To the Editor of the New Zealand Tablet.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume I, Issue 40, 31 January 1874, Page 8

To the Editor of the New Zealand Tablet.

Sib, — My attention has been called to on account of a meeting of the St. Joseph's Lodge, No. 73 of the H.AjC.B.S., at whidh a resolution was proposed and carried, giving me the necessary notice for dispensing -with my services as medical attendant. In this resolution it-is stated that I advertised in the 'Evening Star" for a servant, excluding Irish servants on account of their nationality. The same -impression is conveyed by another paragraph from the Editorial pen. Now it would I think have been only fair to have -given the advertisement in full ; it was as follows:— General servant wanted, Scotch or English, apply to Mrs Bakewell, Duncan-st. — There -was no mention made of Irish, and there was no phrase used which: «ould be tortured into an exclusion of the Irish on account of their nationality. What ire wanted was a Protestant, and an Irish Protestant would have answered as well as any other. Not that I mean to deny for one moment that of toco equally good domestics, I would not prefer my own countrywoman to an Irish or Scotch woman. I certainly would. I am not sufficiently cosmopolitan to have no national prejudices, and being an Englishman I would rather, cateris paribus, have English around me. But I would rather have good Irish or Scotch servants than bad English ones. However, the reason we wanted a non-Catho-lic servant was simply this,— my wife and children are Roman •Catholics, and as your readers will readily understand, are under the necessity of attending Mass every Sunday and Wednesday. When we first csrae to Dunedin, Mrs Bakewell engaged an Irish orphan Catholic girl, who was a "new chum." She did so in preference to any English or Scotch girl, because she thought there aright be a prejudice against the Catholics as servants here. The girl stopped some months, but as fche had come out to New Zealand on account of bad health, and she did not seem to improve, I advised her -to try the country air. We found it so very inconvenient to have a servant w»ho was obliged to go to mass, that Mrs Bakewell determined to have a Protestant for the future. When we had, as in the West Indies and at home, from two to four serv-ants it did net matter much, as one<could always stay at home to get 'breakfast, &c ; but here having only accommodation for one the inconvenienoe was excessive. Mrs Bak-ewell could not very well advertise for a Protestant, and so we put in English or Scotch, knowing that it was very unlikely that any Catholic would apply. Such is the simple explanation which would have been given to the St. Joseph's Lodge, it the fiery individuals who compose it had aeked me privately for it. I have done with them, and should not have given this explanation except for the sake of your readers at a distance. It is ratler amusing for me to have been accused of prejudice against the Irish, considering that during a professional life of more than a quarter of a century, I have attended them and been popular among them. lam one of the very few Englishmen who have always been in favor of the National Independence of Ireland, and have invariably argued — often against Irishmen themselves — that we obtained dominion in Ireland by fraud and violence, and that we ought to let her separate entirely from England, I go farther than the repealers or the Home Rule. To avoid any possibility of doubt, it may be better to state that the advertisement I have quoted was the only one ever inserted about eeivauts, and that those containing the words "No Irish need apply," were put in by some desigmiig person, with the object of raising a feeling amongst the Irish against Mre Bakewell and myself. They have pot frightened me, but they have succeeded in so frightening her that she is afraid to go to Church or into Hie town. Trusting that you will, in common fairness, insert this explanation. I am, Sir, Your obedient servant, R. H. Baeewell, M".D. Princes Street, Dunedin, January 16, 1874.