Papers comment as hunting re-starts


18 December 2001



Papers comment as hunting re-starts

By Adrienne Francis


THE resumption of fox-hunting has signalled some relief throughout the countryside that life may be returning to normality, report Britains nationals.


Most of the papers focus on the Beaufort Hunt in Gloucerstershire, whose patron is Prince Charles.


A headline in the Independent reads: “Like it or loathe it, the return of the foxhunt was a cause for some celebration yesterday”.


The resumption of hunting represented a “clarion call to normality,” for people whose lives were “blighted by the terrible plague” of foot-and-mouth, it says.


The Daily Mail writes in a whole-page article that the longest fox holiday in history is over.


“The countrys number-one animal predator had suddenly become prey again after 10 long months as king of the jungle,” it says.


A story on page 19 headlined “Too icy for horses, no cap-doffing and nary a toff in sight”, features images from the Cotswold Hunt.


The paper says that there was no question of the hunting season starting at the usual time, last October.

It warns that, with the return of hunting, comes a revival of the great debate.


The Guardian leads on page nine of the national news with the title: “Hunters and saboteurs resume feud”.


The Daily Telegraph features a large picture on the front page showing hunters from the Beaufort riding through a wood.

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