SPARTANBURG, a city and the county-seat of Spartanburg county South Carolina, U.S.A., about 94 m. N.W. of Columbia Pop. (1890), 5544; (1900), 11,395, of whom 4269 were negroes; (1910 census), 17,517. Spartanburg is served by the Southern, the Charleston & Western Carolina (controlled by the Atlantic Coast line), the Glenn Springs, the Carolina, Clinchfield & Ohio, and inter-urban (electric) railways. It is a thriving city in a cotton-growing and cotton-manufacturing region, about 800 ft. above the sea and 25 m. S.E. of the Blue Ridge. Spartanburg is the seat of Wofford College (Methodist Episcopal, South; founded in 1850 with a bequest of Benjamin Wofford, a local Methodist minister, and opened in 1854), which had, in 1908, 12 instructors and 286 students; also of Converse College (nonsectarian; for women), which was founded by D. E. Converse in 1889, opened in 1890, and in 1908 had 22 instructors and 355 students. An annual musical festival is held here under the auspices of the Converse College Choral Society. Four miles south of the city, at Cedar Spring, is the South Carolina Institution for the Education of the Deaf and Blind, founded as a private institution in 1849 and taken over by the state in 1857. There are gold-mines near the city; and Spartanburg county produces large crops of cotton. Cotton mills are the basis of the city's prosperity, and it has also a large wholesale trade, iron-working establishments, and various manufactures. The value of its factory product was $2,127,702 in 1905, or 33.7% more than in 1900. Spartanburg was founded in 1787, and, although railway communication with Columbia and Charleston was opened in 1859, there was little growth until the establishment of the first cotton mill in the vicinity in 1880; it was chartered as a city in this year.
SPEAKER, a title of the presiding officer in the legislatures
of various countries. In the English parliament the lord chancellor acts as Speaker of the House of Lords, but should his
office be in commission the Crown usually appoints a Speaker
to supply his place, a case in point being that of Sir L. Shadwell,
vice-chancellor, who in 1835 was appointed Speaker during the
time the Great Seal was in commission. Unlike the House of
Commons, the Speaker of the House of Lords need not necessarily be a member of the House; Brougham in 1830 sat on the
woolsack as Speaker in his capacity of lord chancellor, being
then plain Mr Brougham, his patent of nobility not having
yet been made out. The House of Lords has also deputy
Speakers who are appointed by commission. The duties of the
Speaker of the House of Lords are defined by a standing order
as follows: " The lord chancellor, when he speaks to the House,
is always to speak uncovered, and is not to adjourn the House,
or to do anything else as mouth of the House, without the
consent of the Lords first had, except the ordinary thing about
bills, which are of course, wherein the Lords may likewise over-
rule; as for preferring one bill before another, and such-like;
and in case of difference among the Lords, it is to be put to the
question ; and if the lord chancellor will speak to anything particularly he is to go to his own place as a peer." The Speaker
of the House of Lords, as compared with the Speaker of the
House of Commons, is an official without power; even his seat,
the woolsack, is technically outside the House. Contrary to
the practice in the Commons, he acts as a strong party man,
making speeches on behalf of government measures from his
place as a peer. Proposals have from time to time been made
for augmenting the powers of the Speaker of the House of
Lords, but it has been pointed out that, as he is a minister of
the Crown, and not chosen by the House itself, and moreover
is often the member of the least experience in the House, it
would be inexpedient that he should exercise the same powers
as the Speaker of the Commons.
