Abby Ch. 13

Abby nodded. Everything that Sam had said was logical. "It makes more sense when you explain it like that. But I still feel sorry for the fox with the way that the dogs tear them apart."

"I wish I could tell you that they die cleanly, they don't, but they do die quickly. There's one more thing, the Hunt manages a kill about once in every two outings, and the fox that they kill is usually old or lame. That is the fox, which raids the chickens most often. A young fit fox will find plenty to eat without coming that close to man. Beside all this, tell me how many foxes do you see on the side of the road, killed by a car?"

"Quite a few."

"They don't all die quickly. And there are more foxes killed on the road, than by the Hunt. But they don't ban cars, do they?"

"If this is all as necessary as you say, why is it that people want to stop the hunting?"

"Some hold a genuine belief that hunting is cruel, that I can respect, but others? I don't really know for sure, I can guess, but that is all it would be, a guess."

"Yes, well what's your guess?"

"Evening old scores, punishing people for their political beliefs, but cloaking it under the guise of humanity."

Abby was surprised at that statement. Sam had always seemed so evenly balanced. "Oh Sam that's a bit far-fetched isn't it?"

"Is it? When you have a Government based on a movement, which is essentially urban; that doesn't understand the rural way of life; then the country dweller is always the last in the pecking order. But they don't usually enforce legislation to the detriment of the countryside. The countryside is in essence conservative, and is seen as such by parties that pretend to represent the so-called working classes. If you can find any of those that is, who works as hard as a farmer and for the wage he gets. The problem is that they don't understand the difference between conservative with a small 'c' and a large 'C', This government however seems to be positively discriminating against the countryside. Allowing four hundred odd professional politicians from the cities, who have never done a proper job in their life and are totally ignorant about life in the country, apart from something seen through a car or train window; to control our lives is unfair. They enact laws and regulations in the name of animal rights, but care little if as a result we are unable to compete with foreign producers who are untroubled by that legislation. They then walk away shrugging their shoulders as if we are to blame for the problems they dump on us. They talk about helping the farmer, but tie up the help in so much red tape that it is impossible for anyone bar a Civil Servant to understand let alone claim."

Sam's face had grown red, not with the embarrassment he usually felt, but with anger. Abby felt guilty, for bringing the subject up in the first place; but pleased that she was starting to understand these good people.

To be continued