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had moved to Stawell (ref figure 6) where Severino once again became honorary
surgeon.^' Unlike other unmigrants who found difficulty obtaining work, his medical
qualifications guaranteed employment without recourse to the Italian speakers'
informal support networks (but instead to a professionals' network). As a resident of
Stawell Severino assumed various public duties, at one stage contributing to the
erection of the tovm's Pleasant Creek Hospital. His poUtical experiences and previous
desire to win the goodwill and respect of the electorate had perhaps instilled a desire to
serve the community ~ and, like his socio-economic background, it further distanced
him from his compatriots. Severino's desire to 'nation-build' also reflected his
long-term intentions for Ufe in Australia, as did his request for British citizenship in
May 1861.^*
After a few years, the Guscetti family moved back to Spring Creek where, by
1865, they had settled in a property on the left-hand side of the main road towards
Franklmford near Shepherds Flat. A second property which he owned a few door
away may have housed Severino's new consulting rooms. Italian speakers continued
to number among his patients, Giuseppe Pozzi seeking help after severing two fingers
in a milling accident in 1867.'" It is possible the doctor favoured his compatriots with
reduced medical fees, Alessandro Pozzi noting in a letter to his family: 'io ho pagato
un dottore inglese per una sol visita £5:5, il Guscetti credo che ne prendera intorno
£15 o £20'.^^ Though Severino was isolated from the majority of Italian speakers by
his socio-economic position and professional standing a shared ethnicity continued to
encourage strong emotional bonds.
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