FOXES AND THE EVERLASTING QUESTION 171 
infinitely quicker and more reliable means of gaining 
the same end; and free, too, from the disturbance 
of game caused by the destruction of foxes by 
hunting. 
Hunting is a sport, and sport is a luxury. Hunt- 
ing is a luxury productive, at the end of a day’s 
sport, at the best of times, of no greater commercial 
asset than two or three dead foxes, which, if rescued 
before they are too much disfigured by hounds, may 
fetch the fancy price of half a sovereign each, for 
the sake of their skins—their flesh being worthless, 
even for sausages. Shooting is a sport and a 
luxury, but at the end of a day’s shooting there is 
generally several pounds’ worth of good food of 
intrinsic value, which either can be given away or 
turned into hard cash. The amount of valuable, 
easily marketable food obtained during a day’s shoot- 
ing is proportionate, first, to the money invested in 
production, and, secondly, to the skill of those who 
shoot and of their keepers. The total value of 
game produced, roughly speaking, should approach, 
if not equal, the rent of ashoot. Working expenses, 
keepers’ and beaters’ wages, and so forth, also will 
be about equal to the rent. So, on shooting, a return 
may be looked for equivalent to half the outlay— 
ten shillings in the pound. On the other hand, it 
has been computed that each fox killed by hounds 
involves an expenditure of a hundred pounds. So, 
valuing all dead foxes at half a sovereign each, that 
