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by Anastasia (writer), London, December 27, 2011

Credit: AFB
A Hunting Girl

Boxing Day, the day after Christmas, is one of the great occasions on the English hunting calendar.

I’ve been riding for most of my life now, taking my first lesson when I was six years old. I love it all; I love everything associated with horses. I’ve taken part in county show-jumping events, though fewer and fewer recently because of other pressures on my time, and my favourite form of relaxation is a nice long hack, something I do most Sundays. However, the thing that gives me most excitement or, rather, used to give me most excitement is fox-hunting. I will explain why I use the past tense in a moment or two.

I went on my first hunt in Surrey with my mother and father on Boxing Day in 1998. I was twelve at the time, and by now a very good rider. The whole thing was just so thrilling; the chase, the rituals, the company, the sounds of the horn, and the pursuit of the quarry.

I do not believe fox hunting to be cruel; I have never believed it to be cruel, though some of those who read this may hate me for saying so. Well, if you are a plastic-shoed, artificial fibre-wearing vegan, not a vegetarian, a vegan, only then might you be justified in your displeasure. Otherwise it’s all hypocrisy. For the vegan ascetic I would simply remind you that, cliché or not, nature is indeed red in tooth and claw, and demonstrates a far, far higher tolerance of all forms of cruelty.

So, why the past tense, why do I no longer - ahem - pursue foxes as such? Well, because the practice of hunting with hounds was banned by the Labour Government in 2004, in part an act of class spite, in part the incomprehension so often displayed by city politicians towards country pursuits. It was so sad, because fox-hunting was part of an ancient English tradition, and because yet another of our freedoms was allowed to die. Foxes are still killed as vermin, a danger to the rural economy. But the forms of killing, including gassing and snaring, are far crueller in every way, a ‘mercy’ inflicted on them by the animal rights lobby.

Riding to hounds, with the hunters following artificial drag trails, is more popular than ever. This year an estimated 300,000 people turned out on Boxing Day, myself included, attending more than 300 hunts. Some came as riders and hunters; others were just there to enjoy the spectacle. This was a real John Peel occasion, unspoiled by adverse weather, which has prevented Boxing Day meets for the past couple of years. It was absolutely thrilling, to be there, to ride, to chase, to be young and to be alive. The day was also unspoiled by the snoopers and urban killjoys who have marred it on previous occasions.

The government of David Cameron, our present Prime Minister, is committed to holding a free vote in Parliament on repealing the Hunting Act, bad and unworkable legislation by a bad and incompetent administration. There are other priorities just at the present, one understands this, but I sincerely hope it comes before the end of the present Parliament.

In the meantime I will continue to ride with the wind, to enjoy the freedom of the English countryside, to preserve an ancient tradition, to preserve liberty itself.

Read more articles on: england , sport , tradition , fox hunting

Anastasia is a writer for BrooWaha. For more information, visit the writer's website.