Another debate on the Catholic Oaths Bill came off on
Monday, Sir. H. Cairns moving that such parts of the oath as compel Another debate on the Catholic Oaths Bill came off on Monday, Sir. H. Cairns moving that such parts of the oath as compel
Catholics to abjure any intention to subvert the Established Church should be retained. Mr. Disraeli supported the amend- ment with arguments analyzed in another column, and Mr. Whiteside made a furious speech, in which he undertook to prove that the Roman Catholics had drawn up the oath themselves. He contended that Sir Hugh Cairns' favourite words were of great use for the security of the Established Church, and were in fact part of a compact made between Sir Robert Peel and the Papal Church, whereupon Mr. Horsman proved conclusively that Sir R. Peel had explicitly rejected that notion. He made a good point also by showing that a Catholic Privy Councillor took one oath to do nothing against the Establishment and another to advise for the public good, so that supposing the subject to be the abolition of the Irish Church, he must break one oath or the other. The House rejected the amendment by 166 to 147. How long will it be before Parliament passes a Bill of two lines abolishing all political oaths whatever ?
