SPRAGUE. 469 SPKENGEL. tiler's calico factory, and afterwards became in- terested in linen vcavinLrand locomotive building. He was elected Governor of Rhode Island, but at the outbreak of the Civil War he ofl'ercd his ser- vices to the United .States Government, and served with the Rhode Island troops, ])artieipat- ing in the first battle of Bull Run and in the Peninsular campaign. From ISli;?, when his term as Governor expired, until ISTo, he was a mem- ber of the United States Senate and served as chairman of the committees on public lands and on manufactures and as a member of the com- mittee- iin conimerec and on military affairs. SPRAGUE, ViLLi.M BuELL (179.3-1870). An American clergyman and compiler of AiiimIk of t)ic American Piil/nt { 10 vols.. 1837-lS(i',M , a com- prehensive biographical dictionary of the leading American ministers of all denominatiiins. He graduated at Yale (1815), studied theology at Princeton (18U1), had pastoral charges at West Springfield, ilass. (1819-20), and Albany, N. Y. (1829-09), and afterwards devoted himself to literary work at Flushing, L. I. Besides the An- no/.f mentioned above, he wrote numerous books, of which the chief are: Life of Ifer. Edirard Dorr Griffin. D.D. (1838) : Life of Tier. Jedidia.h Horse (1874) : and TT'omen of the Bible (1850). SPRAIN (from OF. espreindre. from Lat. cx- ])riiiicr(. to press out, from Lat. ex, out + prc- mcrc. to press), or SxR.ilN. A term employed in surgery to designate a violent stretching of ten- dinous or ligamentous parts with or without rup- ture of some of their fibres. Sprains are very frequent in all the joints of the upper limbs, espe- cially in the wrist and the articulations of the thumb. In the lower extremity the ankle is the joint by far the most frequently affected; and this is accounted for anatomically by the small size of the articular surfaces, the great weight the astragalus (the bone presenting the lower ar- ticular surface) has to support, and the unyield- ing nature of the lateral ligaments. In slight sprains of this joint the ligaments are only stretched or slightly lacerated, but in more se- vere cases they may be completely torn tlirough. Sprains are sometimes mistaken for fractures, and rice versa; and the two injuries may co- exist. The pain and swelling sometimes make an accurate diagnosis diflicult, especially if the pa- tient is not seen for some time after the acci- dent : and if any doubt exists, the case should be treated as for the more severe injury. Sprains of the knee are not uncommon, and are character- ized by great swelling from effusion of fiuid with- in the joint. Sprains of the back are not unfre- quent accidents, and are the most serious of any. The treatment of sprains generally must be regu- lated by their .severity. In most cases, elevation of the joint, the application of cold, and complete rest in a splint will be sufficient, and as soon as the inflammation subsides massage and movement are necessary to prevent adhesions. Sometimes pain and impaired function persist for a long time, and frequently after a severe sprain a joint is permanently weaker. Sprains, or strains, are very common among horses, owing to the severe exertions required of them, often while they are young and unpre- pared for such work. Various muscles, liga- ments, and tendons are liable to strain, but none more frequently than the large tendons passing down the back of the fore limbs. In slight cases cold water continuously applied for several hours gives relief; but in all serious cases diligent fo- mentation with water about the temperature of 100^ is preferable; or the injured part may lie swathed in a tliick woolen rag. ke])t constantly moist and warm by frequent wetting with the hot water. Perfect rest is essential, and in order to insure the relaxation of the large tendons of the horse's limbs, he may in bad cases be kept slung for several days. I31isters, hot oils, firing, and all such irritants are on no account to be used until the inflammation abates, and the part becomes cool and free from tenderness. Such remedies are then useful for causing the reab- sorption of swelling, and perhaps also for in- vigorating the weakened part. SPRAT (dialectic variant of sprot, from AS. sprold, OHG. spro:o, spro::o, Gcr. Spross. sprout, from AS. spreotan. Ger. sprirsscn, to sprout). A small European herring { Flarenfiula sprattns), very abundant in the northern Atlantic. It is six inches in length when fully grown. Sprats are cured in great quantities both dry-salted and in brine, and form a cheap and excellent food. Certain small and unimportant species have taken the name in America, where the true sprat is not found. SPREADING ADDER. See Hogno.se ; and the |)liotograpliic Plate of Snakes. SPRECK'ELS, CL.US (1828—). An Ameri- can business man, born at Lamstedt. in Hanover, Ciermany. He emigrated to Charleston in 1840; worked for a time in New Y'ork City; and went to San Francisco in 1850. In 1857 he started the Albany Brewery in San Francisco, and in 1803 organized the Bay Sugar Refining Com- pany. Two years afterwards he sold his in- terests and went to Europe, where he studied the manufacture of sugar in all its aspects. Returning to California, he engaged more ex- tensively than ever in business, having large interests in manufactures and shipping both in California and in the Hawaiian Islands. He acquired large sugar interests in Hawaii; built large refineries with improved processes: engaged in beet-sugar farming in California : and by the control he exercised over the sugar industry gained for himself the name of the 'sugar king.' SPREE, spra. A river of Prussia, which rises in the eastern part of the Kingdom of Saxony, on the borders of Bohemia (ilap: Prussia. E 2). and after a winding northwest course of 226 miles, mainly through Brandenburg, falls into the Havel at Spandau. It flows through a low and marshy region, frequently expanding into lakes. It becomes navigable for small vessels at Liebsch, and has recently been deepened below Berlin so as to admit large ships to that city. It is connected with the Oder by two canals. SPREMBERG, spremlierK. A town of Prus- sia, on the Spree, 77 miles southeast of Berlin (Jlap: Germany, F 3). Its chief industry is cloth manufacture. There are oil mills and mines of lignite. Population, in 1000, 10,925. SPRENGEL, sprengVI. Kurt (1700-18.33). A rJernian physician and botanist, born at Bolde- kow, near Anklam, and educated at Halle. In 1789 he was made professor of medicine fliere. and in 1797 he was appointed professor of botany as well. He published: Vrrxiieli einer pragmatischen Geschichte der 4r«neifc«nde( 1792-
