52 



Game and Foxes. 



poke their heads outside when a fox appears. 

 Directly Reynard comes on the scene an old hen 

 stretches her neck between the bars of her coop 

 in a vain effort to escape, and is at once seized ; 

 had she kept at the back she would have been 

 safe. Heavy coops, which a fox cannot move or 

 overturn, also assist in saving the fowls. It is 

 wiser to retain the hens in coops on the rides 

 till all the birds go to roost, as they attract the 

 notice of any fox venturing near, and give a 

 warning which cannot be disregarded. Should 

 a hen attacked fail to call out, the noise she 

 makes dashing about in the coop is sure to be 

 heard. Besides, the loss of a fowl or two will 

 not be a serious matter, and if pheasants are 

 saved thereby, the old biddies will have suffered 

 martyrdom in a good cause. 



