The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1889-09-19
POINTS ON STATIONERY.
NOTE PAPER, ENVELOPES, AND
THE EPISTOLERY STYLE.


Plants Used in Magic-A Queer City in
Asia Where Women Dress CuriousIy-
spectacIes to Cure Squint-Items of
Interest to Women.
Letter writing as it was II its golden
age is almost a lost art. Telegram and
postal card, telephone and %''letter sheet, 7"
are fast pushing it into the background,
and while it certainly is as pleasant to
hear from ones friend as ever, one must
be content with the brief lines which the
rush and hurry of our days permit. IN
he old time, the chances of sending
were so few and far between, delivery
slow, and expense not small, that the
difficulty gave a desire to make the most
of the opportunity. That those long and
interesting letters should pass away with
the mail coach which carried them TO
their destination is but natural, but1f not
as admirable as literary efforts, let these
which have superseded them be at leasG
as correct in the expression and etiquette
which custom DEGREES.
There are some points a knowledge or
which is absolutely essential, and we take
for granted that the facts that no letter,
however well expressed, can be elegant II
Dlisspelled dndno matter how W~ell-spelieu,
ii ungrammatically expressed, are TOO
well understood to need repetition, DuI
there is the less understood branch OF
punctuation. There was q time when the
perfect punctuation of a letter was held a
necessity, but. whether it be well or not,
custom has nov decreed a system OF con
venient daShes permissible, and fashions
votaries go so far as to declare this the
only elegant method, and that only IN
matter intended for print are colons,seml-
colons and their kindred allowable IL
seems to us, however, that a knowledge
of their use is necessary, and also the abll-
ity to place them; then, possibly one Is
justified in choosing ones own way, even
if it be that of the renowned Timothy
Dexter, who placed at the n of his book
a large number of punctuation marks
with the gracious permission to the reader
to pepper and salt" them, as he pleased.
The paper for correspondence, formal OF
informal, should never be ruled; 1t IS as
easy, after a few trials, to write without
lines as with, and the handwriting is
much less hampered. The many very fan
ciful papers upon the market are In pad
taste, TN should never be used; Indulge
the fancy as far as yon like as to quality,
but never be led into buying the varied
colors, or eccentric shapes, so common;
There are sheets folded at the top and
envelopes opening from the end, paper
with torn edges, paper even With burned
edges, paper Il notices, paper Win
flowers, and, indeed, representations of
every branch of the vegetable Kingdom,
to say nothing of the animal, but none OF
them are in good form or denote know
ledge of les e%onuenance in the person who
uses them.
Deep colors are always out of taste, and
even in tinted paper care should be used
that it be of the most delicate tones, as
soft grays, duh blues, and cream or light
M IL -. - fr,.ao ora VClfhOI1f
the pale. There is one choice that is al
ways safe; the cream white, thick linen
used of the size suitable for note or letter,
and this has also the merit of being UNI
affected by the changes of fashion. Many
ladies pride themselves upon the rigid
simplicity of their paper and its accom-
kind; for older ladies this habit is par
ticularly appropriate.-Good Hoasekeep-
ina.