Hi Jim,
Found this
link with an ohms calculator and an explanation about series or parallel connection of multiple speakers.
Simple explanation is, 2 x 8 ohm speakers in parallel = 4 ohms
2 x 8 ohm speakers in series = 16 ohms.
2 x 4 ohm speakers in parallel = 2 ohms
2 x 4 ohm speakers in series = 8 ohms.
You should always try to match the speaker ohms to the amp ohms, for example a 4 ohm amp with 4 ohms of speaker load, 1 x 4 ohm box or 2 x 8 ohm speakers in parallel. Multi speaker boxes to achieve correct ohms is common as it enables the speaker system power to match the amp output, the amp may be 1000 watts so 2 x 500 watt speaker cabs may be used.
Using speakers that are higher ohms than the amp, say 4 ohm amp with 8 ohm speaker or 16 ohm speaker is OK (unless stated by the amp manufacturer) but the power output of the amp is reduced quite a lot. 100 watt 4 ohm amp would only give about 60 watts at 8 ohms or 40 watts at 16 ohms, this is a good trick for guitar players that want to overdrive the amp at lower volume, use a 8 ohm box with the amp set to 4 ohms.
Using speakers lower ohms than the amp, 2 ohms on a 4 ohms amp or 4 ohms on a 8 ohm amp is not advised as the amp will run very hot and will eventually blow the output transistors.
When connecting multiple speakers for the first time, I always check the ohms across the speaker cable before pugging into the amp, ohms meters are cheaply available from electronics shops and everyone should have one. They are good for checking cables for shorts and breaks too.
Cheers
Alan.