Part 111

Such closings as "Obedient, humble servant," are quite too much for Republican simplicity, and even in writing to no less a dignitary than the President:

To THE PRESIDENT,

SIR:

Very respectfully,

JAMES TALBOT,

really fulfills all requirements, though one may consult his own taste in making use of the two complimentary conclusions given above.

A lady in writing to a stranger should always suggest whether she is married or single. This will prevent mistakes and annoyance, and can be done in two ways: Respectfully, (MISS) FRANCES CLAYTON. Or, more elaborately: Respectfully, FRANCES CLAYTON. Address, MISS FRANCES CLAYTON, 21 St. Caroline's Court, Chicago.

A lady never signs herself as Mrs. Helen B. Hayes, or Miss Gertrude Vance, without, at least, putting the titles in a parenthesis. Primarily, a woman is Helen Hayes or Gertrude Vance, and should sign herself as such. The "Miss" or "Mrs." signifies simply an incident in her existence, and is added, as it were, in a note, to prevent mistake on the part of others. A failure to observe this rule indicates a lack of culture. Neither does a gentleman ever sign himself Mr. Brown, but George G. Brown, or G.G. Brown.

Use of the Husband's Name.

A married lady should always be addressed by her husband's name preceded by "Mrs.," except in case of well-known names, such as Mrs. Potter Palmer, or Mrs. Isabella B. Hooker. A widow is no longer called by her husband's given name, but reverts to her own christened cognomen, preceded by "Mrs." Thus, Mrs. James H. Hayes in her widowhood is, to every one, Mrs. Helen B. Hayes. An exception to this would be in the case of such well-known names as Abraham Lincoln, or James G. Blaine, where custom grants the widow the right to bear the beloved title.

The superscription or address should be written plainly (if speedy delivery is expected) upon the lower half of the envelope, the flap being at the top. The title and name form one line with about an equal space at each end. The writing should be just below the middle of the envelope. The street number, the name of the city and the state each form a separate line, one below the other, and each should begin a little to the right of the one above, so that the last line will approach nearly to the lower right-hand corner of the envelope. The county or number of post office box may be given in the lower left-hand corner. Where there is no street number the county, or even the box number, may be written directly beneath the name of the town.

The stamp should be invariably placed squarely and right-side up in the upper right-hand corner. A request for return in a given time may be written, if necessary, in the upper left-hand corner.

A physician is addressed thus: DR. ALBERT YOUNG, Watseka, Iowa. Or, ALBERT YOUNG, M.D., Watseka, Iowa.

In addressing the wife of a doctor the following formula may be used: MRS. DR. ALBERT YOUNG, Watseka, Iowa.

The strictest etiquette, however, would involve writing: MRS. ALBERT YOUNG, care of Dr. Albert Young, Watseka, Iowa.

Either of the above forms may be taken for addressing the wife of a professor, an army or United States official, a minister or a legal dignitary, always remembering that the longer is more elegant, as: MRS. MELVILLE B. FULLER, care of the Hon. Melville B. Fuller, Chief Justice of the United States, Washington, D.C.

The President, however, would be addressed: To the President, Executive Mansion, Washington, D.C.

This is the simplest form, and as such, in the best taste, but it is sometimes written: To the President of the United States, HONORABLE GROVER CLEVELAND.

"His Excellency" was formerly used in addressing the President and the Governors of States, but it is largely abandoned as inconsistent with the lack of titles in our country. The same rule is observed in writing to the Governor of a State: To the Governor, Gubernatorial Mansion, Springfield, Ill. Or, To the Governor, ROBERT P. MORTON, Albany, N.Y.

A member of the Cabinet: To the Honorable, the Secretary of the Interior, Washington, D.C. A State official has the following address: DR. JOHN C. WYATT, Secretary of the State Board of Charity, Springfield, Ill. In addressing one person in care of another the form would be: MRS. JOHN DRAPER, Grand de Tour, Ill. Care Dr. I.S. Prime.

A note to be delivered by a friend is always unsealed and usually addressed: MISS FLORENCE WARDEN, Vassar College, Poughkeepsie, N.Y. Kindness of MR. G.A. RHODES. A still better form is to simply use the address of the person without farther preamble.

Always fold a letter sheet so that the opening lines face the reader on unfolding.

Punctuation Marks.

Punctuation and capitalization are very necessary matters in the art of letter-writing, but in these days of common schools, and all but compulsory education, it is to be supposed that some knowledge of these important facts will have been gained. It will not be amiss, however, to mention a few of the most necessary rules.

The four chief punctuation points are the comma, semicolon, colon, period. In the days of our grandmothers children were taught to "mind their stops," with this rule for a guide: "Count one at a comma, two at a semicolon, three at a colon, and four at a period, or 'full stop.'"

In punctuating the date, address, closing and superscription of a letter, certain rules are necessary. One of these is that a period follows all abbreviations, such as those of title, state and county, and separates and follows all initials, whether abbreviations of names or titles; while the slight pause occurring between such abbreviations is marked by a comma, and the end of the date, like the end of a sentence, is closed by a period; for example: 540 West Main St., Galesburgh, Ill. Or, Poughkeepsie, N.Y., Jan. 10, 189-.

A colon suggests something more to follow, hence in the salutation of a letter we find a colon at the end, signifying that the body of the letter is yet to come, as: "Dear Sir:" or, where the communication begins on same line of salutation, we find both colon and dash, as: "Dear Madame:--Yours of," etc.

Commas are used frequently to divide long complex sentences, and the sentence is somewhat further broken by the use of the semicolon between its more decided sections. Abraham Lincoln once said: "I throw in a semicolon whenever I am at a loss what pause to use; it always fits."