PRINCE &- PEASANT, PEER Ss' PHEASANT 117 



occur to them, and unless the matter be explained 

 there is no reason why it should, that the shooter is 

 usually a humane man, and that outdoor exercise, the 

 cultivation of health, and the acquirement of skill, have 

 more to do with his love of shooting than any desire 

 to become the executioner of beast or bird life. Then, 

 as regards the pain inflicted on the birds, it should be 

 remembered that the game bird is accorded a very 

 happy lot in this world. His birth, rearing and 

 comfort are well looked after, the best of food and 

 water provided for him, while, so far as possible, he is 

 protected from his natural enemies, the predatory and 

 carnivorous birds, beasts, and reptiles, against whom 

 a never-ceasing war is waged in his behalf. Finally, 

 he has at most but one or two short days, often but 

 one or two moments, of anxiety, terror, or fear of death, 

 while the latter is mostly inflicted on him in the most 

 instantaneous and painless form. Which of us, say, in 

 middle life, can assert as much of the lives of our 

 human fellow-creatures ? I think altogether a pheasant 

 on a well-preserved estate has a happier existence and 

 easier death than any creature I know of ; and though 

 these birds are thus called into existence, reared and 

 protected solely for the benefit of man, yet they are 

 not conscious of this, nor of the fact that were it not 

 for man they would never have existed. 



