NOTE. The folding of the letter requires attention. The highest grade linen papers are made in several sizes, with envelopes to match, and are intended to be folded once, the bottom of the four-page sheet being brought up to the top. The sheet thus folded is then placed in the envelope with the open edges outward, so that, when the envelope is opened, the letter may be taken out with the first page, after the bottom has been brought down from the top, facing the reader. This method avoids the inconvenience the reader is often put to, after he has taken the letter from the envelope, of turning the letter several times over and about before the first page comes into view. The same principle should govern the folding of full sized letter paper (about 8 x 10 inches). The bottom of the sheet should be brought up to the top, or far enough toward the top to fit the length of the envelope, and the folded sheet folded twice more, first over from the right, and then over from the left, the last two folds being made to fit the width of the envelope. The letter thus folded should then be put into the envelope in such a manner that, when the envelope is opened at the end to the right, the open edges of the letter will come out first, the last fold facing the reader. Commercial paper (about 5 x 8 inches) should be folded twice, to fit the width of the envelope, first up from the bottom, and then down from the top, and put into the envelope in such manner that, when the envelope is opened at the end to the right, the last fold will come out facing the reader. SECTION 52 Business Letters No Though a business letter is the easiest of all letters to write, the utmost care must be taken to avoid mistakes, since mistakes in business letters often cost dearly in time and money. In a business letter the business in hand is plunged into and got done with as soon as possible. more is said than needs to be said, and what is said is said in the fewest possible words, and in the clearest possible words. A business man, who often reads and dictates scores of letters in a single day, has no time to bother his head over matter that does not relate to the business in hand, nor has he the time or the patience to turn obscure language into clear thought. If he finds language that admits of two or more meanings, he quite naturally feels that he has the right to interpret such language in his own favor, and delays and misunderstandings, if not lawsuits, are the result. A business letter, like every other letter, should be courteous. It is not courteous to put into a business letter matter that does not pertain to the business in hand, nor is it courteous to abbreviate every other word in such a letter. A business letter is not a telegram. Ordinarily any seeming rudeness or brusqueness may be avoided by attention to the greeting and the courteous close. Other things to be remembered are, to answer business letters by return mail, or at least to send by return mail an acknowledgment of their receipt, to acknowledge enclosures, to answer all questions, and to keep a copy of each business letter you write. Observe that in the following example of a business letter every part of a complete letter is used. [Printed Letter Head] 204 PINE STREET, COR. BATTERY, Mr. H. H. PALlmer, Palo Alto, Cal. DEAR SIR, Yours of the 30th inst. received. As you request, we are sending to-day, under another cover, samples of envelopes, and herewith enclose sheets of prices from which we shall be pleased to give you a discount of 50 per cent in lots of 1000. 1 The name and the address of the firm are contained in the printed letter head. Trusting that among these samples you will find an envelope that suits you, and hoping in due time to receive your order, we are, Very truly yours, Dictated by U. (Enclosure.) PAYOT, UPHAM, & Co. Exercise 58 1. Your school literary society has voted to subscribe for one year to Success. As secretary of the society, write to The Success Company, 700 University Building, New York, giving directions for sending the paper, and enclosing money order for $1.00. 2. Write to the principal of some high school in your state, and propose a debate between your school and his. Make some suggestion about preliminary matters. 3. You are to spend the summer at Devil's Lake, Wisconsin. Write to the proprietor of the Lake View Hotel, at that place, asking for rates. Write the proprietor's answer. Write again, engaging room and board by the week. Arrange for holding the room until you arrive. 4. Write to your grocer, ordering the following articles: 1 bag flour 5 lbs. pearline; 1 gal. maple syrup; 4 qts. lima beans; 5 lbs. raisins 1 peck spinach greens; lb. cream of tartar; bush. potatoes. 5. Write to the congressman of your district, asking him to send your school debating society a copy of the book entitled Constitution of the United States, Jefferson's Manual, The Rules of the House of Representatives, etc. 6. Write for samples and prices of unglazed, white bond paper, with envelopes to match. Write again, ordering one ream of the kind you choose, Gladstone (6§ x 5%) or Club (7} x 5§) size, and 500 envelopes to match. 7. Write to the Secretary of Harvard University, Cambridge, Mass., and ask him to inform you as to the requirements of admission to that university. 8. You are planning a cruise to the West Indies. Write to the Hamburg-American Line, 35–37 Broadway, New York, for illustrated pamphlets, etc. 9. Your cousin wishes to take advantage of the excursion rates from Chicago to San Francisco. She has asked you to write to Mr. John Sebastian, Passenger Traffic Manager, Rock Island System, Chi cago, for information as to the time limit of the ticket, stop-over privileges, and sleeping-car and dining-room car accommodations. 10. This day you have sold to Mr. J. H. Russell, Wakefield, Mass., the following bill of goods: 1 No. 7 D Typewriter Desk, roll top, quartered oak, $45; Stack No. 106 Sectional Bookcase, mahogany, $56.50; 1 No. 207 Colonial Rocker, mahogany and leather, $27; 1 No. 100 Davenport Sofa, mahogany and leather, $67.50. Write to Mr. Russell, enclosing bill. Write Mr. Russell's reply, enclosing bank draft in payment. Write to Mr. Russell again, acknowledging receipt of draft in payment; return receipted bill. Consult your copy-book or your arithmetic for the proper business forms. 11. Mr. B. B. Byxbee owes you for work done, $18.75. Write him three letters, at intervals of fifteen days, asking him to settle the account. Send him a final notice to the effect that the account will be placed in the hands of an attorney if not settled within ten days. 12. Mr. W. A. Collins desires to borrow $75.00 for one year at 7 per cent interest. Write him, and enclose a promissory note for him to sign. On the return of the note, duly signed, write again, enclosing your private check for the amount of the note. 13. Write to the Macmillan Company, 66 Fifth Avenue, New York, for a complete catalogue of their publications. The Macmillan Company replies, sending the catalogue. Write the letter. Write, ordering six books selected from the catalogue; enclose bank draft. Write the Macmillan Company's reply. 14. You are to enter College next September. Write to the president of the college for a catalogue. Write the president's reply. Having read the catalogue, write again, asking for more definite information as to entrance requirements, etc. Make your questions as definite and explicit as you can. The president replies. He answers your questions, and requests a statement of your school work. Write his letter. Reply to the president's letter. The president writes, informing you that your work will admit you to the college, provided you will secure from the principal of your school a detailed statement of your work, and pass a satisfac tory examination in certain subjects. He names these subjects, and encloses a blank for the principal to fill out. Write the president's letter. Reply to the president's letter, enclosing your principal's statement, and assuring the president that you will be present, in September, to take the required examination. Write the president's reply. SECTION 53 Postal Cards1 and Telegrams If a short message is to be sent by mail, a postal card is sometimes a convenient substitute for paper and envelope. The superscription written on the "address" side of a postal card is precisely the same as the superscription written on an envelope, but the message written on the reverse side of a postal card is in some respects quite different from the message written on paper to be enclosed in a sealed envelope. Owing to the limited writing space on a postal card, the greeting and the courteous close, together with the inside address, are commonly omitted. The place, date, and signature are of course indispensable, though the signature may often be reduced to mere initials. The message proper must be confined rigidly to facts, and to such facts, moreover, as will not make gossip for persons impertinent enough to read them. Secrets, matters of relationship or of friendship, and intimate personal affairs of all sorts, are not to be mentioned on postal cards. Telegrams are commonly confined to short, concisely worded messages which require lightning speed in transmission. As only ten words may be sent for a certain 1 Post-card" is the British term. |