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SPEY 21 SPEYER, JAMES Garmouth, after a course of about 96 miles. It has a vei-y rapid course, is used for floating down timber, and is noted for its salmon fisheries. SPEYER, or SPEIER (French, Spires), the capital of the Bavarian Palatinate and the seat of a bishop; on the Rhine, 14 miles S. W. of Heidelberg. The most important buildings are the cathedral, the Hall of Antiquities, the Altportel, and the remains of the Ret- scher or imperial palace. The cathedral, reckoned the finest specimen of Roman- esque architecture in Europe, was founded in 1030 by Konrad II. as a burial place for himself and his succes- sors, and completed in 1061 by his grandson, Heinrich IV., the opponent of Pope Gregory the Great. On several oc- casions it suffered severely at the hands of the French, especially in 1794, when it was turned into a barn; but in 1822 it was reconstructed, and in 1858 the work of restoration was completed. Its length is 485 feet, breadth of nave nearly 50 feet, height of the four towers 237 feet. The interior is richly decorated with some of the finest specimens of imodern German art. Speyer has cigar and vinegar works, and does a little transit trade on the Rhine. Under the Romans Speyer was known as Augusto Nemetum, and during the Middle Ages it was a place of considerable im- portance, 29 imperial diets having been held within its walls, at one of which 0529) the Reformers offered the pro- test which procured for them the name of Protestants. During the wars of Louis XIV. in the Palatinate, Speyer was several times sacked by the French, and in 1689 the whole town was com- mitted to the flames. Pop. about 25,000. SPEZIA, the principal naval port of Italy; near the head of a deep and com- modious bay on the W. side of the pen- insula; 56 miles S. E. of Genoa. It was Napoleon I. who first recognized the suitability of this bay for the purposes to which the Italians, instigated thereto by Cavour, have now put it. An artifi- cial breakwater (built in I860), 2,400 feet long, covers the entrance; while formidable batteries of the heaviest artillery (supplemented by torpedo ap- pliances) bristle on the hills that over- look the bay and on the island of Pal- meria that guards its entrance. Here the Italians have constructed the great national arsenal, and build their large warships, and have their ship repairing yards and docks, and their naval vic- tualling yards, store houses, etc. There are also in the town large barracks, a military hospital, as well as schools of navigation, an iron foundry, and manU' factures of cables, sail-cloth, and white lead. During the World War Spezia was a naval port of great importance. The adjacent country produces excellent olive oil. The beauty of the bay and the lovely climate cause Spezia to be much frequented as a seaside resort. It was on the shoi-es of this bay that Shelley spent the last few months of his life, while at the town of Spezia Charles Lever lived and wrote for some years. Pop. about 73,500. SPEYER, SIR EDGAR, a British cap- italist, born at Frankfort-on-Main, in 1862. He was educated at the Real Gym- nasium, Frankfort-on-Main, Germany. He became a partner in his father's three firms — Speyer Bros., London; Speyer & Co., New York, and L. Speyer, Ellissen, Frankfort-on-Main. He was resident partner in the Frankfort SIR EDGAR SPEYER firm till 1887, when he took direction of the London house, and retired from the New York and Frankfort firms in 1914. He is one of the founders of the White- chapel Art Gallery, and was in 1905 a member of the Company Law Amend- ment Committee. He was made a Baronet in 1906 and a Privy Councillor in 1909. SPEYER, JAMES, an American banker, born in New York City, in 1861. He was educated in Germany, and in 1883 entered the banking house of his father, at Frankfort-on-the-Main. After service in the Paris and London branches, he was given charge of the New York branch, becoming finally head of the firm. He was one of the most prominent financiers in New York and was trustee and director in various