THE PARTS OF A LETTER

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

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 center of the page. If a letter is short and therefore

placed in the center of a page, the heading will of course be lower

and farther in from the edge than in a longer letter. But it should

never be less than an inch from the top and three quarters of an inch

from the edge.

In the business letterhead appear the name of the firm, its address, and

the kind of business engaged in. The last is often omitted in the case

of widely known firms or where the nature of the business is indicated

by the name of the firm.

In the case of a printed or engraved letterhead, the written heading

should consist only of the date. The printed date-line is not good. To

mix printed and written or typed characters detracts from the neat

appearance of the letter.

In social stationery the address, when engraved, should be about three

quarters of an inch from the top of the sheet, either in the center or

at the right-hand corner. When the address is engraved, the date may be

written at the end of the last sheet, from the left-hand corner,

directly after the signature.

2. THE INSIDE ADDRESS

In social correspondence what is known as the inside address is omitted.

In all business correspondence it is obviously necessary. The name and

address of the person to whom a business letter is sent is placed at the

left-hand side of the letter sheet below the heading, about an inch from

the edge of the sheet, that is, leaving the same margin as in the body

of the letter. The distance below the heading will be decided by the

length and arrangement of the letter. The inside address consists of the

name of the person or of the firm and the address. The address should

comprise the street number, the city, and the state. The state may, in

the case of certain very large cities, be omitted. Either of the

following styles may be used--the straight edge or the diagonal:

Wharton & Whaley Co.

Madison Avenue & Forty-Fifth Street

New York, N. Y.

or

Wharton & Whaley Co.

Madison Avenue & Forty-Fifth Street

New York, N. Y.

Punctuation at the ends of the lines of the heading and the address may

or may not be used. There is a growing tendency to omit it.

The inside address may be written at the end of the letter, from the

left, below the signature. This is done in official letters, both formal

and informal. These official letters are further described under the

heading "Salutation" and in the chapter on stationery.

3. THE SALUTATION

Social Letters

The salutation, or complimentary address to the person to whom the

letter is written, in a social letter should begin at the left-hand side

of the sheet about half an inch below the heading and an inch from the

edge of the paper. The form "My dear" is considered in the United States

more formal than "Dear." Thus, when we write to a woman who is simply an

acquaintance, we should say "My dear Mrs. Evans." If we are writing to

someone more intimate we should say "Dear Mrs. Evans." The opposite is

true in England--that is, "My dear Mrs. Evans" would be written to a

friend and "Dear Mrs. Evans" to a mere acquaintance. In writing to an

absolute stranger, the full name should be written and then immediately

under it, slightly to the right, "Dear Madam" or "Dear Sir." For

example:

Mrs. John Evans,

Dear Madam:

or

Mr. William Sykes,

Dear Sir:

The salutation is followed by a colon or a comma.

Business Letters

In business letters the forms of salutation in common use are: "Dear

Sir," "Gentlemen," "Dear Madam," and "Mesdames." In the still more

formal "My dear Sir" and "My dear Madam" note that the second word is

not capitalized. A woman, whether married or unmarried, is addressed

"Dear Madam." If the writer of the letter is personally acquainted with

the person addressed, or if they have had much correspondence, he may

use the less formal address, as "My dear Mr. Sykes."

The salutation follows the inside address and preserves the same margin

as does the first line of the address. The following are correct forms:

White Brothers Co.

591 Fifth Avenue

New York

Gentlemen:

or

White Brothers Co.

591 Fifth Avenue

New York

Gentlemen:

"Dear Sirs" is no longer much used--although in many ways it seems to be

better taste.

In the case of a firm or corporation with a single name, as Daniel

Davey, Inc., or of a firm or corporation consisting of men and women,

the salutation is also "Gentlemen" (or "Dear Sirs"). In letters to or by

government officials the extremely formal "Sir" or "Sirs" is used. These

are known as formal official letters.

The informal official letter is used between business men and concerns

things not in the regular routine of business affairs. These letters are

decidedly informal and may be quite conversational in tone.

The use of a name alone as a salutation is not correct, as:

Mr. John Evans:

I have your letter of--

Forms of salutation to be avoided are "Dear Miss," "Dear Friend,"

"Messrs."

In memoranda between members of a company the salutations are commonly

omitted--but these memoranda are not letters. They are messages of a

"telegraphic" nature.

