The Lexington dispatch. [volume] (Lexington, South Carolina) 1870-1917, 1908-08-26
The Lexington Dispatch.
Wednesday, August rs, 1908.
The Fox Law.
To the Editor of The Dispatch:

ers( of that law "cussed" to a great
extent by a few-I am writing for
The Dispatch to try to show to an un-
prejudiced mind that the law is not so
inieuitous as some think, and that its
makers are unjustly criticised. A
writer from the lower part of the
county says some sharpe questions
will be put to the candidates for legis-
lative honors in regard to this law. 1
infer from his remarks that those who
favor the closed season on fox should
be relegated to the shades of private
life. It matters not how faithfully
they have performed their duty in
other respects; it matters not how
honest and how much influence they
have in that body, they must now
stand aside because in this writer's
opinion they have committed an "un-
pardonable SIM"
The passage of closed season on
fox is not unheard of, for have an
acquaintance, through correspond
ence, of an old Veteran Of the Civil
war, who is now sixty-f1ve years old
and lives at Clinton, La. he tells me
that he and his son were instrument
tai in having = similar law passed in
their parish and it has been the means
of saving few foxes for him to race
in his declining years. viii any man,
though he be opposed to fox-hunting
and looks with disdain upon The fox
hunting fraternity. say that this grand
old man who, like the immortal Wash
ington, faced the enemy in a right
eous war had no right to ask for the
protection of foxes which afford him
the same pleasure As they did the
Father Of our country?
The deer is protected in this state
and he is not such an innocent ami
NAL, form some sections farmers have
suffered from his nocturnal visits.
Would it be wise to repeal the law
and let wholesale butchery 60 on and
kill the last proud monarch OF the
glen'' because few suffered some
loss of crops? In parts of New Eng
land where the season is closed on
deer, they destroy crops to such an
extent that the game wardens must
make compensation for such loss. A
repeal of the law is not considered.
Fox-hunters who are true sportsmen
would not object to replacing the
poultry of those who suffer loss by
foxes, if it would not be like the pen
sioning of old soldiers-no end to it..
A fox-hunting club in Missouri, if I
mistake not, offered to pay for pou]-
try killed by foxes rather than have
the game shot to death. More poul-
try was killed by foxes (?) than was
ever known; in fact all the chickens
that disappeared were victims of the
fox and those sportsmen were the vic
Tins Of dishonest farmers whose in
come from dead poultry exceeded
that of their neighbors who were so
unfortunate as not to have foxes in
their section. That a few families in
some sections suffer loss by foxes no
one will deny. They would suffer
much more if there were no fox
hunters. My own experience con-
vinces me that the fox is not always
guilty when accused and that there is
little black demon that often de-
stroys more poultry in one night than
fox does in year. One of my
brothers lost as many as thirty chick
ems in one night by minks and had he
not been in calling distance Of the
Selwood hounds he might have lost
all he had, for the hunt was kept ny
night after night till eight minks were
put to death. Some years ago 1 was
asked by a man who had ordered me
off of his land in days when I was
'possum hunter, to come and catch g
fox 60 that had killed his chickens.
When I reached the spot and viewed
the dead poultry I knew that it was
the work of mink News reached
me only few days ago that a gooo
lady of the Dutch Fork lost one hun.
dred and twenty-five chickens and
seYen turkeys by foxes (?) to be sure,
for there are few near her home.
When the miak was caught in the
act the foxes were no longer accused.
have heard Of no damage being done
by these foxes nor have any Of the
residents OF that section tried to shoot
them, yet bird hunters from Colum-
bia shot one few years ago without
excuse. A negro shot one last winter