In 1837 he lost his election for Bath, but was reelected in 1841. In a
subsequent contest at Bath he was successfully opposed by Lord Ashley,
the present Earl of Shaftesbury. On this occasion he exhibited even more
than his usual bad temper and bad taste. He declined to accept Lord
Ashley's proffered hand; and in the chagrin and vexation occasioned by
unexpected defeat he uttered a rabid invective against the
Non-Conformist ministers of the place, to whose influence he rightly
attributed his rival's success. Lord Ashley was a well-known
philanthropist, and his consistent support and patronage of many
religious and charitable societies had naturally given him popularity
among the Protestant clergy of all denominations,--a popularity
heightened in the case of the Evangelical and Calvinistic ministers by
his Lordship's strict Sabbatarianism and his belief in cold dinners on
Sunday. On the other hand, Mr. Roebuck was openly accused of private
professions of skepticism in matters of religion; and this report, so
dangerous to the repute of any public man in England, (where theology
and politics so frequently cross each other,) considerably damaged his
chance of success.
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