Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1877-04-11

paper, with monogram at the top, is
only an annoyance to the one to whom
it is addressed, on account OF pale ink
and careless handwriting.
Be particular in the matter of dating,
giving every item distinctly, and sign
the letter with your full name. If this
habit is formed, you will not run the
risk of losing valuable letters, which
cannot be forwarded from the Dead
Letter Office, unlesss accompanied with
the full address.
You will find it more easy TO reply to
letter soon after you get it than if you
neglect it for few weeks, because you
will have the impressions which the
first reading made upon you. Tell
your friend when you received the let
ter which you are answering, and take
up the topics in the order in which they
naturally come, remembering to an
swer all the questions which have been
asked. Try to think what your friend
would like best to hear about, and when
you undertake to tell anything, do not
leave it half told, but finish the story.
People who are not careful about this,
often give false impression without
meaning to do so. For instance, one
of these careless writer's, in giving an
account Of fire, simply stated that the
house was burned, without giving any
qualifications, thus giving the impress
sion that it was entirely consumed,
thereby causing whole family much
unnecessary trouble and anxiety, as
the actual burning in question was very
slight.
Do not consider anything too trivial
to write about, which you would
think worth mentioning in converse
ton. Writing letters is simply talking
upon paper, and your friends will be
much more entertained by the nara
ton of little everyday affairs, than by
profound observations upon topics
which you care nothing about.
In writing to very intimate friends,
| who will be interested in the details of
your daily life, it is well sometimes to
make your letter a sort of diary-tell-
ing something of how you have spent
each day since you last wrote; what
books you have been reading, what
letters you have received from mutual
| friends, and what you have heard and
seen which has interested you.
Write all that you have to say on
one subject at once. That is, do not
begin to tell about your garden, and
then about your school, and then about
your garden again; but finish one sub
ject before you begin another. Do not
be afraid of using the pronoun I. Some
people avoid it, and thus give their sen.
fences shabby and unfinished sound,
as, "Went to Boston-called On Mrs.
Smith," Never apologize for what you
write, by saying that you do not like to
write letters. You would not think it
quite polite, In visiting q friend, to say,
81 do not like to talk to you, SO shall
not say much" Keep the idea before
you that you are writing for the sake
of giving pleasure to your friend.
When you letter is merely an inqui-
ry, or on q matter of business, the case
is different. You then should try to be
IS brief, concise, and clear as possible.
| An deliberately drawn-out business let
ter is as out of place as it is inconsider-
ate.
"Do not think what to write, but
write what you think" is an old rule,
and q good one to remember. If you
are away from home, it is very selfish
MOTTO share your good times with the
family by writing frequent letters.
You can tell what you are enjoying 80
much better while it is fresh in your
mind, than you can after you return,
when you may not have leisure to 60
over the whole ground; and these home
letters may be q means afterward Of
refreshing your own memory, and re-
minding you of incidents which you
would otherwise have forgotten. There
are many other things which might be
said here, but this will do for the pres
ent. A very good rule for letter-writing
is the golden one, EDO as you would
be done be."-4Salsa,a A. BroWqa ~ st.
Nicholas.