New-York tribune., 1904-10-03
LETTERU'RITTNG RULES.

Nvays be gracious in your expressions Of
thought.
Never soil a letter with rude vulgar word
Avoid all slang ana cant.
Bo modest simple and clear in your choice %
words
Avoid vanity and s~if c'u-r'''-"--e, aud ''sN ths
personal prououu ''Ir as little as possible Try to
avoid beginning a letter with personal pronoun
Always verify your spelling and your quotations
II in doubt about word. take the time 10 look q
up IN "a dictionary. Many person has spent
half his life in trying 10 live down reputation Tor
bad spelling caused by laziness in not consulting a
dictionary. Never quote u text from the Bible ct
a Of poetry unless you quite you
know It correctly.
10 not high flown expressions grandro-
quent terms. DO not make your adjectives larger
than their nouns. with adjective that
large for IL is like small hoy walking
about with his fathers hat upon his head Use
simple adectives DO not use tremendous" and
superiative ones.
Learn the use ~ capitals and be frugal in giving
capital letters To common words. Capital letters
go with proper and other proper articles OF
speech-not with common ones.
Learn the art OF punctuation. Commas for quar-
ter parts Of a sentence, colons semi-colons for
half Of the sentence, and full stop period at
the end.
Train YOUR ear to have sense Of rhythm: read
not end sentence with proposition rough
harsh word j is enough that a sentence
should look right, II must sound right. This is
what makes scanning such beautiful part OF
our study of the great classics. As illustration
OF what is meant by having our sentences sound
right. Longfelow's poem Of 'EvanccIine"
Make your sentences not only correct To your eye
but smooth and rhythmical to your ear
The important thing about writing a letter. after
an IS 20 know what It is one wants to say. Think
out clearly IN advance what YOU going to write
about. Emerson says in one of his essays The
secret Of eloquence is To know your facts
In correspondence at times it is we'll 10 bear in
mind that straight line Is not always the shortest
distance between two given points. There are two
methods of heating house by steam one is bv
direct radiation. the other is by indirect radiation
Sometimes in writing "a letter II Is better 70 sug-
gest thing indirectly than to state il plainly
There are certain cold. hard facts which peoDle
do not like TO read in writing. II wise at times
to leave room for the imagination to work and 10
let people draw their conclusions without
being compelled to state them ourselves in so many
words
When writing an important letter make notes in
advance Of what you propose to say. or write out
beforehand rough draft copy of it,
Keep In blankbook list of letters as received
with date OF their writing. Answer your letters
from this list from time time and suit the char
acter of the reply intended TO the proper mood of
hhnd reserve important letters which dema nd
thought and and decacy Of expression untu
YOU in the right mood to reply To them Do
nOd for instance, write a letter Of coincidence and
sympathy to friend in afIilctOn when you are in
strenuous mood of mind, just YOU are starting
out on Monday morning to do the weeks market
ing. In letterwriting. i'm many other things
there are times when must brace up To our
work, and there times when it is the height of
wisdom to become passive and relaxed.
Never mail fierce and angry letter 1t gives
you away-if YOU give yourself away-and anger
by letter is deliberate Write out your fierce let
ter by night lay it your desk read It over
carefully the next morning. and then commit il
tenderiy to the wastepaper basket
Remember that letter written and sent goes
you know not where and lives perchance for ages
There 1t stands witness against YOU. for all
time. 1t can never be recalled changed, and
what YOU say sits everastingy in Judgment upon
YOU like slice out of the day of Judgment
When you do not know whether to write a letter
or not. postpone writing until You know your own
mind better
Remember always that the best letter writer's
are those who have always a subtle consciousness
of the person addressed. Most people write to all
their correspondents In much the same way. Just
as some clever takers never get out Of their one
style OF talk
BE prompt IN replying To yOuS letters. and do
take time IN apolosizing your delay In answer
ing them When you come 10 think OF II, there Is
no reason why You should not answer most OF
your letters at once. Put them into your list of
daily autles aDd-dO them-(Wilam w, Newton.