The Maryville times. (Maryville, Tenn.) 1884-1944, 1892-11-23
LETTER WRITING.


some GOOD ADVICE to the GIFTS ABOUT
Their Correspondence.
A few simple rules should be borne in
mind for guidance, whether in letter
or note. In the first place, there is
the manner of address. Begin any note
or letter to an acquaintance, or per-
son to whom you write for a favor, an
inquiry. an autograph, etc, Dear, etc,
etc" The 'dear" is a mere matter of
social form, as meaningless as any com
monplace society phrase, but accepted
by the best authorities as correct If
writing an order to workman who is
to be employed, or if answering note
or letter addressed in the thild person,
use that formula, i. e., miss Tor Mrs.
- would like A. b. to come here at
nine a. IN. and attend to the carpenter
ing needed" or "Mrs. A. is in receipt of
Mr.. BIS nete of the 10th, and she re-
grets she n unable to give him the in
forma ton Sic Gred.' It is inelegant to
begin any letter 'Fricnd, etc" al
though adopted by many well-educated
people. The dear" ETC., in such case
should be used.
More mistakes, however. are made in
signatures, and here would also sug-
gest u few simple rules. Never sign
your name with prefix of any kind.
| The reason is obvious. If you sign your
letter, Yours truly, Miss Mary Smith"
for example, you make use of a title,
| the "Miss" having nothing whatever to
do with your name, which is your sig
nature Therefore etiquette requires
you should sign as, for example, Yours
truly, Mary Smith" In the event OF
writing to any firm or person who
would in return need to know how to
address you put Miss in brackets a
little distance to the left Of the sigma
ture. In addressing a gentleman on
business in a purely formal manner
write thus: "Charles j. Brown, Esquire.
Dea, sir" Aud in such cases always
sign "Yours respectfully, etc, etc" In
writing letters to your friends or ac-
uuaintances make what you say not
only worth reading, but as free as pos
sible from all affectation. Say very
little about tho affairs of others, and
be guarded in what you write of your
own private conforms; but apart from
this do not pick sad choose words, nor
feel obliged to consider how each sem
tence shall be rounded" Your letters
will, in case you are constantly consid-
ering your mode Of expression, be dull
and stupid and not worth their postage.
Write to your friends, as you would talk
to them.
In the last century letter-writing
was fine art, and as result we have
the most charming and perfect pictures
of the times. Horace Walpole, Lady
Mary Wortley Montagu, Nine. d'Arblay
are only three among a hundred famous
letter-writers of that day, when to send
a letter any distance cost some shil-
lings, and therefore all "the news" NJ
well as the social and domestic events.
was chronicled. Nowadays people seem
TO have no time for real correspond
ence, which should be in every house
hold and family one of the most in
teresting elements. A postal card or .
brief note seems to suffice for the most
important occasion. and the increascP
postal facilities make this sort of dis
patch" business easier. And here il
may be said that you should never
write letter to friend or stranger
on postal card. When you notify tht
iceman that your mother will need NJ
extra quantity of ice on the morrow, Of
the coal-dealer that the cellar needs re
filling, you may use postal card, fol
this is a convenience to the iceman ant
coal-dealer; but avoid postal cards 10
anything but the very simplest an'
least private of messages Harper
Nounu pe0Dle