THE contribution by your correspondent Mrs Valerie Lowry (Letters, December 14) to the debate on the refusal of a licence to enable Mrs Mary Stanton to keep her Capuchin monkey has no bearing on the facts of the case.

The Rhesus monkey and the Capuchin are two completely different species. The Rhesus, a bigger and heavier animal, is known for its aggressiveness; the Capuchin for its even temperament and intelligence.

By her own admission Mrs Lowry bought a wild baby primate, brought into the country illegally, and attempted to tame it, to turn it into a pet. Deprived of its jungle environment and the companionship of its own kind, it was predictable that it would, at some time, revert to nature and turn on its handler.

Significantly, "Jack" lived in a cabin during the summer and in the stables during the winter. He did not live in the home as a member of the family as did Mrs Stanton's "home grown" Joe and was, therefore, denied ongoing human contact. He might just as well have been in a zoo. The object lesson in Mrs Lowry's case is that wild animals should be left in the wild.

GERALD JARRATT, Baghill Road, Tingley, near Wakefield.