Titles

In the matter of titles it has been established by long custom that a

title of some kind be used with the name of the individual or firm. The

more usual titles are:

"Mr.," "Mrs.," "Miss," "Messrs.," "Reverend," "Doctor," "Professor," and

"Honorable." "Esquire," written "Esq." is used in England instead of the

"Mr." in common use in the United States. Although still adhered to by

some in this country, its use is rather restricted to social letters. Of

course it is never used with "Mr." Write either "Mr. George L. Ashley"

or "George L. Ashley, Esq."

The title "Messrs." is used in addressing two or more persons who are in

business partnership, as "Messrs. Brown and Clark" or "Brown & Clark";

but The National Cash Register Company, for example, should not be

addressed "Messrs. National Cash Register Company" but "The National

Cash Register Company." The form "Messrs." is an abbreviation of

"Messieurs" and should not be abbreviated in any way other than

"Messrs." The title "Miss" is not recognized as an abbreviation and is

not followed by a period.

Honorary degrees, such as "M.D.," "Ph.D.," "M.A.," "B.S.," "LL.D.,"

follow the name of the person addressed. The initials "M.D." must not be

used in connection with "Doctor" as this would be a duplication. Write

either "Dr. Herbert Reynolds" or "Herbert Reynolds, M.D." The titles of

"Doctor," "Reverend," and "Professor" precede the name of the addressed,

as: "Dr. Herbert Reynolds," "Rev. Philip Bentley," "Prof. Lucius

Palmer." It will be observed that these titles are usually abbreviated

on the envelope and in the inside address, but in the salutation they

must be written out in full, as "My dear Doctor," or "My dear

Professor." In formal notes one writes "My dear Doctor Reynolds" or "My

dear Professor Palmer." In less formal notes, "Dear Doctor Reynolds" and

"Dear Professor Palmer" may be used.

A question of taste arises in the use of "Doctor." The medical student

completing the studies which would ordinarily lead to a bachelor's

degree is known as "Doctor," and the term has become associated in the

popular mind with medicine and surgery. The title "Doctor" is, however,

an academic distinction, and although applied to all graduate medical

practitioners is, in all other realms of learning, a degree awarded for

graduate work, as Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), or for distinguished

services that cause a collegiate institution to confer an honorary

degree such as Doctor of Common Law (D.C.L.), Doctor of Law and

Literature (LL.D.), Doctor of Science (Sc.D.), and so on. Every holder

of a doctor's degree is entitled to be addressed as "Doctor," but in

practice the salutation is rarely given to the holders of the honorary

degrees--mostly because they do not care for it.

Do not use "Mr." or "Esq." with any of the titles mentioned above.

The President of the United States should be addressed formally as

"Sir," informally as "My dear Mr. President."

Members of Congress and of the state legislatures, diplomatic

representatives, judges, and justices are entitled "Honorable," as

"Honorable Samuel Sloane," thus:

(Formal)

Honorable (or Hon.) John Henley

Sir:

(Informal)

Honorable (or Hon.) John Henley

My dear Mr. Henley:

Titles such as "Cashier," "Secretary," and "Agent" are in the nature of

descriptions and follow the name; as "Mr. Charles Hamill, Cashier."

When such titles as "Honorable" and "Reverend" are used in the body of

the letter they are preceded by the article "the." Thus, "The Honorable

Samuel Sloane will address the meeting."

A woman should never be addressed by her husband's title. Thus the wife

of a doctor is not "Mrs. Dr. Royce" but "Mrs. Paul Royce." The titles of

"Judge," "General," and "Doctor" belong to the husband only. Of course,

if a woman has a title of her own, she may use it. If she is an "M.D."

she will be designated as "Dr. Elizabeth Ward." In this case her

husband's Christian name would not be used.

In writing to the clergy, the following rules should be observed:

For a Cardinal the only salutation is "Your Eminence." The address on

the envelope should read "His Eminence John Cardinal Farley."

To an Archbishop one should write "Most Rev. Patrick J. Hayes, D.D.,

Archbishop of New York." The salutation is usually "Your Grace,"

although it is quite admissible to use "Dear Archbishop." The former is

preferable and of more common usage.

The correct form of address for a Bishop is "The Right Reverend John

Jones, D.D., Bishop of ----." The salutation in a formal letter should

be "Right Reverend and dear Sir," but this would be used only in a

strictly formal communication. In this salutation "dear" is sometimes

capitalized, so that it would read "Right Reverend and Dear Sir";

although the form in the text seems preferable, some bishops use the

capitalized "Dear." The usual form is "My dear Bishop," with "The Right

Reverend John Jones, D.D., Bishop of ----" written above it. In the

Protestant Episcopal Church a Dean is addressed "The Very Reverend John

Jones, D.D., Dean of ----." The informal salutation is "My dear Dean

Jones" and the formal is "Very Reverend and dear Sir."

