COURSING

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XXXVI, Issue 11871, 8 June 1909, Page 7

COURSING

(To the Ediitor of tho Herald.}/ Sir, — I was -.struck Avith Mr Lysnar's logic when m defence of the sorcalled sport of coursing; he likened the persons who raised \an outcry to .some weakminded individuals wliom he has'-heard decry the game of football on account of roughness: oit' the part of players, which has sometimes occasioned an accident and even, a death. The natural inference to;; be drown from this speech is that men am compelled against their own iree will to jom m iootball, and that the weak .are at the mercy of the strong. How many kills ;taJj.e plaoe, say, a.t< a large football match ? Hastory does not record thofee that took place during the tour of the .', All Blacks, but perhaps they wer^e; hushed/ vp r He further justifies , the brntality of tlwj pastime by saying that thle hare w.hen caught meets with a. speedy death. No mention.' is made of, the agony ike animal endures before /this liappens or the demoralising effect »<such i^oenes have • upon the onlookers as well as tho^e wbo indulge m this diabolical exhibiti^ni.-— 1 am, etc. _ r , „ TRUE SPOftT;

Sir. — I was rather surprised that tlio Coursing' Olttb officials luul not replied to your 'leading 1 ai'ticle of June sth. .1 quite agree that there 'was .unnecessary cruelty, and nobody wris injure t sorry than I : was to «cc it. As I ."have, seen muck '•coursing- iv England without kills I should) like to, awi>y, that the same can and wiJl! be done vfrhei> the hare.* get Used to the course and the hound* properly slipped. Now, if you \vere iit the course you will*, have noticed 'that when the hare did get a proper sWt J there wais n< splendid run,.. in which both j dog and hare got o» good chance, and let i me say th© hare got the best of ,it. , 1 I do not consider "A 1 Sport"' a apost, as ifte vwas not man enough to publish his •<name, but I can challenge the Rev. tfhatp terton. , Has the, rev. gentleman ever , -thought of the millions of birds that are lulled year after year m order to d<ecorate the hats of the fair sex.' If this is not cruelty tell me what is. 1 Again, was the rev. gentleman at. the Qourse? 1 Was. theue both 1 days, 'a-iiill" did not sco him, but perhaps he wa.s on the road looking over the fence, where I might say he could not get a. proper view. Your reply. to the Mayor's letter is very poor, because if as you say it is cruel, even if there are no. kills, then I might st\y you mights pull -to. pieces: all sport. Is hunting erne] ? If not,, why not? M it is, why don't you put that down ? Again you uphold open coursing. Letme say that a. loare has more chance if -hoimds are properly slipped than they have on an open course, where hounds can run them to a- standstill. To finish, let me sityjgive the club a fair clwmce, •and let them get properly settled. Let them get proper knowledge, aiuli then you will «eethat w« will have a sport that.no Britisher need be ashamed of. — I am, etc.,, J. H. KEMSHAW.