Editorial Comment
"It just about says it all"
Many thanks to Brian Friend for sending in this emotive yet poignant picture, to which he adds:
"It just about says it all."
For me, it says all of us are under an obligation to hand down to the next generation - hunting in its purest and natural form. And nothing short of that will do.
Most of the 20,000 monthly readers of this magazine knew a time when proper hunting was the norm. But that buzz has gone from our lives. And we want it back. It is why they are readers of this magazine. It is also why we all write freely for the magazine: because we believe in what we are striving to do; flag-up all that is good about hunting, with the ultimate goal being to help bring about a repeal.
I have only ever seen two incidents, when - on both occasions - a single old foxhound refused to leave the meet and take part in the day’s hunting. As the rest of the pack moved off, they stood their ground with honour. Any huntsman will tell you why. They knew what was coming up - was wrong. To the seasoned foxhound, hunting anything other than fox is dubbed riot, downright dishonourable, and they wanted no part of it. The hound will look up and lock eyes with the huntsman: no words needed. The hound looks bewildered and cheated: the huntsman looks back in dismay. Try describing that to an anti?
Those hounds had been brought up on farms where they learnt the basic rules of rural life; returned to the ranks of the hunt kennels for summer training; taken autumn hunting where they were entered to fox. That was their annual cycle. It is what they were born to do. Not go running riot, chasing some dreadful stench known only to man. Our hounds too, want hunting back.
Now they blast fox cubs to bits with shotguns: moreover, they blow the fox’s back leg off before trying to get near enough to dispatch it. And then tell us this is a better way?
TMV has invites to go hunting all over Europe, and the USA. Thousands of hunting people from all over the world want to support us in our quest to be rid of this hunting ban. They say we have lost much here in Britain as a result of the ban, and want to stand shoulders with us for our drive for a repeal. Cometh the hour - Cometh the Man.
In only a matter of months there will be a General Election in this land, at which you will have a golden opportunity to turn this hunting ban around.
The Master's Voice (TMV) is now averaging 20,000 readers every month and continues to grow rapidly here in Britain, in Europe, and the USA/Canada. And I still believe TMV has a part to play in the future of Baily's. Also, please take a look at the attached first draft of our proposed International Hunt Exchange Scheme which is just one of the new initiatives we are driving forward.
It is our view that - to affect a repeal of the hunting ban, we must foster a fresher, more futuristic face for hunting to the voting public: it is no good thinking we can expect to simply go back to how things were before the ban. That won't wash. We have to present ourselves as a forward thinking group, which has taken the wake-up call, and re-aligned ourselves for hunting in the 21st Century.