Respectfully,
(Miss) Sara Brown.
When writing a business letter, a married woman should sign her name as she would sign it when writing any other letter; that is, by placing her first name and surname in the usual position of the signature, and adding, a little to the left-hand, her name in full, with the address, thus:
St. Paul, Minn., Nov. 9th, 1899.
Please send me one copy of “How Women Should Ride,” for which you will find enclosed one dollar and twenty-five cents ($1.25).
Respectfully,
Emma C. Bowen.
When writing to a person or firm for information solely for one’s own benefit, a postal card or a stamped envelope should be enclosed for a reply.
It is a too common custom among people unacquainted with the rules of business, when sending an order to one firm, to enclose money to be paid another, or with which to make small purchases in some other line, to be sent in the package ordered from the firm with which the correspondence is held. The proper way to do when one wishes to order goods from different houses in the same city, and yet have all the goods shipped in the same package, is to write an order to each firm requesting the goods to be delivered to the firm with which one does the most business, having, of course, notified such firm of his action.
It has become so common among people to request everything “by return mail” that business men look upon such requests as a mere form, rather than as an evidence of urgency. If such urgency exists, it is well to state the cause of it in a few words, and request immediate attention to the order, thus:
Harvard, Ill., Nov. 2, 1899.
I enclose herewith $2, for which please send me a copy of Longfellow’s poetical works. You will oblige me by sending the book by return mail, as I wish to use it on the evening of the 4th inst.