Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 17.djvu/850

* SEMINAR. 7 s. II, nils. Johns Hopkins University and other .Vinerican universities generally have now intro- duced seminars. The character of the work done in the American seminars varies greatly in the several universities, ranging from mere reports to original eontrihutions. Consult Perry, "The American University," in Butler, Education in the Citilrd Sl<ilcii (Albany, 1900). SEM'INOLE (properly t^imnnoH, separatist, runaway). A tribe of Muskhogean stock (q.v.), formerly residing in Florida, and celebrated for the determined resistance which they maintained for seven years against the etTorts of the United States Government to remoe them from their homes. They were originally a part of the Creeks (q.v.), chiefly of the Hichitee or south- eastern division, and. as the name implies, sepa- rated from the main confederacy and overran the peninsula after it had been depopulated by the destruction or deportation of the Apalachee and TimiK-ua (q.v.) by the English in 1702-3. They also received accessions from the kindred Yamassee. who had been driven out of Carolina by the English in 1715. and had also a con- siderable negro element from runaway slaves. In the early period they were frequently classed with the Lower Creeks, but they became recognized as a distinct tribe about the beginning of the Revolution. About the beginning of the last cen- tury they had about twenty towns, the most im- portant being llikasuki and Tallahassee. The people of Mikasuki were known as the 'Red Stick" Indians, from their custom of setting up a pole painted red as a war emblem, and were consid- ered the leaders in every warlike enterprise. In 1817-18 (Florida being then Spanish territory) they came into conflict with the Americans and their eoimtry was invaded by General Jackson, who destroyed their principal towns, hung the two English traders (Arbuthnot and Ambrister) ■who had instigated the trouble, and ultimately brought about the cession of Florida to the United States in 1819. In 1822 they were re- ported to number 3100, besides 800 negroes living with them. By the Treaty of Payne's Landing in 1832 they were pledged to remove to the west of the Mississippi, but the treaty was repudiated by a considerable part of the tribe under the leadership of the young chief, Osceola (q.v.), the result being the most desperate and costly Indian war in the his- tory of the Government. It began with the surprise and massacre of Major Dade's entire command of one hundred men on December 28, 183.5. and continued until 1842, resulting in the loss of thousands of lives and the expenditure of ten millicm dollars. In the end the Indians were conquered and removed to the Indian Terri- tory, with the exception of a few hundred who remained in Florida. Those removed to the Indian Territory and their descendants constitute the 'Seminole Na- tion,' w'ith a government organized upon the gen- eral plan existing among the others of the 'Five Civilized Tribes,' viz. Cherokee, Creek. Choctaw, and Chickasaw. With these also they came under agreement for individual allotment of their tribal lands and absorption into American citizenship in 1006. The number of 'citizens' of the Seminole n.ition officially reported in 1901 was 27.57, but this includes also adopted negroes, whites, and Indians of other tribes. A special report of the 72 SEMIPALATINSK. census of 1890 gives them 2739 'citizens,' classi- fied as: Seminole, pure and mixed with white, IG2I; negro and mixed negro-Seminole, 806: white, 172; Indians of other tribes, 140. The report also states that the Seminole intermarry with negroes, and that probably all those given as of negro descent would be classed by the Semi- nole themselves as Seminole. Those in Florida are in the Everglade region in the southern por- tion of the peninsula and were reported at 300, a considerable increase over earlier estimates. They refuse to mingle with the whites and re- tain most of their primitive customs derived from their Creek ancestors, including the cere- monies of the black drink and the green corn dance. Tliej- are strict monogamists. As they have no title to their lands, the Government has taken steps to secure for them a small reserva- tion to include their main settlements. See Creek. SEM'IONO'TXJS. A genus of ganoid fishes, the fossil remains of which are found in the Triassic rocks of Europe. Lepidotus is au allied genus, also occurring in the Trias. SEMIPALATINSK, sa'me-im-la-tyensk'. A territory of Russian Central Asia forming an administrative division of the Governor-General- ship of the Steppes. It is bounded by Tobolsk and Tomsk on the north, Sungaria on the south- east, Semiryetchensk on the south, and Akmo- linsk on the west (Map: Asia, G 4). Its area is estimated at from 188,000 to over 194.000 square miles. In the north the surface has the appearance of a steppe. The southeastern part belongs to the region of the Altai Mountains, and other chains cover the southwestern part. There are extensive valleys between the chains. The principal river is the Irtysh, which is navigable through its entire course in the territory. The largest lake is Saisan, about 80 miles long and from 10 to 20 miles wide. There are also nvi- merous lakes along the Irtysh and in the moun- tains, and Lake Balkhash touches the territory on the southwest. Gold, silver, lead, copper, graphite, and coal are the principal minerals. The climate is very severe. The winters are characterized by extreme cold and fearful snow storms, while the summers are very hot, the mean temperature ranging from 72° for .July to 5° for .January. The precipitation is scanty, and only in a small part of the territory can agri- culture be carried on without irrigation. Agri- culture is the principal occupation of the set- tled and of a part of the nomadic population, and is gradually increasing in importance. The principal agi'icultural products are wheat and oats. The nomadic Kirghizes, who form the bulk of the population, are engaged chiefly in stock- raising, and their herds numbered, in 1890. over 3.400,000 head, including nearly 72,000 camels and over 740.000 horses. Fishing is also of some importance. Some of the lakes yield considerable quantities of salt. The manufacturing indus- tries are naturally insignificant, the principal products being leather, tallow, soap, flour, and spirits. In 1897 the population was 68.5,197. The ^Mohammedans number over 5.50.000. SEMIPALATINSK. The capital of the Territory of Semipalatinsk. in Central Asia, on the right bank of the Irtysh. 2290 miles east- southeast of Moscow (Map: Asia, G 3). It has a