The salutation: "Most Holy Father," or, "Your Holiness." A cardinal is addressed as: His Eminence Cardinal Gibbons. Or: To His Eminence the Most Reverend Cardinal Gibbons. The salutation is: "Your Eminence," or, "Most Eminent and Most Reverend Sir." Scholastic degrees are nearly always abbreviated. Except in college calendars and catalogues, more than one such degree is not usually written.. If Professor Blank is the proud possessor of M. S., A. M., Ph. D., LL. D., F. R. S., etc., it would hardly be in good taste to string them out on the back of an envelope. The highest alone should be given, which is, of course, the last received. That usually implies the others. Thus: John Blank, LL. D. Or: John Blank, F. R. S. In addressing the president of an institution, his official title should be given after the name; as: To Benjamin Ide Wheeler, LL. D., President of University of California. To James R. Parker, President First National Bank. INVITATIONS AND REPLIES.-Invitations and replies are classified as formal and informal. The tone and style of informal invitation or reply are determined by the state and judgment of the writer. The style of a formal note or invitation is governed by the comparatively fixed rules of social etiquette. A formal invitation is always in the third person. It has no heading, no salutation, and no complimentary close. As the writer's name appears in the body of the invitation, no signature is called for. The day of the month is usually written out in full, and the year omitted. A formal reply follows the style of the invitation, and is therefore in the third person. A reply, whether formal or informal, should repeat the date and hour given in the invitation, to prevent mistake. That the host or hostess may know how many guests to expect, the reply should in every case be sent at once. The form and style of invitations and replies can be learned most easily by examining the following models: (Formal invitation) Mr. and Mrs. Arthur J. Phelps request the pleasure of the company of Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Scott at dinner on Thursday evening, October eighth, at six o'clock. 357 Spring Street. (Formal reply accepting) Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Scott accept with pleasure Mr. and Mrs. Arthur J. Phelps's kind invitation for Thursday evening, October eighth, at six o'clock. 19 Walnut Street, October fifth. (Formal reply declining) Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Scott regret that, owing to sickness in the family, they are unable to accept Mr. and Mrs. Arthur J. Phelps's kind invitation for Thursday evening, October eighth. 19 Walnut Street, October fifth. (Formal invitation to meet a guest) Mr. and Mrs. Harry R. Peck invite Mr. Charles E. Platt to meet their guest, Dr. Francis I. Hipple, on Thursday evening, July eleventh, at eight o'clock. 233 Post Street, July seventh. (Formal reply accepting) Mr. Charles E. Platt accepts with pleasure the very kind invitation of Mr. and Mrs. Harry R. Peck to meet their guest, Dr. Francis I. Hipple, on Thursday evening, July eleventh, at eight o'clock. 683 Van Dyke Avenue, July eighth. (Informal invitation) My dear Miss Elliott: If you have no engagement on Wednesday evening, May tenth, may we hope that you will give the pleasure of dining with us quite informally at seven? Friday, May fifth. (Informal reply accepting) Very sincerely yours, My dear Miss Lawrence: It will be a great pleasure to dine with you Wednesday, May tenth. How thoughtful you were to remember that the absence of father and mother from home would leave me alone! Very sincerely yours, Josephine Elliott. Monday, May eighth. (Informal invitation, general) 11-ESSENTIALS Dear Stella: May we count on you for Tuesday evening at eight? Dick will play for us, and that is always such a treat. Do come. Affectionately yours, Friday, November fifteenth. Pearl. PRACTICAL DIRECTIONS 1. When two pages of correspondence paper suffice for a letter, write on the first and third pages. When it is necessary to use all the pages, they should be filled consecutively. 2. The closing words of a letter should never be written in the margins or across the top of a page. No part of a letter should be written in vertical lines. Such eccentricities are always in bad taste. "Good breeding and refinement are rarely expressed in extremes of any kind." 3. Only the best quality of unruled paper should be used in social correspondence. There is no paper in better taste or of more enduring fashion than the plain white or the delicate tints of ivory or cream. Only black ink of good quality should be used. 4. Such contractions as rec'd, y'rs, aff' yours, resp❜ly, & (for and), Dear Doc. (for Doctor), Dear Prof. (for Professor), and so on, are not admissible. 5. Very seldom should a letter be called a "favor." "Come to hand" is a locution of questionable taste. Avoid the hackneyed phrase, "Hoping this will find you, as it leaves me, in good health." Do not begin with "As I am at leisure, I thought I would write you a few lines," etc. 6. Though one should not be punctilious in avoiding the pronoun I, it should be used sparingly. The passive voice of the verb is helpful in this. The very frequent use of I savors of egotism. 7. For each new topic begin a new paragraph. |