown and black. The common sparrow is now scattered throughout nearly the whole civilized world, where it has followed colonists. It was introduced into the United States about 1850, and has

now spread all over the country, and is everywhere a lively denizen of towns and villages, in the latter doing some damage to fruit buds, and making war on the small native birds, especially the swallows, which it has driven from barns formerly thronged with these pleasanter visitors. Hence the bird is usually regarded as a great nuisance.

The native sparrows of North America are many, and all wear the characteristic brown-streaked plumage of the group. Among the best known are the small chestnut-capped chipping sparrow of gardens; the song-sparrow, whose song is among the finest heard in American fields; the little active seashore sparrows; the white-throat and the large, handsome fox sparrow. See FINCH.

Sparrow-hawk (Accipiter nisus), a small but bold and rapa

cious hawk, which inhabits wooded districts throughout the Temperate Zone. It is very variable in size and color, but is about thirteen inches long in the male, the female exceeding this measurement by nearly two and a half inches. In the adult male the plumage of the upper parts is dark bluish-gray; the under surface, cheeks, and chin are rufous, barred with brown; the tail has from three to five dark bands. It feeds upon the smaller mammals and on birds, and frequently captures young poultry. The bird

usually builds its own nest, which is placed in a tree. In Europe the sparrowhawk was formerly employed extensively in hawking, and the sport is still pursued in Hungary. In India and Japan it is also prized by falconers. There are in all about twenty species of sparrow-hawk.

Sparta, the chief city of Laconia, in the Peloponnesus_ of Greece. It was also called Lacedæmon, which was the original name of the country. Sparta stood on the right bank of the Eurotas, on some low hills run

one royal house was Dorian, the other Achæan or pre-Achæan, though later legends traced both dynasties back to Heracles. Besides the Spartiatæ, or Spartan citizens proper, there were two other classes in the state-the Helots and the Periceci. The former were the descendants of the conquered population; the latter either Dorians dwelling in other communities than Sparta itself, or non-Dorians who had made terms with the invaders without being conquered. They had no political rights in the state,

ning down from Mt. Taygetus. It was, in fact, an aggregation of five villages. In the Mycenæan age Amycle was the chief town in the district. In Homer, Menelaus is king of Sparta; this fact implies that Achæan conquerors superseded the native rulers. Soon after the Trojan War, probably about 1100 B.C., the Dorian invasion took place, and it was in Sparta that the Dorian character and institutions were displayed to the fullest extent. The most obvious explanation of the double kingship at Sparta is that

though they were free, and managed their own local affairs; they also served in the Spartan armies. The Helots were serfs of the people, not of individuals, and were attached to the soil; they cultivated the land of Spartan owners, paying them a certain proportion of the produce. They served in the army as light troops, attendants of the Spartans, and sometimes as regular infantry. But they were always regarded with suspicion by the Spartan government, as they were more numerous than the citizens; a

secret police was kept up to watch them, and to remove persons of dangerous ability. About 424 B.C. the government issued a proclamation asking all Helots who claimed to have done good service in the war to give in their names. About two thousand did so, and were crowned and treated with honor, and shortly afterward all were done to death in secrecy. Again, in 403 a rising of the Helots was with difficulty put down. The establishment of the Spartan constitution was attributed to Lycurgus, but modern critics regard his existence as legendary. In any case the constitution was the result of a compromise. The two kings were perpetual commanders-in-chief of the army; they had the right of making war as they chose, but were accompanied by two ephors on their campaigns, and were responsible to the people for their conduct. They also held certain priesthoods and judicial functions, possessed royal domains and a variety of personal privileges. The oligarchic element in the state was the council of elders, consisting of twenty-eight men over sixty years of age, with the two kings. They were chosen by acclamation in the assembly. This, the democratic element in the state, consisted of all free citizens over thirty years of age. The ephors, the most characteristic and powerful element in the state, were elected by the people, and were five in number. They could indict and judge the kings, and were the supreme civil court at Sparta; the council of elders was the supreme criminal court. The ephors were also responsible for the maintenance of order and discipline. This discipline was practically a perpetual military training. No deformed child was reared; from the age of seven every boy was taken away from his mother's side and trained to war and hardship. He wore the same scanty clothing summer and winter, slept on the bare ground, and was exercised in hunting, gymnastics, and the use of weapons. At twenty the youths joined the army, and were enrolled in the military messes or syssitia. Even when allowed to marry, a Spartan could only live with his wife by stealth. The Spartan women, too, were trained to gymnastics; they were nowned for their beauty and their heroism, and also for their influence over the men. Wealth in Sparta consisted chiefly in land.. The use and possession of money was forbidden; instead of coin, bars of iron were used until 320 B.C., though long previous to that silver coin was in circulation. Such a state of society prevented any growth of litera

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