I hope, Sir, there can be no objection to the resolution. It ought to pass unanimously. Who will array himself on the side of this wrong? The resolution was agreed to, and the Committee proceeded to a full investigation, of which they made extended report,[184] accompanied by a bill for the repeal of the Society’s charter; but adverse influence, continued through two sessions to the expiration of the Congress, succeeded in preventing action. THE LATE HON. WILLIAM PITT FESSENDEN, SENATOR OF MAINE. REMARKS IN THE SENATE ON HIS DEATH, DECEMBER 14, 1869. MR. PRESIDENT,--A seat in this Chamber is vacant. But this is a very inadequate expression for the present occasion. Much more than a seat is vacant. There is a void difficult to measure, as it will be difficult to fill. Always eminent from the beginning, Mr. Fessenden during these latter years became so large a part of the Senate that without him it seems to be a different body. His guiding judgment, his ready power, his presence so conspicuous in debate, are gone, taking away from this Chamber that identity which it received so considerably from him. Of all the present Senate, one only besides myself witnessed his entry into this Chamber. I cannot forget it. He came in the midst of that terrible debate on the Kansas and Nebraska Bill by which the country was convulsed to its centre, and his arrival had the effect of a reinforcement on a field of battle. Those who stood for Freedom then were few in numbers,--not more than fourteen,--while thirty-seven Senators in solid column voted to break the faith originally plighted to Freedom, and to overturn a time-honored landmark, opening that vast Mesopotamian region to the curse of Slavery. Those anxious days are with difficulty comprehended by a Senate where Freedom rules. One more in our small number was a sensible addition. We were no longer fourteen, but fifteen. His reputation at the bar and his fame in the other House gave assurance which was promptly sustained. He did not wait, but at once entered into the debate with all those resources which afterwards became so famous. The scene that ensued exhibited his readiness and courage. While saying that the people of the North were fatigued with the threat of Disunion, that they considered it as “mere noise and nothing else,” he was interrupted by Mr. Butler, of South Carolina, always ready to speak for Slavery, exclaiming, “If such sentiments as yours prevail, I want a dissolution right away,”--a characteristic intrusion doubly out of order,--to which the new-comer rejoined, “Do not delay it on my account; do not delay it on account of anybody at the North.” The effect was electric; but this instance was not alone. Douglas, Cass, and Butler interrupted only to be worsted by one who had just ridden into the lists. The feelings of the other side were expressed by the Senator from South Carolina, who, after one of the flashes of debate which he had provoked, exclaimed: “Very