, 1860-03-23
lies here, suddenly dried up before its time, ant

lies here, suddenly dried mp before its time, and
the staff Of your advancing years, bereared
widow, lies broken by your side.
Yet with oil these ruins so sadly strewed |
around me; with Ill these hopes, 50 pteneturely
blasted, I repeat once mofe-Blessed is. the ]
illustrious dead, whose mortality We dep1ore,
blessed, because he died in the Lord
Christianity, too, weeps over the ioss Of
worthy disciple Of her school, md the church |
dons her robes Of mourning over loving |
aud distinguished SOD, hut her tears are not |
the tears Of hopeless sorrow--her sobs are not |
the echoes Of despair. Tho church feels her
loss, but she is also conscious Of his gain. She
knows that in parting with the children Of her |
bosom, such ~ W. II. BisselI, she parts with |
them IN the well grounded hope OF happier
meeting, and longer enjoyment Of mntua1bliss
in tha land Of the living, She feels that tho
mortality, which she deptores, is to be exchanged
with Immortality, and that ths dreaded corruI;.
ti2n u one day to give way to incozruption and
undy1ng glory.
You are aware, fellow citizens, that the object
Of our e6f:aun se.re. and our common tear3
died firm believer iii !he doctrines Of church
whose cradle was at bethlehem, whose E;a:Efh
5oss asE I3 ts I StS"h asnes sf ,5s
rock Upon whoae foundation she was built ty
her Divine Founder, and DIX alust which the gates
Of He'll sh4ll never prevail. 5iuch a tnany Of
you may wonder, Gov. " II. Bissell diedatrue,
sincere believer in the doctrines and practices
Of the church Of Roma His was the faith of
the Constautines Of Rome, the Chorlemaynes
md Louizcs Of France, tho .Alfreds and
Edwards Of England, tie SxeaJns Of
Denmark, and the Stephens of uuognry.-
His was the religion Of the Confines and the
Eicheleus-the religion of the SobiesEies, Ro'
saaskos and Fulaskis, Of the Carols Of Carroll
tn, the Gastons and the Taneys. Strange as
it many appear to those who are eitl,t r lguorant
Of the real nature Of that church's doctrines, CT
prejudiced against her practices, the latr Gov.
Rlssell believed it possibis to BE- good Catholic
loyal citizen Of Republic, which secures to all
men not only the possession Of their inalienablc
civil aud social rig hts and privileges, but more
over perfect and untrameled freedom Of con-
science to worship God according to the dictates
Of their conscience.
Nor do doubt but your surprise would cease
were you, like him, convinced Of the motives
which haid aod bound him to the faith Of nine
teen centuries. Had 5ou. like him, studied the
claims aud titles which she has to the respect
and veneration OF all who desire to secure the
welfare Of their soul through endless ages, Us
earnestly as they long to secure tie interests Of
nn,eting time. you would cease to wonder and
| you would admire The wisdom which guided his
choice.
shall not dwell upon aach anil eref; motlFe
| which made him cast his religious anch r &c.
meath the rock Of pet=r, and trust bis lininorta!
destiniss to the bark Of the tisnerMan of Gslice.
Suffice it to say, that he did not do so without
sufficient reason. 4 man of his intellect and
| intelligence could not, without due reflection
aud o thorough conviction, exchange one form
| Of religion for another, Esptclatt. ut an age
when the ardor Of youth has cooled down into
the calm conpusute Of age-when the enthusi-
asm of the heart has given Way to the contenl.
! p]ation Of the mind and the imagination yielded
respectfully to the empire ofreason. Governor
Bisse1l became convert to the faith Of Rome
st period Of life when neither the impnlsiye-
! ness Of dashing nature, nor the trowardness
Of PASSIONATE saul, is anJ longer the only in
duceuent fur,a change in SO vital i Judgment
as that Of religious talth and religious practlce.
His late Exceleucy became member Of tic
Roman Ca.Lolic Church in 1864, in the City Of
Washington, D. G.. The Rev. James Doncl!an,
then pastor If one Of tue Catholic Churches Of
that city, baptized him. and the Rev. Father
Early, rreslden: Of Loyola College, ba'tlmore,
admitted him to his first communion. How
ever, his couYictlcns Of tie truth Of Ca1hoI,c!ty
dated back as early as the year 1s4o, when be
was at the residence Of Gen. James, in Muuroe
| County. From these circumstances you may
Judge, fellow citizens, that his was net hast,
step, nor Il rash enterprise. He jo'ned tile
Church Of Rome from sheer conviction; n''
earthly motives could hare influenced a man oi
his standing and his relations to society. On
the contrary, consulting his human Interests
only. be ought 10 have shrunk with fear and
dread from tie resolution He knew full well
that the Church which be was about to join was
| not, what we nre accustomed to call, ropukI'
. Church. Ho knew tha. stroug prejudfces, de
| generatin. at times into hutTed aud yindsctlve
] rcss, miIitated against its doctrines ard 1t:
| practices. He knew that it's members were no
generally either the fAyoritas Of fortune, or The
successful candidates for political and natlona
llunors. lie knew all this, aud ye: he courage
! ousty resolved to bo true TO the convictions
which l,nd grown upon him with lis years. ant
to The grace Of God, which never ceuscd Il
! prompt him to realize it in its immediate exc
cuton.
