  The critical field for superfluid $^3$He in axially compressed, anisotropic
silica aerogel is shown to be the result of an anisotropic distribution of
magnetic impurities affecting the superfluid $A$ phase. The critical field
results from the fact that the $A$ phase is suppressed relative to the $B$
phase which is immune to the effects of magnetic impurities. In the absence of
magnetic quasiparticle scattering in anisotropic aerogel, we find that the
relative symmetry of $A$ and $B$ phase order parameters is the same as in
isotropic aerogel, just as it is in pure superfluid $^3$He. These results are
of potential importance for understanding unconventional superconductivity.
