2 DECEMBER 1989, Page 33

Wanted babies

Sir: Paul Johnson's 'appalling' statistic (28 October), that one in four births in Britain is illegitimate, conceals something other than tensions, misery and conflicts. The majority of these births are registered jointly by the father and mother, implying a rather conventional family set-up without unusual levels of suffering.

Certainly the advent of a baby wanted by both its parents is not a tragedy, royal or otherwise.

Sabrina Crewe

21 Hawley Road, London NW I