FOXES AND POULTRY. 329 



hunting confers substantial benefits on agriculture, is not 

 always accepted by farmers as sufficient compensation for 

 damages inflicted on their property, such as broken fences, 

 damaged crops, poultry and lambs killed by foxes, abortions 

 among cows and ewes which have been frightened by hounds 

 and horsemen, and stock being let loose over the country by 

 hunting people neglecting to shut gates after them. Also, in 

 all classes of life, we meet with men who like to obtain a 

 benefit without paying anything in return. Thus we find men 

 who want to hunt without contributing even to the covert 

 fund, and we may be certain that such free lances will show 

 less care in avoiding damage to fences and fields than those 

 who act on the principle of give and take. On the other hand, 

 there are farmers (not many, I feel sure), who are glad to profit 

 by the presence of hunting visitors in their district, but do 

 nothing in return, beyond putting up red flags. 



Compensation for poultry killed by foxes is a frequent 

 cause of offence ; not as a rule because of its insufficiency, but 

 because of the want of method in its distribution. In some 

 countries, the poultry fund of a hunt acts as a benevolent 

 institution for certain petty farmers, who are consequently 

 incited to levy blackmail for the retention of their good-will. 

 To avoid this disastrous result of ill-advised generosity, it is 

 best, I think, for a M. F. H. to have local damage fund agents 

 (say, in every village), who would personally inquire into and 

 settle claims. It is evident that if people are careless enough 

 to leave poultry out at night, they ought not to expect others 

 to take the risk. When thieves in hunting districts break into 

 fowl houses, they not uncommonly pluck the birds and scatter 

 the feathers about, in order to make it appear that foxes 

 were the marauders. It is an instructive fact that the more 

 a country is split up into small farms, the more wire (Fig. 219) 

 will be found in it. 



In fox hunts there is a damage fund which is generally 



