SEMMES 336 SENATE for the Austrian Government between 1848 and 1853. SEMMES, RAPHAEL, an American naval officer; born in Charles co., Md., Sept. 27, 1809; was appointed, in 1828, a midshipman on board the "Lexington," and rose by successive steps to the rank of commander in 1855. He was nomi- nated, in 1858, secretary to the Light- house Board, which situation he held when the war broke out. He then joined the Confederate service, March 26, 1861, and was made commander of the war steamer "Sumter." With this vessel he caused considerable damage to the United States merchant navy, and having been driven into the port of Gibraltar by stress of weather, sold her to a "neutral." He was then ordered to take the command of a vessel built in England, and known at first as "290," which afterward became famous as the "Alabama." His exploits while commander of this vessel, though not so dashing as those of Paul Jones during the first American war, were far more destructive. After having inflicted an enormous amount of loss on the Na- tional commerce, the "Alabama," which had been into Cherbourg, France, for re- pairs, encountered outside the harbor a United States war steamer, the "Kear- sarge," Capt. John A. Winslow, June 10, 1864. A French man-of-war followed her to prevent any violation of international law. The fight took place about 9 miles from Cherbourg, and was both short and decisive. The "Kearsarge," a powerful ship, was defended by iron chains slung over the bulwarks, on which the shot of the "Alabama" could make but little im- pression; and in rather more than an hour from the beginning of the fight the "Alabama" was completely disabled. The crew tried to reach the French coast with her, but failed in the attempt, and she began to sink. Commander Semmes, and some of the sailors, including 13 officers, were saved by the boats of an English steam yacht, the "Deerhound," which had accompanied the "Alabama" from Cher- bourg to be a spectator of the fight. Semmes succeeded, after some difficulty, in making his way back to the Southern States ; but the effectual blockade of their ports deprived him of any further chance of continuing his adventurous career. He wrote the "Cruise of the Alabama and Sumter," and the "Log of the Ala- bama" (1864) ; "Memoirs of Service Afloat" (1869). He died in Mobile, Ala., Aug. 30, 1877. SEMOLINA, a term applied to a kind of wheat meal in large, hard grains, used for making puddings, thickening soup, etc. SEMPACH, a village of Switzerland, in the canton and 8 miles N. W. of Lu- cerne, on Lake Sempach. It is remark- able as being the scene of a great victory which the Swiss gained over the Aus- trians under Duke Leopold who was slain, together with 600 nobies and up- ward of 2,000 troops. The victory was attributed to the heroism of Arnold of Winkelried. SENATE, in ancient history, the de- liberative assembly of the Roman people; but the term has been applied to very different powers and constitutions in dif- ferent countries. In the Greek republics, as well as among the Romans, the num- ber of senators was regulated by the number of tribes into which the state was divided. Accordingly, while Attica was divided into four tribes, the number of senators was 400) and when the num- ber of tribes was increased to 10, the number of senators was also enlarged to 500. The Roman Senate, during the primitive days of the city, participated in the judicial and executive powers of the king, and even in the management of military affairs. Romulus was said to have originated the Senate; but in doing this, he only imitated all the civilized nations dwelling on the shores of the Mediterranean, who all deemed it neces- sary to have an assembly of the elder citizens of the state, besides a popular assembly. Under Tarquinius Priscus, the number of senators was increased to 300, each of the 300 houses (gentes), which composed the three tribes, having its de- curio, or representative head, in the Sen- ate. Subsequently, the election of the senators was made by the censor reading aloud once in every luster (five years) the names of the senators, the worthiest first ; the one first named being styled princeps senatus. Those who were deemed un- worthy of the dignity were degraded by the omission of their names. The sena- tors were chiefly drawn from the ranks of the equestrian order. In the days of the republic, a senator was required to possess property to the value of about $22,500, and in the days of Augustus of about $32,500. The Senate was assembled by the supreme officers of government, deciding the propositions laid before it, article by article, by a majority of voices. A decree of the Senate was called senatus consultum. If the decree was opposed by the tribune, or if the Senate was not full, the act was termed senatus auctoritas, and was submitted to the people, whose tribunes could reject every proposition by their vote. The Senate had within its jurisdiction all matters of public admin- istration, questions of peace or war, the choice of public officers, and the financial
