How to Write Letters (Formerly The Book of Letters) by Mary Owens Crowther (interesting novels to read txt) π
The mechanical construction of a letter, whether social, friendly, or business, falls into six or seven parts. This arrangement has become established by the best custom. The divisions are as follows:
1. Heading 2. Inside address (Always used in business letters but omitted in social and friendly letters) 3. Salutation 4. Body 5. Complimentary close 6. Signature 7. Superscription
1. THE HEADING
The heading of a letter contains the street address, city, state, and the date. The examples below will illustrate:
2018 Calumet Street or 1429 Eighth Avenue Chicago, Ill. New York, N.Y. May 12, 1921 March 8, 1922
[Illustration: In the business letterhead appear the name of the firm, its address, and the kind of business engaged in]
When the heading is typewritten or written by hand, it is placed at the top of the first letter sheet close to the right-hand margin. It should begin about in the center, that is, it should extend no farther to the left than the ce
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For the reception
Afternoon receptions and "At Homes" for which engraved invitations are sent out are practically the same as formal "teas."
An invitation is engraved as follows:
Mr. and Mrs. John Evans
At Home
Wednesday Afternoon, September Fourth
from Four until Half-Past Seven o'Clock
Five Hundred Park Avenue
These cards are sent out by mail in a single envelope about two weeks or ten days before the event.
The recipient of such a card is not required to send either a written acceptance or regret. One accepts by attending the "At Home." If one does not accept, the visiting card should be sent by mail so that it will reach the hostess on the day of the reception.
Where an answer is explicitly required, then the reply may be as follows:
Accepting
Mrs. John Evans
accepts with pleasure
Mrs. Emerson's
kind invitation for Wednesday afternoon
November the twenty-eighth
Regretting
Mrs. John Evans
regrets that she is unable to accept
Mrs. Emerson's
kind invitation for Wednesday afternoon
November the twenty-eighth
Mrs. John Evans
regrets that she is
unable to be present at
Mrs. Emerson's
At home on Wednesday afternoon
November the twenty-eighth
Reception "to meet"
(A)
Mrs. Bruce Wellington
Requests the Pleasure of
Mrs. Evans's
Presence on Thursday Afternoon, April Fifth
to Meet the Board of Governors
of the
Door-of-Hope Society
from Four-Thirty to Seven o'Clock
Accepting
Mrs. John Evans
accepts with pleasure
Mrs. Wellington's
kind invitation to meet
The Board of Governors
of the
Door-of-Hope Society
On Thursday afternoon, April fifth
Regretting:
Mrs. John Evans
regrets that a previous engagement
prevents her from accepting
Mrs. Wellington's
kind invitation to meet
The Board of Governors of the Door-of-Hope Society
On Thursday afternoon, April fifth
Mr. and Mrs. John Evans
Request the Pleasure of Your Company
to Meet
General and Mrs. Robert E. Lee
on Thursday Afternoon, February Fourth
from Four until Seven o'Clock
Five Hundred Park Avenue
If one accepts this invitation, one acknowledges simply by attending. If one is unable to attend, then the visiting card is mailed. If unforeseen circumstances should prevent attending, then a messenger is sent with a card in an envelope to the hostess, to reach her during the reception.
Invitations for afternoon affairs
For afternoon affairsβat homes, teas, garden partiesβthe invitations are sent out in the name of the hostess alone, or if there be a daughter, or daughters, in society, their names will appear immediately below the name of the hostess.
