The papers of Thursday published a correspondence between Black Rod
in the House of Lords and Mr. Hazleton, an Irish Member of Parliament, who complained that a friend of his
had been required to leave the House of Lords because he was wearing a kilt. Mr. Hazleton asked whether it was considered
incorrect for his friend to wear, "as is his ordinary custom, the national dress of Ireland." Not being satisfied with Black Rod's answer, Mr. Hazleton wrote :—
"Why do you object to kilts, anyhow ? You don't even wear trousers yourself, and as for the rest of your costume, it is hardly a model of conventional austerity, is it ? Even if you are opposed to the Celtic revival, why be so rude about it? Of course, you are an Admiral, and I see from the papers that there is an epidemic of rudeness amongst Admirals. I thought, however, they kept it for one another. Can't you be satisfied with reducing the livery. of Parliament to the level of a fancy dress ball with- out trying to reduce its courtesies to the level of the Channel Fleet ? "
Disraeli once said of Lord Salisbury, though unjustly, that his invective lacked polish. That may reasonably be said of Mr. Hazleton, who has an arguable case nevertheless.
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