FEMALE SERVANTS FOR NEW ZEALAND.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume VII, Issue 1053, 19 March 1880, Page 2

FEMALE SERVANTS FOR NEW ZEALAND.

The following letter appeared in the " Times' ' of a recent date : — (To the Editor of the " Times.") Sir, — At a large and influential meeting, held at Lord Harberton's house to-day, an association under the above designation was originated. I venture to think the object aimed at is such as will meet with the cordial support of the " Times" It is simply to devise some scheme for facilitating the removal to our colonies of a portion of the redundant more or less cultured female population of this country. The uniform experience of those of us who have visited the colonies is a palpable dearth of women, and I need not say what the uniform experience of those here at home is. The letter of a clergyman in your columns sometime since partially revealed the state of things, He told us, if I do not forget, that in reply to an advertisment in the ct Times" for a nursery governess at a very moderate salary he had considerably over 1,200 applicants. One of the deepest convictions which I brought home from a recent visit to New Zealand was the urgent need there was for a higher class of women. A large proportion of the prosperous settlers were labouring men

and their homos lack that refinement which comes alone of the presence of a cultured woman. lam sure hundreds of those worthy men and women would welcome to their homes a lady who would, to a general superintendance of the intellectual welfare of the youngsters, add a willingness to help' in the domestic arrangements. Here, I submit, is a sphere every way worthy and pre-eminently suited to the necessities of a large and ever-increasing section of our general female population To help in this most desirable branch of emigration is the object of this association, and I trust it will nut be long before your advertising columns bear witness to its .salutary operations. —I am, Sir, yours faithfully, Arthur Clayden (author of " The England of the Pacific")