ADDRESS OF LETTERS, DIRECTIONS FOR WRITING, ETC.
A letter addressed to a person of eminence should have a seal on the envelope; for other letters the ordinary envelope is sufficient. Letter paper (other than for business) with designs of any kind is in questionable taste, as are seals ornamented with flowers and figures. Perfectly plain paper should be preferred: it may be embossed with the writer's initials. On the birth-days of your relations, and on the festival of the New Year, you can hardly dispense with written congratulations.
In writing to a superior employ paper of full "letter" size; write the name, and in the line underneath the words, "Dear Sir." Leave a line between this word and the first line of your letter. Always write to the point—using not a superfluous or meaningless word, and be as brief as possible. Abbreviations are admissible in notes entered in a book of reference, but not elsewhere, except in commercial correspondence.
Letters of invitation and circulars should always be franked; and if the distance be not too great, they should be sent by hand.
A letter given to a third person, if it be a letter of introduction, should not be sealed.
In writing to an official, leave a large margin, for he may need it for marginal notes.
A young man writing to one advanced in years, should not conclude his letter with the common phrase, "Receive, sir, the assurance of my regard." It should be, "Accept, sir, this expression of the regards of your very humble servant."
This formula may be employed in writing to an equal, "Accept, sir, the assurance of my highest esteem;" or, "I have the honor to be yours, very truly."
To a lady, "Accept, madam, the assurance of my respect;" or, "I am, my dear lady, yours very sincerely."
It is ill-bred to write on a half-sheet; the shortest letter requires a whole one.
All letters must be pre-paid. And stamps should always be remitted, where an answer is expected, if your own affairs are concerned. Never impose postage upon a friend: it is a contemptible act to make a person, after the trouble of writing to you on your business, pay his own postage.
A few words on epistolary style. Few persons know how to write a good letter. The epistolary style, in general, should be very simple; pathos would be absurd where you have to speak of the common occurrences of life, the follies of the world, its petty hatreds and vanities. Be as respectful and as lively as you can in writing to an old man: old people love sprightliness. The surest way to please in your correspondence is to acquaint yourself with the characters of the persons with whom you interchange letters, to avoid touching their foibles, to speak to them on the subjects they have studied, or of which they are especially fond. In addressing a lady, imply your opinion of her taste by seeking her advice on subjects which require it. Never weary of burning incense; there is an altar in the heart of woman, and even of man, always ready to receive its fragrance. The design of good-breeding is to make you agreeable to every one; write your letters so that each one reading them will be pleased and satisfied. Adulation or flattery is very unbecoming, except it is positively deserved; and then it should be given in terms which will not compromise good taste and good judgment.
If there be a phrase happily worded in the letter addressed to you, ever so little, do not suffer it to fall to the ground; preserve it, and in your reply, show that you have appreciated it.
If a correspondent uses improper language toward you, let your reply be polite, even if it is severe; you will thus inflict a double wound—showing yourself to be a man of dignity, and know how to preserve your self-respect.
Refrain from addressing extravagant praise to a man of discernment; he will see that you have some purpose in what you say, and you will make an enemy. No praise is extravagant to fools; tell them that they are gods, and they will set about procuring an altar; but you would view yourself with contempt if you were mean enough to praise such.
Avoid the folly of copying, as models, letters to which peculiar circumstances impart brilliancy or genuine wit; but which, applied from different cases, are strangely out of place.
If you address one beneath you in education or position, don't make him feel his inferiority; be polite without familiarity, as politeness is due from every man of good parts to those beneath him.
If you write an epistle respecting a common occurrence in a style of bombast or would-be-eloquence, you will suggest an application to yourself of the fable of the mountain which brought forth a mouse.
In all cases, where it is possible, avoid erasures and crowded lines.
Letters between friends are simply conversation; from an inferior to a superior they should have a tone of caution, at once concise and respectful. A letter of business is expressed in brief and precise terms, with details arranged in exact order. Letters of congratulation should be distinguished for choice language, to the exclusion of all expressions parasitical or common-place. As to the style which a son should employ in writing to his parents, there is no instructor but the heart. In every case and circumstance be truthful and earnest, and you may rest assured you will impress favorably, and accomplish your purpose a thousandfold better than if you used deceitful and false expressions.
The Dime Letter Writer will embody all that is necessary to enable the young person, or the novice, to write letters intelligibly, properly, and satisfactorily. It will contain besides models for hints, a complete directory to correct composition.