The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1895-04-28
MODERN EPIsTLEs.
Difference Betwo CT I4otter Writing
Past and Present.
conciseness and Breyity Now tho Rule.
whereas in Times Conc Iy Poo
pie Wrote Moro for
Postcrlty.

The letter writing of to-day bears lit
tic or no resemblance to letter writing
OF other days, and Mr.. Andrew Lang
IN an interesting paper in the Illus
trated London News discourses ON the
ietter writers of the past, and says that
inc lack OF good letters in modern
me" Is not so much from the "lack of
writers" as from the lack of readers
ana long letter, say from Australia,
Is perhaps never read at oil, and that
we have become so frivolous "a man
as far away rs Samoa will write note
as If to friend in the next street. "
The pace at which we live, the rush
and hurry of each day, are nnswerable
In measure for this change in our
style of correspondence; but, above ALL
Is 1T not the result of the flood of jour
nalism which sweeps all before itP The
letter writers of the past wrote for pos
terity, it is true, but also to keep their
friends i'll touch with the topics of the
day, political and social, says London
queen. Our newspapers do this for us
10 the fullest extent, and only the
most private matters remain for the
letter writer to record, matters of so
private u nature that were such letters
given to postcrity n discreet editor
would ut once erase these condolences
from his MS. The letter writer of to-
day, unlike his predecessor, does not
confide his cXpcricnccs-whatcvc form
they may have talken-to his friend and
correspondent; and If he has anything
worth saying on any particular subject
he PUSHES into print forthwith, into the
pages of one or other of the many mag
azincs, or into the daily or weekly
newspapers. Women ore not one whit
behind men i'll this respect, and news
paper and magazine readers are the re-
clplcnts of their confidenoee, and what
they have seen and done becomes at
once public property.
The admirable diction, the vigorous
English, the polished periods, the tell
ing epigrams in the careful and we'll
thought-out essays Of the day are not
to he found as heretofore in private
correspondence, but In magazine and
journalistic literature. Mr.. Lang l>.-
marks that the fear or hopen of hav-
ing their letters published INSPIRED
, many of the old eminent hands" TO do
their best for fame and postcritv. as
well as for their correspondents. Miss
Austen kept her wit for the world"
and gave flat gossip" to the worthy,
dull ladies" with whom she CORE
sponded. OF literary letters none ex-
ccl'ShcnyS." SCOTS are simply mat
ural business-lil1c and unprctentious:7
Ihackeray, though he lived in our
railway days" and SHOULD have writ
ten few letters" yet for tone, style,
wit and loving kindness" his are among
the best in the world.
The points in the notes of the dav-
which have superseded lctters-nre con-
ciseness and brevity, to write without
preamble of any kind and to go to the
root of the matter ut once. Formerly.
If anything in the way of request was
made, n suggestion as regards plan to
do something, or any one of the thou
sand social triflcs that fill up leisure
and life, it required n lead of some lines
to introduce 1T, and oftener than not
an apology also. But now almost tel
egraphic concisencSS is the mode
adopted, and aught else would read
out OF date; in truth, kilograms have
not little to do in forming the present
form of letter writing, and have taught
economy in the use of words 1t NAV
be said that the letters of to-day are
the direct antithesis of those of yore.
Then too many subjects could not be
broached and commented upon; now
the reverse is the rule, and to keep to
one subject only, and that in the
fewcst words, is what society affects,
hence the brief notes we all receive and
write; yet, brief as they are, clever
man or talented woman CONVEYS in a
sentence or two the gist of the whole
matter, epigrammatical in neatness and
subtly humorous-a compensation small
in its way, perhaps, for the lengthy
epistles of the past, but all this worla-
day world has time either to write or to
read