Mrs. John Evans
The Misses Evans
At Home
Thursday Afternoon, January Eleventh
from Four until Seven o'Clock
Five Hundred Park Avenue
If the purpose of the reception is to introduce a daughter, her name would appear immediately below that of the hostess, as "Miss Evans," without Christian name or initial. If a second daughter is to be introduced at the tea, her name in full is added beneath that of the hostess:
Mrs. John Evans
Miss Ruth Evans
Miss Evans
At Home
Friday Afternoon, January Twentieth
from Four until Seven o'Clock
Five Hundred Park Avenue
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For balls and dances
The word "ball" is used for an assembly or a charity dance, never otherwise. An invitation to a private house bears "Dancing" or "Cotillion" in one corner of the card. This ball or formal dance invitation is engraved on a white card, sometimes with a blank space so that the guest's name may be written in by the hostess. It would read thus:
(A)
Mr. and Mrs. Charles Elliott
Request the Pleasure of
Mr. and Mrs. Evans's
Company at a Cotillion
to Be Held at the Hotel Ritz-Carlton
on Saturday, December the Third
at Ten o'Clock
Please Address Reply to
347 Madison Avenue
(B)
Mr. and Mrs. Charles Elliott
Request the Pleasure of
_________________________
Company on Saturday Evening
January the Sixth, at Ten o'Clock
Dancing 347 Madison Avenue
An older style of invitationβwithout the blank for the written name, but instead the word "your" engraved upon the cardβis in perfectly good form. The invitation would be like this:
(C)
Mr. and Mrs. Charles Elliott
Request the Pleasure of Your Company
on Saturday Evening, January the Sixth
at Ten o'Clock
Dancing 347 Madison Avenue
Accepting
Mr. and Mrs. John Evans
accept with pleasure
Mr. and Mrs. Elliott's
very kind invitation to a cotillion
to be held at the Hotel Ritz-Carlton
On Saturday, December the third
at ten o'clock
Regretting
Mr. and Mrs. John Evans
regret exceedingly that they
are unable to accept
Mr. and Mrs. Elliott's
kind invitation to attend a dance
on Saturday, January the sixth
In sending a regret the hour is omitted, as, since the recipient will not be present, the time is unimportant.
(D)
The Honour of Your Presence
Is Requested at the Lincoln's Birthday Eve Ball
of the Dark Hollow Country Club
on Monday Evening, February Eleventh
at Half-Past Ten o'Clock
1922
Accepting
Miss Evans accepts with pleasure
the kind invitation of the Dark Hollow Country Club
for Monday evening, February eleventh
at half-past ten o'clock
For christenings
Christenings are sometimes made formal. In such case engraved cards are sent out two or three weeks ahead. A good form is:
Mr. and Mrs. Philip Brewster
Request the Pleasure of Your Company
at the Christening of Their Son
on Sunday Afternoon, April Seventeenth
At Three o'clock
at the Church of the Redeemer
Accepting
Mr. and Mrs. Charles Elliot
accept with pleasure
Mr. and Mrs. Brewster's
kind invitation to attend
the christening of their son
on Sunday afternoon, April seventeenth
at three o'clock
A reason for not accepting may or may not be givenβit is better to put in a reason if you have one.
Regretting
Mr. and Mrs. Charles Elliott
regret that a previous engagement
prevents their accepting
Mr. and Mrs. Brewster's
kind invitation to the christening of their son
on Sunday afternoon, April seventeenth
For a wedding
An engraved invitation always implies a somewhat large or elaborate formal function. An informal affair requires simply a written invitation in the first person.
The informal wedding is one to which are invited only the immediate family and intimate friends. The reason may be simply the desire for a small, quiet affair or it may be a recent bereavement. The bride-to-be generally writes these invitations. The form may be something like this:
(A)
June 2, 1922.
Dear Mrs. Smith,
On Wednesday, June the twelfth, at three o'clock Mr. Brewster and I are to be married. The ceremony will be at home and we are asking only a few close friends. I hope that you and Mr. Smith will be able to come.
Yours very sincerely,
Dorothy Evans.
(B)
June 16, 1922.
Dear Mary,
Owing to the recent death of my sister, Mr. Brewster and I are to be married quietly at home. The wedding will be on Wednesday, June the twentieth, at eleven o'clock. We are asking only a few intimate friends and I shall be so glad if you will come.
Sincerely yours,
Dorothy Evans.
Accepting
June 7, 1922.
Dear Dorothy,
We shall be delighted to attend your wedding on Wednesday, June the twelfth, at three o'clock.
We wish you and Mr. Brewster every happiness.
Sincerely yours,
Helen Gray Smith.
Regretting
June 4, 1922.