In addressing a priest, the formal salutation is "Reverend and dear

Sir," or "Reverend dear Father." The envelope reads simply: "The Rev.

Joseph J. Smith," followed by any titles the priest may enjoy.

The form used in addressing the other clergy is "The Reverend John

Jones," and the letter, if strictly formal, would commence with

"Reverend and Dear Sir." The more usual form, however, is "My dear Mr.

Brown" (or "Dr. Brown," as the case may be). The use of the title

"Reverend" with the surname only is wholly inadmissible.

In general usage the salutation in addressing formal correspondence to a

foreign ambassador is "His Excellency," to a Minister or Chargé

d'Affaires, "Sir." In informal correspondence the general form is "My

dear Mr. Ambassador," "My dear Mr. Minister," or "My dear Mr. Chargé

d'Affaires."

4. THE BODY OF THE LETTER

In the placing of a formal note it must be arranged so that the complete

note appears on the first page only. The social letter is either formal

or informal. The formal letter must be written according to certain

established practice. It is the letter used for invitations to formal

affairs, for announcements, and for the acknowledgment of these letters.

The third person must always be used. If one receives a letter written

in the third person one must answer in kind. It would be obviously

incongruous to write

Mr. and Mrs. John Evans regret that we are unable to accept

Mrs. Elliott's kind invitation for the theatr on Thursday, May the fourth

as we have a previous engagement

It should read

Mr. and Mrs. John Evans regret that they are unable to accept

Mrs. Elliott's kind invitation for the theatre on Thursday, May the fourth

as they have a previous engagement

In these notes, the hour and date are never written numerically but are

spelled out.

If the family has a coat-of-arms or crest it may be used in the centre

of the engraved invitation at the top, but monograms or stamped

addresses are never so used.

For the informal letter there are no set rules except that of courtesy,

which requires that we have our thought distinctly in mind before

putting it on paper. It may be necessary to pause a few moments before

writing, to think out just what we want to say. A rambling, incoherent

letter is not in good taste any more than careless, dishevelled

clothing. Spelling should be correct. If there is any difficulty in

spelling, a small dictionary kept in the desk drawer is easily

consulted. Begin each sentence with a capital. Start a new paragraph

when you change to a new subject. Put periods (or interrogation points

as required) at the ends of the sentences. It is neater to preserve a

margin on both sides of the letter sheet.

In the body of a business letter the opening sentence is in an important

position, and this is obviously the place for an important fact. It

ought in some way to state or refer to the subject of or reason for the

letter, so as to get the attention of the reader immediately to the

subject.

It ought also to suggest a courteous personal interest in the

recipient's business, to give the impression of having to do with his

interests. For instance, a reader might be antagonized by

Yours of the 14th regarding the shortage in your last order

received.

How much more tactful is

We regret to learn from your letter of March 14th that there was

a shortage in your last order.

Paragraphs should show the division of the thought of the letter. If you

can arrange and group your subjects and your thoughts on them logically

in your mind, you will have no trouble in putting them on paper. It is

easier for the reader to grasp your thought if in each paragraph are

contained only one thought and the ideas pertaining to it.

The appearance of a business letter is a matter to which all too little

concern has been given. A firm or business which would not tolerate an

unkempt salesman sometimes will think nothing of sending out badly

typed, badly placed, badly spelled letters.

The first step toward a good-looking letter is proper stationery, though

a carefully typed and placed letter on poor stationery is far better

than one on good stationery with a good letterhead but poor typing and

placing.

The matter of correct spelling is merely a case of the will to consult a

dictionary when in doubt.

The proper placing of a letter is something which well rewards the care

necessary at first. Estimate the matter to go on the page with regard to

the size of the page and arrange so that the centre of the letter will

be slightly above the centre of the letter sheet. The margins should act

as a frame or setting for the letter. The left-hand space should be at

least an inch and the right-hand at least a half inch. Of course if the

letter is short the margins will be wider. The top and bottom margins

should be wider than the side margins.

The body of the letter should begin at the same distance from the edge

as the first line of the inside address and the salutation.

