WIRE QUESTION. 177 



At a meeting of tenant formers and members ol the North Staffordshire Hunt, 

 held at Trentham Hall, on March 5th, 1889, by the desire of the Marquis of 

 Stafford, M.F.H., a committee was formed in the Eccleshall district, where there 

 is more barbed wire than in any other part of the hunt, with the object of pre- 

 paring a report of the best way to deal with the wire difficulty. The report was 

 duly sent to his Lordship, and approved of, and at a meeting of the Finance Com- 

 mittee a sum of money was voted for the purpose of carrying out the suggestions. 



Report of the Wire Committee. 



It is believed there is no wire used on the following estates, and if there is 

 it will be removed : Keele, Swynnerton, Darlaston, Colonel Chambers', Pirehill, 

 Cresswell, Seighford, Mr. Twemlow's, Maer, Mr. T. Salt's. 



There are two or three landed proprietors who have wu-e on their estates, 

 who expressed themselves desirous to remove it if possible, and are considering 

 what can be done with this object in view. 



The members of the committee called upon about one hundred farmers in 

 the Eccleshall district outside of these estates, and it gives them great pleasure 

 to be able to say that in every case they were received with both kindness and 

 courtesy. 



Twenty-four of the above do not use wire, and do not intend to do so. 



Eighteen cannot do without wire in summer, but will remove it when hunting 

 begins. 



Twenty-four cannot do without wire, summer or winter, unless other fencing 

 is provided. 



All the others called upon are agreeable to have the wire replaced by rails 

 and pasts at the cost of the Hunt, and some would put them down themselves. 



All are agreeable for wickets to be erected in their fences at the cost of the 

 Hunt. 



All those who cannot do without wire summer or winter are willing to leave 

 six or eight yards in each fence jumpable and free from wire, and will put up 

 two poles to indicate the place if they are supplied by the Hunt. 



Suggestions with a View to mitigate the Evil as much as possible. 



The committee suggest that every opportunity should be taken to discourage 

 the putting up of more wire in future by either landlord or tenant. 



The committee are of opinion that the remedy of giving or putting down rails 

 and posts by the Hunt to replace the wire would be too costly if carried out 

 generally. This applies also to wickets. Still, both might be applied with 

 advantage to some extent in certain places. The former might be erected, in 

 certain fences where the wire cannot be done without, for about three or more 

 yards, which would enable the Hunt to get over, and leave the other part of the 

 fence wired as it is. 



The opinion of the committee is that the simplest and cheapest mode of 

 dealing with the matter in a general way is by getting the farmers to leave six 

 or eight yards free from wire in each fence, and erect poles to indicate the spot 

 free from wire in the hunting season, where wire cannot possibly he done without. 



The committee would propose that the Hunt should decide upon the remedies 

 to be carried out in various cases and parts of the district, and that a fund should 

 be raised for the purpose, and parties appointed in different parts of the district 

 to carry out the same. 



The committee are further pleased to report that they found no trace of a 



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