Dear Dorothy,
I am so sorry that I shall be unable to attend your wedding. The "Adriatic" is sailing on the tenth and Father and I have engaged passage.
Let me wish you and Mr. Brewster every happiness.
Sincerely yours,
Mary Lyman.
For dinners and luncheons
An informal invitation to dinner is sent by the wife, for her husband and herself, to the wife. This invitation must include the latter's husband. It is simply a friendly note. The wife signs her Christian name, her maiden name (or more usually the initial of her maiden name), and her married name.
Five Hundred Park Avenue,
December 5th, 1922.
My dear Mrs. Trent,
Will you and Mr. Trent give us the pleasure of your company at a small dinner on Tuesday, December the twelfth, at seven o'clock?
I hope you will not be otherwise engaged on that evening as we are looking forward to seeing you.
Very sincerely yours,
Katherine G. Evans.
To cancel an informal dinner invitation
My dear Mrs. Trent,
On account of the sudden death of my brother, I regret to be obliged to recall the invitation for our dinner on Tuesday, December the twelfth.
Sincerely yours,
Katherine G. Evans.
December 8, 1922.
Accepting
788 East Forty-Sixth Street,
December 7th, 1922.
My dear Mrs. Evans,
Mr. Trent and I will be very glad to dine with you on Tuesday, December the twelfth, at seven o'clock.
With kind regards, I am
Very sincerely yours,
Charlotte B. Trent
Regretting
788 East Forty-Sixth Street,
December 7th, 1922.
My dear Mrs. Evans,
We regret deeply that we cannot accept your kind invitation to dine with you on Tuesday, December the twelfth. Mr. Trent and I, unfortunately, have a previous engagement for that evening.
With cordial regards, I am
Yours very sincerely,
Charlotte B. Trent.
The daughter as hostess
When a daughter must act as hostess in her father's home, she includes his name in every dinner invitation she issues, as in the following:
340 Madison Avenue,
January 2, 1921.
My dear Mrs. Evans,
Father wishes me to ask whether you and Mr. Evans will give us the pleasure of dining with us on Wednesday, January the fifteenth, at quarter past seven o'clock. We do hope you can come.
Very sincerely yours,
Edith Haines.
The answer to this invitation of a daughter-hostess must be sent to the daughter, not to the father.
Accepting
My dear Miss Haines,
We shall be delighted to accept your father's kind invitation to dine with you on Wednesday, January the fifteenth, at quarter past seven o'clock.
With most cordial wishes, I am
Very sincerely yours,
Katherine G. Evans.
January 5, 1922
Regretting
My dear Miss Haines,
We regret exceedingly that we cannot accept your father's kind invitation to dine with you on Wednesday, January the fifteenth. A previous engagement of Mr. Evans prevents it. Will you convey to him our thanks?
Very sincerely yours,
Katherine Gerard Evans.
January 5, 1922.
Adding additional details
The invitation to an informal dinner may necessarily include some additional details. For example:
Five Hundred Park Avenue,
September 16, 1920.
My dear Mr. Allen,
Mr. Evans and I have just returned from Canada and we hear that you are in New York for a short visit. We should like to have you take dinner with us on Friday, the twentieth, at half-past seven o'clock, if your time will permit. We hope you can arrange to come as there are many things back home in old Sharon that we are anxious to hear about.
Yours very sincerely,
Katherine Gerard Evans.
Mr. Roger Allen
Hotel Gotham
New York
Accepting
Hotel Gotham,
September 17, 1920.
My dear Mrs. Evans,
I shall be very glad to accept your kind invitation to dinner on Friday, September the twentieth, at half-past seven o'clock.
The prospect of seeing you and Mr. Evans again is very delightful and I am sure I have several interesting things to tell you.
Yours very sincerely,
Roger Allen.
Mrs. John Evans
500 Park Avenue
New York
Regretting
Hotel Gotham,
September 16, 1920.
My dear Mrs. Evans,
I am sorry to miss the pleasure of accepting your kind invitation to dinner on Friday, September the twentieth.
A business engagement compels me to leave New York to-morrow. There are
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