The Sun.
London, England, 1865-07-06 00:00:00

Lord Derby and the Catholics.

Dr. Bakewell, of llanley, a Roman Catholic sup-
porter of Mr. Beresford Hope, having communi-
cated to Lord Derby the indignation felt by his
co-religionists at the offensive expressions used by
the noble lord in the recent debate on the Roman
Catholic Oaths Bill, his lordship has forwarded tho
following explanation :

" St. Jamos's-squaro, July 4, 1865.

" Sir,—l have to acknowledge the receipt of your letter
of the 2d inst. Absence from town during the whole of
yesterday plevented my replying to it by return of post.
I should be very sorry that any vote or speech of mile
should prejudice the interests of a Conservative candidate
at the approaching elections ; but I should be still more so
if any expression used by me should give just cause of
offence to any of my fellow-countrymen. Nothing, un-
doubtedly, was further from my thoughts on the occa-
sion to which you refer. As to the vote itself, I should
have been most happy, as I distinctly stated, to relieve the
Roman Catholics from the obligation of disclaiming prin-
ciples the imputation of which they feel to be offensive
to 'them, and from the disclaimers of which Protestants
have (very recently) been relieved ; but I could not con-
sent hastily, and without knowing the feelings of Pro-
testants generally, to abrogate an oath which was intro-
duced, and on the proposition of the highest Roman
Catholic authorities, as a safeguard to the Established
Church. The Government refuse to separate the two, and
allow the first to be repealed without the repeal of the other
also; and I therefore feel that I had no alternative but to
give what I admitted was a reluctant vote against the-
second reading of the bill.
"As to the particular expression to which you refer as
having given umbrage, any one who will do me the favour
of looking at my speech will see that if there were any-
thing offensive in the expression I am not responsible for
it, but that I referred to it as having been a phrase which
I characterised as being more forcible than elegant,' or
some such expression, introduced by Mr. Kennedy, amera-
ber of Parliament recently returned for an Irish county, and
mainly by the influence of the Roman Catholic clergy, and
who clung so perseveringly to the expression that when,
replied to as having spoken of unlocking the lips of mem-
bers,' he interrupted by saying, ' The words I used were—
unmuzzle the senators.' Quoting his words, I followed up
his metaphor. I certainly, however, should not have dona
so had I imagined that it would be capable of an offensive
interpretation ; and I should greatly regret to find that it
had wounded the feelings of any class of my fellow-subjects.
"You are at liberty to make any use you think fit of this
letter.—l am, sir, yours, &c., "DERBY.
"R. H. Bakewell, Esq., M.D."

ROBBERY OF £l,BOO BY A COMMERCIAL TRAVEL-
LER.—James Stevenson, a commercial traveller,
who absconded in April last from Edinburgh, whero he
was employed by Messrs. Richardson and Co., drysalters,
was apprehended recently in Toronto, Canada, by Mr. W.
M'Dowell, one of the Edinburgh detective force, and yes-
terday arrived at Liverpool by the Peruvian, in MtDowell's
custody. Stevenson had embezzled the moneys of his
employers to the extent of £l,BOO. M'Dowell, it appears,
had an arduous chase after his man. When apprehended
Stevenson was engaged as a ploughman. He had spent all
the money. The captor and his prisoner left Liverpool yes-
day 'afternoon for Edinburgh.
SHOCKING ACCIDENT.—At Rahway, New Jersey,
on the evening of the 15th of June, as three young ladies
and a gentleman, returning from a pic-nic party, alighted
from their carriage, the last lady's crinoline got entangled
with the steps of the carriage, and the horses taking fright
dashed off at a furious speed, the lady's head and shoulders
dragging upon the ground. The horses ran a great distance,
and when they were stopped the young lady's remains were
in a frightfully mutilated state.

THE ABYSSINIAN PRISONERS. —A letter from
Djeddah, iu the Pays, states that Captain Cameron has just
been freed from chains, and will shortly recover his liberty,
Messrs. Stern and Rosenthal, however, were still in prison
and in chains.