All paragraphing should be indicated by indenting the same distances

from the margin--about an inch--or if the block system is used no

paragraph indentation is made but double or triple spacing between the

paragraphs indicates the divisions. If the letter is handwritten, the

spacing between the paragraphs should be noticeably greater than that

between other lines.

Never write on both sides of a sheet. In writing a business letter, if

the letter requires more than one page, use plain sheets of the same

size and quality without the letterhead. These additional sheets should

be numbered at the top. The name or initials of the firm or person to

whom the letter is going should also appear at the top of the sheets.

This letter should never run over to a second sheet if there are less

than three lines of the body of the letter left over from the first

page.

In the formal official letter, that is, in letters to or by government

officials, members of Congress, and other dignitaries, the most rigid

formality in language is observed. No colloquialisms are allowed and no

abbreviations.

5. THE COMPLIMENTARY CLOSE

The complimentary close follows the body of the letter, about two or

three spaces below it. It begins about in the center of the page under

the body of the letter. Only the first word should be capitalized and a

comma is placed at the end. The wording may vary according to the degree

of cordiality or friendship. In business letters the forms are usually

restricted to the following:

Yours truly (or) Truly yours (not good form)

Yours very truly (or) Very truly yours

Yours respectfully (or) Respectfully yours

Yours very respectfully.

If the correspondents are on a more intimate basis they may use

Faithfully yours

Cordially yours

Sincerely yours.

In formal official letters the complimentary close is

Respectfully yours

Yours respectfully.

The informal social letter may close with

Yours sincerely

Yours very sincerely

Yours cordially

Yours faithfully

Yours gratefully (if a favor has been done)

Yours affectionately

Very affectionately yours

Yours lovingly

Lovingly yours.

The position of "yours" may be at the beginning or at the end, but it

must never be abbreviated or omitted.

If a touch of formal courtesy is desired, the forms "I am" or "I remain"

may be used before the complimentary closing. These words keep the same

margin as the paragraph indenting. But in business letters they are not

used.

6. THE SIGNATURE

The signature is written below the complimentary close and a little to

the right, so that it ends about at the right-hand margin. In signing a

social letter a married woman signs herself as "Evelyn Rundell," not

"Mrs. James Rundell" nor "Mrs. Evelyn Rundell." The form "Mrs. James

Rundell" is used in business letters when the recipient might be in

doubt as to whether to address her as "Mrs." or "Miss." Thus a married

woman would sign such a business letter:

Yours very truly,

Evelyn Rundell

(Mrs. James Rundell).

An unmarried woman signs as "Ruth Evans," excepting in the case of a

business letter where she might be mistaken for a widow. She then

prefixes "Miss" in parentheses, as (Miss) Ruth Evans.

A woman should not sign only her given name in a letter to a man unless

he is her fiancé or a relative or an old family friend.

A widow signs her name with "Mrs." in parentheses before it, as (Mrs.)

Susan Briggs Geer.

A divorced woman, if she retains her husband's name, signs her letters

with her given name and her own surname followed by her husband's name,

thus:

Janet Hawkins Carr.

and in a business communication:

Janet Hawkins Carr

(Mrs. Janet Hawkins Carr).

A signature should always be made by hand and in ink. The signature to a

business letter may be simply the name of the writer. Business firms or

corporations have the name of the firm typed above the written signature

of the writer of the letter. Then in type below comes his official

position. Thus:

Hall, Haines & Company (typewritten)

_Alfred Jennings_ (handwritten)

Cashier (typewritten).

If he is not an official, his signature is preceded by the word "By."

In the case of form letters or routine correspondence the name of the

person directly responsible for the letter may be signed by a clerk with

his initials just below it. Some business firms have the name of the

person responsible for the letter typed immediately under the name of

the firm and then his signature below that. This custom counteracts

illegibility in signatures.

In circular letters the matter of a personal signature is a very

important one. Some good points on this subject may be gathered from the

following extract from _Printers' Ink_.

Who shall sign a circular letter depends largely on

circumstances entering individual cases. Generally speaking,

every letter should be tested on a trial list before it is sent

out in large quantities. It is inadvisable to hazard an

uncertain letter idea on a large list until the value of the

plan, as applied to that particular business, has been tried

out.

There are certain things about letter procedure, however, that

experience has demonstrated to be fundamental. One of these

platforms is that it is best to sign the letter with some

individual's name. Covering up the responsibility for the letter

with such a general term as "sales department" or "advertising

department" takes all personality out of the missive and to that

extent weakens the power of the message. But even in this we

should be chary of following inflexible rules. We can conceive

of circumstances where it would be advisable to have the letter

come from a department rather than from an individual.

