Letter: Cruel deer-hunt

Sir: Jo and Charles Collins (letter 10 October), deer-hunters and co-ordinators of the Friends of the National Trust, suggest that all Memoranda of Wishes by donors of land to the National Trust should be sacrosanct regardless of changed circumstances.

This ignores the fact that there have now been two reports indicating that, while not all deer hunted with hounds suffer very severely, the potential for such suffering occurs with every hunt.

The late Sir Richard Acland's son, Sir John Acland, has made clear that he feels sure his father would have supported the National Trust's decision to ban hunting with hounds, in accordance with a vote of the members, if he had had all the relevant information available to him when he asked that it should continue.

DOREEN CRONIN

Devon & Somerset Residents' Association for Deer Protection

Taunton, Somerset