THIS is possibly old hat, but I have been intrigued by the number of fairly-recent letters denouncing fox-hunting.

Most were from anti-hunting organisations and reiterated the same arguments - a somewhat orchestrated attack.

The arguments were specious, but without substance. For example: "The vast majority of people are against fox-hunting."

The vast majority couldn't care less about fox-hunting, especially those living in urban areas.

And, anyway, actual hunts occur quite infrequently.

What I find most worrying is the amount of influence minority pressure groups have in the UK. I strongly suspect that the whole thing is down someone trying to "get his name in the book" like Sydney Silverman did with the abolition of hanging and another New Labour-"Old Dinosaur" attempt to disinherit certain sections of the community - as they see it on a "them-and-us" basis.

Projecting further along this line, first we have a referendum on the disintegration of the UK which became nothing but a political scam; then the erosion of different aspects of our heritage.

Will they next sell Northern Ireland down the river? (How sectarian is the House?) then, will they irrevocably commit us to a federal Europe and, given time, declare what's left of the ex-UK to be a republic?

R BRACEWELL, PO Box 105, Paget, Bermuda. PGBX.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.