Hale, NATHAN

Hale, NATHAN, an American soldier, who was born at Coventry, Connecticut, 6th June 1755, rose to the rank of captain in the Continental army, and, having volunteered to penetrate the British lines and procure intelligence for Washington, was detected, and executed as a spy in New York city, 22d September 1776. See Lossing, The Two Spies, Nathan Hale and John André (New York, 1886).—His grand-nephew, EDWARD EVERETT HALE, was born in Boston; Massachusetts, 3d April 1822, graduated at Harvard in 1839, and was admitted to the Congregational ministry in 1842. In 1856 he was called to the South Congregational (Unitarian) Church in Boston, and in 1879 he received his doctorate from Harvard. His influence in philanthropic movements has been widespread. His book Ten Times One is Ten (Boston, 1870) originated in America a numerous series of 'Lend a Hand' clubs, sometimes under other names, and with offshoots in Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Pacific Islands; a recent development in the United States is the society of 'The King's Daughters.' The motto of these clubs is 'Look up and not down; look forward and not back; look out and not in; and lend a hand.' Dr Hale has edited several religious and other journals, as well as Lingard's History of England, and original documents (from the British state papers and the British Museum) bearing on the founding of Virginia. His published books, mostly stories, number nearly fifty.