The Speaker of the House of Commons is always a member of that House, and though chosen by the members themselves (subject to the approval of the sovereign) from one of the great political parties, he never either votes (except in the case of a tie) or speaks in his capacity as a member during the time he holds office. His duty is to enforce the observance of the rules laid down for preserving order in the proceedings of the I House; he puts every question and declares the determination thereon. As " mouth of the House " he communicates its or resolutions to others, conveys its thanks, and expresses its censure, its reprimands or its admonitions. He issues warrants for executing the orders of the House, as the commitment of offenders, the issue of writs, the attendance of witnesses or prisoners in custody, &c. The symbol of his authority is the mace, which is borne before him by the serjeant-at-arms when he enters or leaves the House; it reposes on the table when he is in the chair, and it accompanies him on all state occasions. The Speaker takes precedence of all commoners in the kingdom both by ancient custom and by legislative declaration (1 Will. & Mary c. 21). His salary is £5000 a year. It is usual to create a retiring Speaker a peer of the realm, generally with the rank of viscount. The office is of great antiquity, and in the various conflicts between the Commons and the Crown was one of considerable difficulty, especially when, as mouthpiece of the House, he had to read petitions or addresses or deliver in the presence of the sovereign speeches on their behalf. The first to whom the title was definitely given was Sir Thomas Hungerford (d. 1398).
A list of Speakers, most of whom are separately noticed, from 1600 is appended. The date of election is given in brackets:—
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J. Croke (1601). Sir E. Phelips (1604). Sir R. Crewe (1614). T. Richardson (1621).
- l Sir T. Crewe (1624).
Sir H. Finch (1626). SirJ. Finch (1628). J. Glanville (1640).
- 2 W. Lenthall (1640).
H. Pelham (1647). F. Rous (1653). Sir T. Widdrington (1656). C. Chute (1659). Sir L. Long (1659). T. Bampfylde (1659). W. Say (1660). Sir H. Grimston (1660). Sir E. Tumour (1661). Sir J. Charlton (1673).
- E. Seymour (1673).
Sir R. Sawyer (1678). Sir W. Gregory (1679).
- W. Williams (1680).
- 3 Sir J. Trevor (1685).
H. Powle (1689). P. Foley (1695). Sir T. Littleton (1698).
- R. Harley (1701)
{Earl of Oxford). 4 J. Smith (1705). Sir R. Onslow (1708).
Sir T. Hanmer (1714).
- S. Compton (17 1 5)
{Earl of Wilmington).
- 5 A. Onslow (1728).
- Sir J. Cust (1761).
- Sir Fletcher Norton (1770)
{Lord Granlly).
- C. W. Cornwall (1780).
W. W. Grenville (1789)
{Lord Grenville).
- 6 H. Addington (1789)
{Viscount Sidmouth). Sir J. Mitford (1801) {Lord Redesdale).
- C. Abbott (1802)
{Lord Colchester).
- 7 H. C. M. Sutton (1817)
{Viscount Canterbury).
- J. Abercromby (1835)
{Lord Dunfermline).
- C. Shaw Lefevre (1841)
{Viscount Eversley).
- J. E. Denison (1857)
{Viscount Ossington).
- H. B. Brand (1872)
( Viscount Hampden).
- A. W. Peel (1884)
{Viscount Peel).
- W. C. Gully (1895)
{Viscount Selby).
- J. W. Lowther (1905).
W. Bromley (1710).
- Speaker in more than one parliament.
The title of Speaker is also applied to the presiding officer of the various legislative assemblies in the British colonies, that of president being applied to the presiding officer of the upper houses, legislative councils as they are usually called. In Canada, however, the presiding officer both of the Senate and the House of Commons is termed Speaker. In the United States the Speaker of the House of Representatives is an officer of con- siderable power (see United States: ConslitutionandGovernment).
Authorities. — Stubbs, Constitutional History; J. A. Manning, Lives of the Speakers (1850); E. Lummis, The Speaker's Chair
1 Brother of Sir R. Crewe.
2 Speaker of the Long Parliament.
3 Convicted of bribery and expelled, 1695.
4 First Speaker of the Commons of Great Britain.
6 Nephew of Sir R. Onslow, Speaker in 1708 and great-great- great-grandson of R. Onslow, Speaker in the second parliament of Elizabeth. Arthur Onslow was the second Speaker to be elected five times; the first Speaker to be so elected was Thomas Chaucer in the reign of Henry V. Onslow also held the Speakership for the longest period (1 727-1 761).
6 Afterwards prime minister. Was first Speaker of the Commons of the United Kingdom.
7 First to be Speaker six times and seven times.