Of course the management of many business organizations still

holds that all letters should be signed by the company only. If

the personal touch is permitted at all, the extent of it is to

allow the writer of the letter to subscribe his initials. This

idea, however, is pretty generally regarded as old-fashioned and

is fast dying out.

Most companies favor the plan of having the head of the

department sign the circular letters emanating from his

department. If he doesn't actually dictate the letter himself,

no tell-tale signs such as the initials of the actual dictator

should be made. If it is a sales matter, the letter would bear

the signature of the sales manager. If the communication

pertained to advertising, it would be signed by the advertising

manager. Where it is desired to give unusual emphasis to the

letter, it might occasionally be attributed to the president or

to some other official higher up. The big name idea should not

be overdone. People will soon catch on that the president would

not have time to answer all of the company's correspondence. If

he has, it is evident that a very small business must be done.

A better idea that is coming into wide vogue is to have the

letter signed by the man in the company who comes into

occasional personal contact with the addressee. One concern has

the house salesman who waits on customers coming from that

section of the country when they visit headquarters sign all

promotion letters going to them. The house salesman is the only

one in the firm whom the customer knows. It is reasoned that the

latter will give greater heed to a letter coming from a man with

whom he is on friendly terms. Another company has its branch

managers take the responsibility for circular letters sent to

the trade in that territory. Another manufacturer has his

salesmen bunched in crews of six. Each crew is headed by a

leader. This man has to sell, just as his men do, but in

addition he acts as a sort of district sales manager. All trade

letters going out in his district carry the crew leader's

signature.

There is much to be said in favor of this vogue. Personal

contact is so valuable in all business transactions that its

influence should be used in letters, in so far as it is

practicable to do so.

The signature should not vary. Do not sign "G. Smith" to one letter,

"George Smith" to another, and "G. B. Smith" to a third.

A man should never prefix to his signature any title, as "Mr.," "Prof.,"

or "Dr."

A postscript is sometimes appended to a business letter, but the letters

"P.S." do not appear. It is not, however, used as formerly--to express

some thought which the writer forgot to include in the letter, or an

afterthought. But on account of its unique position in the letter, it is

used to place special emphasis on an important thought.

7. THE SUPERSCRIPTION

In the outside address or superscription of a letter the following forms

are observed:

A letter to a woman must always address her as either "Mrs." or "Miss,"

unless she is a professional woman with a title such as "Dr." But this

title is used only if the letter is a professional one. It is not

employed in social correspondence. A woman is never addressed by her

husband's title, as "Mrs. Captain Bartlett."

A married woman is addressed with "Mrs." prefixed to her husband's name,

as "Mrs. David Greene." This holds even if her husband is dead.

A divorced woman is addressed (unless she is allowed by the courts to

use her maiden name) as "Mrs." followed by her maiden name and her

former husband's surname, as: "Mrs. Edna Boyce Blair," "Edna Boyce"

being her maiden name.

A man should be given his title if he possess one. Otherwise he must be

addressed as "Mr." or "Esq."

Titles of those holding public office, of physicians, of the clergy, and

of professors, are generally abbreviated on the envelope except in

formal letters.

It is rather customary to address social letters to "Edward Beech,

Esq.," business letters to "Mr. Edward Beech," and a tradesman's letter

to "Peter Moore." A servant is addressed as "William White."

The idea has arisen, and it would seem erroneous, that if the man

addressed had also "Sr." or "Jr." attached, the title "Mr." or "Esq."

should not be used. There is neither rhyme nor reason for this, as "Sr."

and "Jr." are certainly not titles and using "Mr." or "Esq." would not

be a duplication. So the proper mode of address would be

Mr. John Evans, Jr.

or

John Evans, Jr., Esq.

The "Sr." is not always necessary as it may be understood.

Business envelopes should have the address of the writer printed in the

upper left-hand corner as a return address. This space should not be

used for advertising.

In addressing children's letters, it should be remembered that a letter

to a girl child is addressed to "Miss Jane Green," regardless of the age

of the child. But a little boy should be addressed as "Master Joseph

Green."

The address when completed should be slightly below the middle of the

envelope and equidistant from right and left edges. The slanting or the

straight-edge form may be used, to agree with the indented or the block

style of paragraphing respectively.

Punctuation at the ends of the lines in the envelope address is not

generally used.