WHILE sympathising with Mrs D A Hope (Letters, November 13) over the loss of her chickens to a fox, the fact that such events continue to happen on a regular basis only proves that hundreds of years of fox-hunting have not resolved the problems and never shall.

Even if the hunt had been "summoned", is there any guarantee the culprit would be killed as opposed to an innocent bystander? I suggest she invests in a more secure hen-hut.

As for her question of whether the British public know both sides of the fox-hunting story, the answer is 'yes', and they have decided the "sport" be banned. Hunt supporters who have signed a declaration to defy any ban must accept the consequences.

Richard Starks,

The Green,

Elvington,

York.

...HUNT supporters who have vowed to disobey any ban on hunting pose a serious threat to our democratic way of life.

One would think they would be among the first to loyally support the Queen in her duty to "defend our laws" as written into the National Anthem.

They will, no doubt, have applauded the strict enforcement of the law when baton-wielding mounted policemen attacked striking miners, whose only 'crime' was refusing to hold a ballot to legitimise their support of a national strike.

Our democracy is a hard-won, cherished, tradition which cannot allow anyone the luxury of choosing which laws to obey.

The alternative is a descent into anarchy, the establishment of a dictatorship, and a betrayal of the millions of men and women who gave their lives in defence of our democratic institutions.

C W Shreeve,

Long Furrow,

Haxby,

York.

Updated: 11:07 Thursday, November 20, 2003