THE EARTH-STOPrER 103 



other, and a good thing it is that they are, for it not only 

 keeps men at home, but it affords sport and amusement to 

 many who would otherwise not get out at all, but one country 

 may have too many foxes, while an adjoining, and better one, 

 may be short of them. The better a country is, the greater 

 the trouble, difficulty, and expense of keeping it stocked with 

 foxes. This is self-evident, for the greater the security, the 

 greater the temptation to foxes ; hence the necessity of hunting 

 good and bad places alternately, or the foxes will be all 

 huddled together in the bad places. Hills, forests, deans, 

 crags, rocks, are all friendly to foxes, but unfavourable to the 

 progression of the chase. We remember breakfasting with a 

 Master of wiry-haired, rough mountain hounds once, when the 

 servant came in to say that a neighbouring farmer had sent 

 word that he must shoot the fox if the gentlemen did not 

 come to hunt him, for that reynard was constantly eyeing his 

 lambs. " Tell him to blaze away," replied the gentleman, 

 adding as the servant left the room, " if there were fewer foxes 

 I should kill more, but the fact is, if I ask a man in this 

 country to stay his hand, he will think he has a claim on me 

 for damage, whereas I hold out that I have a claim on them 

 for keeping down the stock of foxes, besides," continued he, 

 "there are many chances in reynard's favour as it is. First of 

 all, it's ten to one that the old blunderbuss will not go off; 

 secondly, if it does go off, it's twenty to one that the farmer 

 misses, and the fox will know just as well as him that he has 

 got something in his hand, and will take -good care not to 

 let him come within reach." Good logic in the mountains, 

 but not in the vales. Contrast it with the doings in Hertford- 

 shire as described by Mr. Delme Radcliffe, who truly says that 

 a fox there is worth his weight in gold. Speaking of the fees 

 to keepers he says : — 



" In the first place, I condemn the fixed price set upon each 



