OKAY so we had a one-eyed seal called Nelson here in Looe who charmed everyone who had the pleasure of seeing him. You must admit that Nelson was fabulous and even our great fishermen loved Nelson. After all, who would turn up and feed him on Christmas Day? Looe fishermen and I believe that Looe Fish Market workers did also. Who took you on a mini-cruise to gaze in awe at Nelson? Our late ferryman Ivan would do that; also David who would manage to have a nice fresh fish on board for Nelson. Nelson benefited from the love and attention he received from all concerned. His lifespan increased because of such people as these. Why couldn't we use the statue being erected in his memory to raise the necessary funds to obtain all the things mentioned in the letter headlined 'Funds could be better spent' (Cornish Times, 29,06.07). How can we do this you may ask? Easy, a collection box such as the ones used for 'pay as you view' telescopes could be put into place and I am sure that it would need to emptied on a very regular basis. There we go, funds for use of! Think about how many more people would want to visit Looe for the sole purpose of having their photographs taken beside Nelson – and they would. What about the market for souvenirs of him? Plus more people would visit West Looe, so more of the shops would be used. St Nicholas Church would also benefit as more people would visit and hopefully leave a little money in the collection boxes. The ferries would also be used more which would be great. So many more people would benefit from this. Looe Development Trust want to erect a bronze statue to commemorate how very lucky we were to have Nelson stay here with us for all those years. So, come on, let us have the bronze of Nelson and use it to our advantage to raise further funds for the town. I have always fancied a bandstand with a St Piran flag on the top where our local talent could play and us locals and visitors could sit in comfort and listen and remember the good old days!

Mrs PAMELA GYLES West Looe