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 228 SPANIEL Dis&ertationes de Prfrntantia et Usu Numis- m.ittnn Antiquorum (4to, Kome, 1664; best od., 2 vols., London and Amsterdam, 1706-'17), and Orbis Romanu* (London, 1704; contained also in Gravius's Thesaurus, vol. xi.). SPANIEL (cants extrariu*, Linn.), a well known variety of hunting dog, in form a small setter, with silky hair, long in some parts of the body, and long, soft, pendulous ears. It is tiirurod on some of the later monuments of an- Spanlel. cient Italy, and is supposed to be the C. Tuscus of the Romans ; it probably originated in Spain, whence the name. The colors are various, black, brown, pied, liver-colored and white, and black and white. The English breed is con- sidered the best for sportsmen, being strong, with an excellent nose, and fond of the water. The water spaniel differs from the common breed in the eagerness to hunt and swim in water, whence it is used to drive ducks into the nets in decoy ponds ; the hair is also harsh- er. (See POODLE.) The Alpine or St. Bernard spaniel is the largest and most celebrated of the race, being 2 ft. high at the shoulders, and 6 or 6 ft. from nose to end of tail ; it has a peculiar appearance about the inner angle of the eyes, due probably to their being kept partly shut to avoid the high winds and the glare of the snow; this is one of the breeds which search the mountain passes in the vicinity of the hospice of St. Bernard in quest of bewil- dered or weary travellers. The Newfoundland dog resembles the Alpine spaniels ; it is large and has great strength, and is probably their indigenous American representative, and use- ful for many purposes of a beast of burden ; it is gentle, very intelligent, and affectionate ; it is an excellent swimmer, the toes being partly webbed. The springer is a small span- iel of elegant form, small head, and long ears, usually red and white, the latter predomina- ting, with a black nose and palate ; the Marl- borough breed is considered the best. The King Charles spaniel is a small and beautiful prized as a lady's pet, generally black and white, or black and tan-colored; the hair is soft and silky, the ears pendulous, the fore- head elevated, and the eyes intelligent; the SPARKS variety prized by Charles I. of England was wholly black ; this is the C. brempilis (Linn.). It is supposed to be the parent of the cocker, a sprightly little bird dog, usually black, or white with reddish spots, and comparatively shorter in the back than the spaniel. The Mal- tese dog is perhaps the most ancient of the small spaniel races, being figured on Roman monuments, and mentioned by Strabo as the G. melitaus; the muzzle is round, the hair very long and silky, and the color usually white ; it is diminutive, and fit only for a lap dog. SPANISH FLY. See CANTHARIDES. SPANISH MAIN, the appellation formerly giv- en to the southern portion of the Caribbean sea, together with the contiguous coast, em- bracing the route traversed by Spanish trea- sure ships from Mexico, Central America, and the northern shores of South America. SPAN WORM. See CANKER WORM, and CAT- ERPILLAR. SPAR. See BARYTA, CALCAREOUS SPAR, FELD- SPAR, and FLTJOR % SPAR. SPARKS, Jared, an American historian, born at Willington, Conn., May 10, 1789, died in Cambridge, Mass., March 14, 1866. He gradu- ated at Harvard college in 1815, studied theol- ogy at Cambridge, and for two years, 1817-'19, was college tutor in mathematics and natural philosophy. He also became one of an associ- ation by which the " North American Review " was conducted. In May, 1819, he was ordained as minister of a Unitarian congregation in Bal- timore, and the next year published "Letters on the Ministry, Ritual, and Doctrine of the Protestant Episcopal Church" (8vo, Boston). In 1821 he was elected chaplain of the United States house of representatives, and the same year he established " The Unitarian Miscellany and Christian Monitor," which he edited till 1823. In this work he began a series of letters on the " Comparative Moral Tendency of Trin- itarian and Unitarian Doctrines" (8vo, 1823). He also edited a "Collection of Essays and Tracts in Theology, from various Authors, with Biographical and Critical Notices" (6 vols. 12mo, 1823-'6). His health becoming impaired, he resigned his pastoral charge in 1823, and removing to Boston purchased the "North American Review," of which he was sole proprietor and editor for seven years. In 1828 he published a "Life of John Ledyard, the American Traveller," chiefly from original materials. After extensive researches in the United States, he made a voyage to Europe in 1828, where he selected and transcribed docu- ments relating to American history in the pub- lic oflices of London and Paris, and after his re- turn published " The Writings of George Wash- ington, with a Life of the Author, Notes, and Illustrations" (12 vols. 8vo, "Boston, 1834-7). During the preparation of this work he edited and published " The Diplomatic Correspon- dence of the American Revolution" (12 vols. 8vo, 1829-'30), and "The Life of Gouverneur Morris, with Selections from his Correspon-