1852 he entered political life as a Free-soiler, and he was one of the organizers of the Republican party. He was a member of congress in 1863-'9, where he served on important committees, but he subsequently declined all political honors. Judge Spalding exercised an important influence in restoring the Masonic order to its former footing after the disappearance of William Morgan.
SPALDING, Simon, soldier, b. in Plainfield.
Conn.. 16 Jan., 1742; d. 24 Jan., 1814. He re-
moved to Wyoming, Pa., in 1772. and was a soldier
in the Revolutionary army, becoming a lieutenant.
26 Aug., 1776. and being promoted to captain, 24
June. 1778. He was present at the action of Bound
Brook, N. J.. i:! April. 1717, and the escape of the
Americans with slight loss was largely due to his
personal efforts. He served until the close of the
war, and he was in the Sullivan campaign, during
which he and his company won honor for heroic
service. On 30 May. 1783. he removed to Shese-
quin. Bradford co., Pa., the upper part of the
Wyoming settlement, where he rose through the
various grades to general of militia. He was a
large man, of fine and imposing appearance.
SPANGENBERG, Augustus Gottlieb, Moravian
bishop, b. in Klettenberg, Prussia, 15 July,
1704; d. in Berthelsdorf, near Herrnhut, Saxony,
18 Sept., 1792. He was graduated at Jena, and
then became an assistant professor in the university
there. Subsequently he was appointed to a
professor's chair at Halle, but his association with
Zinzendorf and the Moravians gave such offence that
he was dismissed from the university, and joined
their church. In 1735 he put himself at the head
of a body of Moravian immigrants, and established
a colony at Savannah, Ga. Thither came Bishop
David Nitschmann, who ordained Spangenberg a
presbyter of the church, and sent him to Pennsylvania,
where he labored among the German sects.
Such work was interrupted by a visit that the bishop
commissioned him to undertake to the mission in St.
Thomas. After his return he resumed his labors in
Pennsylvania, went to Savannah in order to cheer
his brethren, who were in distress on account of the
war impending between England and Spain, and
finally sailed for Europe in 1739. Having been
appointed to preside over the Moravian churches in
this country, he was consecrated to the episcopacy,
15 June, 1744, at Herrnhaag. He arrived at Bethlehem,
Pa., in the autumn of the same year, and,
with the exception of a brief period from 1749 till
1751, which he spent in Europe, ruled the church
until 1761 with singular ability. The settlers at
Bethlehem, Nazareth, and other Moravian stations
were poor and had heavy financial engagements to
meet, but Spangenberg provided for them with
such care, and managed the affairs of the entire
colony so successfully, that his brethren gave him
the honorary name of “Joseph.” This name he
accepted, and used it in signing his letters, and
occasionally even official documents. In the year
after his arrival at Bethlehem he undertook a visit
to Onondaga, the capital of the Six Nations, with
whom he concluded a treaty that had in view the
establishment of a mission among them. On this
journey, which proved to be very arduous and full
of dangers, he was adopted into the Irnquois
confederacy, receiving the name of Tgirhitontie, or a
Row of Trees. In 1752, accompanied by five
associates, he made his way into the wilds of North
Carolina, where he superintended the survey of a
large tract of land that the church had bought of
Lord Granville. It was a hazardous and difficult
undertaking. In the following year he visited
Europe and reported to Count Zinzendorf on the
progress of the American work, returning in 1754.
During the French and Indian war, and especially
after the massacre of the missionaries on the
Mahony, near what is now Mauch Chunk, Pa., 24
Nov., 1755, he displayed no little courage.
Bethlehem became the frontier town in the direction of
the Indian country, was surrounded with a stockade.
and carefully guarded against attacks from the
savages. Spangenberg was in stated correspondence
with the governor of Pennsylvania, who
acknowledged the great benefit the bishop was
conferring upon the whole colony by thus holding his
town. After the conclusion of the war he resumed
those visits to the Indian country in which he had
always taken a particular delight, and baptized
several converts. In 1760 Zinzendorf died and
Spangenberg was called to Europe in order to
assist in the government of the Unitas Fratrum
according to the new constitution. He took his
seat in the chief executive board, of which body he
was the president for twenty-three years. He
lived to be eighty-eight years of age, and his
episcopate continued for forty-eight years.
Spangenberg was a learned theologian and a man of
great power, and yet as a Christian humble as a
little child. His presence was commanding; his
countenance showed the nobility of his character
and the love of an overflowing heart. Among his
numerous works the most important are “Idea
Fidei Fratrum” (Barby, 1782; translated into
English by La Trobe under the title “Exposition of
Christian Doctrine,” London, 1784); “Darlegung
richtiger Antworten” (Leipsic, 1751), and
“Schluss-Schrift” (1752); two polemical works in defence of
Zinzendorf; and “Leben des Grafen von Zinzendorf”
(3 vols., Barby, 1772-'4; abridged English
translation, London, 1838). There are two biographies
of Spangenberg, Jeremiah Rislers “Leben
Spangenbergs” (Barby, 1794), and Carl F. Ledderhose's
“Leben A. G. Spangenbergs, Bischofs der
Brüdergemeinde” (Heidelberg, 1846; French
translation, Toulouse, 1850; English, London, 1855).
SPARHAWK, Frances Campbell, author, b.
in Amesbury, Mass., about 1858. Her education
was received in private schools. The poet Whittier
was an early and intimate friend of her father. Dr.
Thomas Sparhawk. She has published a large
number of serial stories in " The Christian Union "
and " The Bay State Monthly." Her most impor-
tant contribution to serial fiction is entitled " Eliza-
beth," a romance of colonial days, and describes
New England and the siege of Lonisburg. This
appeared in " The Bay State Monthly." She is also
the author of " A Lazy Man's Work " (New York,
1881); "Little Polly "Blatchley " (Boston. 1887);
and " Miss West's Class in Geography" (1887).
SPARKMAN, James Truslow, reformer, b. in Brooklyn, N. Y., 27 Sep., 1842. He was educated at Brooklyn polytechnic institute and at Tarrytown institute, after which he followed a special course of commercial training. In 1S61 he entered into business with his father, James D. Sparkman, who was a large importing merchant,
with whom he continued until after the civil war. Mr. Sparkman has been active in politics, although not holding office, and his opinion and counsel are valued by the leaders of the Democratic party. In recent years he has advocated various measures of reform, notably the labor-day bill, the half-holiday bill, the small-parks bill, and the tenement-house reform bill, and has been uniformly
successful in procuring the passage of measures of reformatory legislation. He secured the commutation of the 'sentence of the Theiss boycotters, who were imprisoned for a long period at a time when