Dare dwell on some Of tue leading motive
! which determined Wi|liam II. Bssell to beg "a
mission into the Church Of tile Vatican: Wa
it not, i'll the first place, the very nsture OF nc
Constisution-so symmetrical in all its proper
tions-so harmonious In a.l its dependencies
Was !, not that unity aud variety, the creates
beauty Of the supernatural, " u - OF II
natural. order Of things: There va y,
Christ. tho Founder ef the !nstitut's1@fh i,,h
ever ,hc provisabo head Of His own Di' iuc e
tablishment, ra,,Iying it by Ills own mysseriou
presencv, and presiding as well is walking owe
il, immortal iat:es,<, Christ sepdins bis pltf
| ipotcntiary Ambassatl6rs, who we1e, al the sam
time, Ills disinelS commissioned teachers 4n
Apostles. into the whole world to teach all III
; tions, tnptizing them in the name oft be Fathe
and Of the Snn, and of tue Holy Ghost, teactiin
r / then, 10 observe all things whatever lie la
commanded them, and prosnisin. them, ia til
very same breath, that He would bc with tl'e1.
teaching, baPttz'ng, aad con'mnnd.ng even
. the colsun,n,asions Of the world" Then. tler
was the Divine Spiri:, the l'araclete, wbo'
after Ills oHn physical departure from anon
$ them, the would send donn upun them, !
D abide with them for ever; to tcacl, them
:, ! truth, and to bring hack to their minds whs'
crcr be Ii ID taught them. As every antellsgeI
n n+-r 1fNA1 "a
: Iyion which should net be the creature Of mel
p cavrice; rhe child Of whim; but the ohsptin
uf mind which canycth not; upon who:
I nature is impressed the Divine character Of in
mutabtlty. liz ~aried i faith which shou
b not depend on the shifting. notions aud cst
upon the rock If eternal truth, against whie
neither hig1-hanslel violence nor indirida:
| wilf1ncss should ever prevail.
j, lie crlyed religion. which while 1t Wou
: leave h'n, all his individual rights as sutjt
i OF uatu1c's and Of reasons empire. would max
r him own his detcndeEee OH the higher law
g grace, whose voice although in,perious. c.
4 never become tyrannical OF despotic- GoEerns
= Bissell was too keen logiciaa, too practical
: statesman, not to see that religion wien left
O the option Of every individual in such q ina
;. ner, as not evcn to recognize the sovereign a
;, | thority Of God who reveals it, and II the ma
# ncr ia which Re reveals 1t. would resetnb
r your State or cur Republic, on the hyl'o'hes
,s that there should be no State sove1ci.nsy, but
!. | mere arbitrar: seIfgovrrnment OF eTery tnd1r'
!. ual for himself Religion without Supreme au'h
r. in matters OF faith, he looked upon Us sta
d | government without legislature or exeeutiv
;. | Then be looked back through the brilliant pa
i. | Of that glorious church. He unrolEed
:. pareLments and nnciphered her tell-:ale bier
If | gl5phics. He read of her as she w as usher
/, into existence, ,9us years ago, IN the cenac
l., | or supper room Ut Jerusalem. He folio" ed
!. gradual expansion under the tcoHrgts OF Il
] | Sanhed1im; the stones Of the Jew.eb mch;
n the prisons Of kings; in The are ma OF empcrel
h and on tic rack and torture, presided over
e wicked governmental 1uinions. lie behcld
# COY win the blood Of thousands of con.esso
i, | aud millions Of martyrs.
= lie followed her down into the meandeEl
# avenues Of the catacombs, and CAME t"rth vi
,e her from those subtcrrancln cayerns to -
N himself bv the side Of her on the throne Of I
d Constantiucs. lie went with her OH her d'ilic
>. mission Of civilization. lie stood by her VII
r. she drove the Atlas back trcm the gates OF !
n, Eternal City, and when she bale Gcnseric
Ii spect ter rights and those Of her subjects. w
to her he was wondering ut the mnte than hum
In success with which She built OIL tue ruins
- ancient Rome, another city Of immortal rnkn'o
Il Then nca'n lie gazed upou her with niscdtc tcn
i. 1nents of frar and surprise, when she met
n / barbarian Frank, and Goth, and fandal, .
p. | kent them at bay for centuries. ar, when
~. longer able to resist tte she took to the hap
e. policy Of making spiritual children Of Eer te
- | poral masters. Descending the stream OF til
ot | be hrhe!d a'nng its barks the ruins ol
II mishticss dyna,t:es, empires aud Kingdoms Il
/ n-n- e.xora.} III .3oa,inias nf natinn8+ Sht