Countryman's Diary: Ruthless predator set to stalk the glens

It would not be quite the same as spotting a fox, deer or other wild animal and, I think, most of us would experience an element of fear rather than a feeling of joy.

But the possibility is not as unlikely as many might believe. Although the wolf has been thought extinct in England since around 1550, there were reports of one in the Lake District in 1680 while the last in Britain is said to have been killed in Scotland in 1743.

However, there are now suggestions that these animals should be re-introduced to the wild and the proposed locations are sites within the Scottish glens where, it is said, wolves would assist in keeping the deer population in check.

With an estimated 350,000 red deer living wild in the Highlands, they cause extensive damage to woodlands and crops, and it is argued that a controlled colony of wild wolves would ease this continuing and expensive problem.

Sheep farmers might not agree, nor indeed might other people living in the vicinity because wolves do have a tendency to migrate towards places occupied by human beings and their domestic livestock.

Wolves will travel huge distances in search of their prey and furthermore, when a young male wolf is born, he will have to leave the district of his birth after a couple of years or so, to establish his own territory or lead a pack.

In this way, packs of wolves can soon spread across a very wide area and in so doing, of course, they attack livestock on farms as well as mild creatures. They have been known to kill dogs too.

If the plan to introduce wolves to the Scottish Highlands does go ahead, there will have to be a powerful degree of control over their movements - and I have not read any explanation of how this will be achieved - and there is also the question of compensation to farmers whose livestock fall prey to this most efficient and ruthless of predators.

In Anglo-Saxon England, wolves had become so numerous and dangerous that it became necessary to curtail their numbers.

Wolf-hunts were organised for this purpose and there were rewards for capturing them. King Edgar (944-975) introduced a system whereby criminals could commute part of their sentences by delivering a given number of wolves' tongues to the authorities, and in Wales, a gold and-silver tax was converted into a tax of 300 wolves' heads.

Many landowners paid rent by killing wolves in their locality. During the 14th century at Baysdale in the North York Moors, for example, land rents were paid in wolves' heads and it is thought that the place used for trapping them was Wolf Pit Slack. This is a hollow in the moorland on the ridge between Danby and Little Fryup Dale; it is thought to have been used as a crossing place by packs of wolves.

A wolf-hunt was a highly organised affair. Large numbers of beaters were mustered from the surrounding villages and divided into three parties.

One long line stretched across the countryside, often extending as far as five miles. This was flanked, on rising ground, by another line. The third group stood behind a selected wolf pit with nets and weapons, waiting for the beaters to round up and drive the wolves into the pit - a wolf pit was often a natural depression in the ground, although ditches, as deep as 12-13ft, were sometimes dug for this purpose.

Once the wolves were in the pit, they were slaughtered. The Saxons called the month of January Wulfmonath, the month of the wolf, because the animal was at its most dangerous during this time, due chiefly to a shortage of food.

There developed a saying in the countryside at this time that: "When several wolves appear together, it is not a society of peace, but of war. It is attended with tumult and dreadful prowlings, and indicates an attack on some large animal."

In the reign of King Athelstan, the Yorkshire Wolds were particularly troubled by wolves, especially around Staxton, Folkton and Flixton where a retreat was built "to defend passengers from wolves, that they should not be devoured by them."

Certainly, people thought children might be at risk from hungry packs of wolves and the reputation of the wolf as a killer of humans was fuelled in the Middle Ages by legends and stories, to say nothing of nursery rhymes like Little Red Riding Hood.

It was not those old-fashioned hunts which made the wolf extinct in England - it was the firearm. It was soon shot to extinction.

There is always doubt as to where and when the last wild wolf was seen in this country, although there is record of one being killed in Cheshire between 1485 and 1509, with suggestions of that one in the Lake District around 1680 and another in Scotland as late as 1743.

Up to mischief

Although some of us might have been visited by children dressed as witches on Hallowe'en, or even been subjected to their trick-or-treat enterprises, it is tomorrow which has become known as Mischief Night.

This does not appear to have been prevalent in the south of England, being largely restricted to the northern part of North Yorkshire, Durham, Cleveland and Northumberland.

Mischief Night does not appear to have continued in such a widespread manner as, say, in the 60s and 70s, probably because trick-or-treat has replaced it, this being preferable to the perpetrators because it offers some kind of reward!

To celebrate Mischief Night, a gang of children would tour the town or village to play pranks on householders, or even upon anyone who happened to encounter them.

In the early days, those pranks were fairly harmless, such as knocking on doors and running away, daubing butter or treacle on door knobs or gate handles, running a cog wheel down a window pane to produce a scream-like noise, sealing letter boxes with tape or whitewashing shop windows.

In time, however, the pranks became more dangerous and more of a nuisance - cars would be covered in paint, plants uprooted, gates removed and thrown away, dustbins overturned and minor damage caused to all manner of household or garden objects.

The fact was that Mischief Night developed into an occasion where vandalism was committed and there is no doubt many youngsters mistakenly believed they had the right to do so on this one night of the year.

The outcome was that the police took a keen interest in their activities and, in some areas, the activities of Mischief Night were gradually abandoned.

It does seem, however, that trick-or-treat at Hallowe'en has, in some areas, replaced it. This has developed into something almost sinister - a party of youngsters will knock on your door to ask: "Trick-or-treat?" This reeks of blackmail because if you do not give them a treat (cash or something nice thing), they will execute some kind of trick - like daubing the door or scratching the car!

For many of us, the fun has gone out of such activities.

Wasted opportunity

I wonder if I dare mention the Millennium Dome? Like so many of us, I had read sad reports about this attraction and so vowed I would never pay it a visit. Unknown to me, however, my wife had arranged a visit as a birthday treat, although it must be said that my day began at York station with a champagne breakfast on the Northern Belle (the newest addition to the Orient Express), followed by a ride on the London Eye, a boat trip down the Thames, a visit to the Dome and finally, another exquisite and leisurely dinner on board the Northern Belle on our return journey.

So what do I think of the Dome? My first impression was that the structure itself - the huge white mushroom-shaped building - was astonishing and well worth the visit.

It can be seen from many parts of the river (and from the London Eye) and I felt it was a remarkable addition to the London scene. But the contents were abysmal. It was like walking into a down-market Blackpool amusement arcade - even with such advanced technology to enhance the exhibits, this was a lost opportunity.

It is such a sad waste of time and money - but I am glad I've seen it because at least I can form my own opinion of New Labour's legacy.