Page:Appletons' Cyclopædia of American Biography (1900, volume 5).djvu/483

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SEGURA
SEIDEL

owned a large estate. A few years later in his Melanges" he published the journal of his trav- els, which attracted much attention. He was min- ister tn Russia in 1784 '9, and to Berlin in 1792. Ruined by the revolution, he supported his family during the following years almost exclusively >> his pen. He was deputy to the corps legislatif in 1801, elected in 1803 a member of the French acad- emy, and afterward became a councillor of state, grand master of the ceremonies, count of the em- pire in 1810, and a senator, 5 April, 1814. After the restoration of the Bourbons he became a peer of France, 4 June, 1814, and always sided with the liberals. His works include " Pensees politiques " (Paris, 1795); "Melanges" (1796); "Tableau his- torique et politique de 1'Europe, 1780-1796" (3 vols., 1801); "Histoire de Frederic Guillaume II." (1801); "Politique de tous les cabinets de 1'Eu- rope pendant les regnes de Louis XV. et Louis XVI." (3 vols., 1801-'22) ; " Galerie morale et poli- tique " (3 vols., 1817-'24) ; " Histoire de France " (9 vols., 1824-'30) ; and " Memoires ou souvenirs et anecdotes " (3 vols., 1824). His complete works were published in 1824 (33 vols.).


SEGURA, Juan Bautista (say-goo'-rah), Span- ish missionary, b. in Toledo, Spain ; d. in Virginia in February, 1571. He entered the Society of Jesus at Alcala in April, 1566, was appointed vice-pro- vincial of Florida in 1568, and sailed the same year from Spain at the head of a band of mission- aries. Landing at Havana, he made arrangements for the education of young Indians, and then set out for the province of Carlos in Florida. He spent several months in studying the language, at the same time attending to the spiritual interests of the Spanish soldiers. When able to converse with the natives, he labored for about a year in the countries along Appalachee bay, but with little suc- cess. Thinking that he would have better prospects at a distance from the Spanish ports, he accepted the offer of a converted Indian, Luis de Velasco, who promised to conduct him in safety to his tribe and assist him in his pious endeavors. Accom- panied by Luis, a Jesuit, and seven lay brothers, hegura sailed from Santa Helena on 5 Aug., 1570, entered Chesapeake bay, ascended the Potomac, and landed on 10 Sept. The missionaries found the natives in a miserable condition, owing to a famine which had prevailed for several years, and therefore sent their vessel back for supplies, es- pecially seed-corn, which they hoped to persuade the Indians to plant. They then pressed on through a vast track of marsh and wood, expecting to find a village which Luis said was ruled by his brother. They spent more than a month travelling, living on roots and herbs, but without reaching their destination. In February they were deserted by their guide, who went to his brother's village, about five miles distant, promising to prepare his countrymen for their arrival. Some time having elapsed without hearing from him, Segura sent three of his companions to beg him to return. The messengers were attacked and killed by Luis at the head of a band of Indians. Luis then pro- ceeded to the hut which the missionaries had erected and demanded the hatchets and knives which they had with them. Segura gave them up silently, and then knelt with his companions in prayer. At a signal they were all massacred, only an Indian boy escaping. The name given to the country which Segura attempted to evangelize was Axacan. It lay between the Potomac and the Rappahannock, probably extending on each side of these rivers. He wrote '" Tratado de la Humildad y Obediencia" (Madrid, 1600).


SEGUROLA, Sebastian de (say-goo-ro'-lah), Spanish-American soldier, b. in Guipuzcoa, Spain, 27 Jan.. 1740; d. in La Paz, Bolivia, 2 Oct.. 1789. After pursuing the studies then necessary for the career of arms, he was appointed a cadet in the regiment of royal guards in 1758. In 1776 he sailed from Cadiz to take part in the expedition sent by the viceroy of Buenos Ayres to check the incur- sions of the Portuguese on Spanish territory. He was decorated with the cross of Calatrava for his services, and appointed corregidor over the prov- ince of Larecaja. He took part in the campaign on the Rio de la Plata, and, on the conclusion of peace, fixed his residence in Sorata, the principal town of his government of Larecaja. Here he received intelligence of the rebellion of Jose Ga- briel Tupac-Amaru, cacique of Tungasuca, which extended to several provinces, and he was ordered to take command of the city of La Paz and the neighboring provinces on 1 Jan., 1781. The siege of La Paz was the most memorable incident in the rebellion, and the city's safety was entirely due to his firmness and energy. In 1782 lie was raised to the rank of brigadier, and appointed governor of the city, which post he held until his death. His " Diario de los sucesos del cerco de la ciudad de La Paz en 1781 hasta la total pacificacion de la rebelion general del Peru," printed in the first volume of the " Archive Boliviano " (Paris, 1871), gives a minute account of the incidents of the siege and the subsequent expeditions against the hostile tribes, and contains interesting letters from the inca and other Indian chiefs.


SEIDEL, Nathaniel. Moravian bishop, b. in Lauban, Silesia, 2 Oct., 1718 ; d. in Bethlehem, Pa., 17 May, 1782. He emigrated to this country in 1742, and became the most indefatigable of the early Moravian evangelists among the white set- tlers and the Indians. For eighteen years his life was an almost uninterrupted succession of jour- neys. He began such itinerant work with a visit to the aborigines of the Susquehanna in 1743 ; af- ter that he repeatedly traversed Pennsylvania as far as Sunbury, the eastern counties of New York, New England as far as Boston, and Maryland as far as Frederick county. All these journeys were performed on foot. He was often in great danger, and on one occasion barely escaped falling into the hands of two savages, who pursued him through a forest for hours. In 1750 he proceeded to Europe and gave Count Zinzendorf an account of the work in America, returning in 1751 and continuing his itinerant labors until 1753, when he sailed to the West Indies and visited the mission on the Danish islands. He came back the same year and soon afterward led a company of Moravian settlers to North Carolina, where the church had purchased a large tract of land. It was a hard and perilous journey of forty days. In midwinter he returned to Bethlehem. His next tour was to Surinam, in South America, where in 1755 he selected a site for a mission. On his return he again began to itinerate among the settlers and natives, and continued such labors until 1757. In that year he visited Europe a second time, and on 12 May, 1758, was consecrated to the episcopacy at Herrnhut. His first visitation took place in the West Indies in 1759. Two years later he returned to Bethlehem, having been appointed presiding bishop of his church. The onerous duties of this office he discharged with great faithfulness for twenty-one years until his death. He continued to take a warm interest in the Indian mission ; and the massacre of nearly 100 converts, in the sin-ing of KS2. at Gnadenhuetten, Ohio, by a band of whites, on the