Chapter VI: Personal Business Letters

One does not have to be in business in order to write "business letters." A thousand personal affairs crop up which require letters of a commercial rather than a social nature. There is only one rule--say what you have to say clearly and quickly. Although the letter should be written on the ordinary social stationery and follow the placing and spacing of the social letter, no time should be wasted in trying to make the letter appear friendly and chatty. The clerks in business houses who usually attend to the mail seem to be picked for their obtuseness, and do not often understand a letter which is phrased in other than commonplace terms. Once I overheard a conversation between an Italian shoemaker and a Boston woman over the repairing of a pair of shoes. The woman wanted the soles fastened on with nails. The only word she knew for that operation was "tapped." The only word the shoemaker knew was "nailed." They were absolutely at a deadlock until the shoemaker, knowing that the woman did not want the soles sewed on, proceeded to demonstrate with hammer and nail just what he meant by "nailed." It is well to remember that motion pictures do not accompany letters and hence to take for granted that if a way exists for getting what you mean wrong that way will be found. It is unfortunately safe to take for granted that a personal business letter is going to be read by a moron.

_Ordering goods from a department store_

500 Park Avenue,
April 3, 1922.

L. Burton & Company,
Fifth Ave. & 39th St.,
New York

Gentlemen:

Please send me as soon as possible and charge to my account
the following goods:

1 doz. hemstitched huck towels, large size, from $12.00 to
$15.00 a dozen

2 pairs infants' laced shoes, sizes 4 D and 4-1/2 D. One
pair to be returned as I am not certain of the correct
size.

3 pairs children's rompers, size 2 years, band knee, 1 all
white, 1 white with blue collar, 1 white with pink collar.

Very truly yours,
Katherine G. Evans
(Mrs. John Evans)

_To correct an error_

500 Park Avenue,
April 3, 1922.

Caldwell Sons Co.,
8941 Fifth Avenue,
New York, N. Y.

Gentlemen:

May I call your attention to my account rendered on April
1st? There would seem to be two errors, as follows:

Under date of March 18th I am charged with four pairs of silk
stockings at $3.50 a pair, although I purchased only three
pairs.

On March 22nd I am credited with one pair of children's shoes
at $5.00. I had two pairs sent on approval, but returned both
of them as neither pair fitted.

I enclose my check in the sum of $148.96 which is the total
less the overcharge. To assist in the adjustment I also
enclose the original slip for the stockings and the driver's
call receipt for the two pairs of shoes.[16]

Very truly yours,
Katherine G. Evans.
(Mrs. John Evans)

[16] Or instead of enclosing these slips it is often better to mention the numbers that appear on them and to retain the slips themselves.

_Letter to department store requesting charge account_

1018 South Elm Street,
Chicago, Ill.,
May 3, 1922.

Marshall Field & Co.,
Chicago, Ill.

Gentlemen:

I have recently come to live in Chicago and I should like to
open a charge account with you.

My present accounts are all in New York and I can give you the
following references:

Lord & Taylor
Tiffany & Co.
Abercrombie & Fitch Co.
J. & J. Slater
Lincoln Trust Co.

Very truly yours,
Alberta T. White.
(Mrs. James White)

_Asking for estimate for draperies and furnishings_

500 Park Avenue,
May 16, 1922.

Forsythe & White,
438 Fifth Avenue,
New York, N. Y.

Gentlemen:

Will you send me an approximate estimate of the cost of
materials and labor necessary for the doing of the following
work:

Slip covers with valances of English hand-blocked linen
for two large wing chairs and one chaise-longue.

Two reversible portieres of the linen for doorways 11 feet
high and 8 feet wide.

Three pairs curtains for casement windows 6 feet high and
5 feet wide, with pleated valance. These curtains to be of
habutai silk.

Of course I shall understand that this is purely an
approximate estimate.

I should like to have this as soon as you can conveniently
send it.

Very truly yours,
Katherine G. Evans.
(Mrs. John Evans)

_Declining to have work done as estimated_

500 Park Avenue,
May 23, 1922.

Forsythe & White,
438 Fifth Avenue,
New York, N. Y.

Gentlemen:

Thank you for your letter of 19th May in answer to mine of
the 16th, requesting an estimate for slip covers and curtains.

Your estimate calls for more outlay than I should care to make
at the present time, so I shall have to postpone the matter
until next year.

Very truly yours,
Katherine G. Evans.
(Mrs. John Evans)

_Recommendation for a servant_

June 14, 1922.

This is to certify that Katrina Hellman has been in my employ
as assistant nurse for one year. During that period I have
found her honest, capable, and reliable. I can give her an
unqualified recommendation.

K. G. Evans.
(Mrs. John Evans)

_For information concerning a servant_

5300 Deming Place
Chicago, Ill.,
May 9, 1922.

Mrs. John Evans,
500 Park Avenue,
New York.

Dear Madam:

I hope you will pardon me, but I should be very much indebted
to you for any facts concerning Gaston Duval, who has been in
your employ as chauffeur. If you will give me this information
I shall treat it as confidential.

Yours very truly,
Cecelia B. Duke.
(Mrs. Samuel Duke)

_Answers to request for information concerning a servant_

500 Park Avenue,
New York City,
May 13, 1922.

Mrs. Samuel Duke,
5300 Deming Place,
Chicago, Ill.

Dear Madam:

I have your inquiry of May the ninth concerning my former
chauffeur, Gaston Duval.

I am very glad to recommend him. He is sober and honest, and I
always found him thoroughly dependable during his fifteen
months in my employ. He drives well and is an expert
mechanician.

Yours very truly,
K. G. Evans,
(Mrs. John Evans)

500 Park Avenue,
New York, N. Y.,
May 13, 1922.

Mrs. Samuel Duke,
5300 Deming Place,
Chicago, Ill.

Dear Madam:

I have your inquiry of May the ninth concerning my former
chauffeur, Gaston Duval.

I hope that you will not think me discourteous but I should
much prefer not to discuss him.

Yours very truly,
K. G. Evans.
(Mrs. John Evans)

(In letters which in effect decline to give a recommendation it is wiser not to set out facts or even actually to decline to give the recommendation. See Chapter XI on the Law of Letters. The following letter to a servant, which is an indirect way of declining to recommend, is on the danger line.)

_To a servant_

Harbor View,
Long Island,
August 29, 1921.

My dear Margaret,

Mrs. Hubert Forbes has written me concerning your
qualifications as cook, and asks if I would recommend you in
every way. Also I have your request to me for a reference.

With regard to your skill in cooking there can be no question.
I can recommend you as having served me for two years and I
can vouch for your honesty. But, as you know, you are not to
be depended on--for instance, to return promptly after your
days off or to do any work at all during your frequent
disputes with the butler.

This I have told Mrs. Forbes. I could not conscientiously do
otherwise; but I have asked that she try you in the hope that
you have decided to remedy these faults.

Very truly yours,
F. B. Scott.
(Mrs. Harrison Scott)

Harbor View, L. I.,
August 29, 1921.

Mrs. Hubert Forbes,
Bayshore, L. I.

My dear Mrs. Forbes:

I have your letter of August twenty-fifth concerning my
former cook, Margaret Dickson. She is an extremely good cook.
She was with me for two years, and I can vouch for her
honesty, but she is not to be depended on--for instance, to
return promptly after her days off or to do any work during
her frequent quarrels with the butler. But she seems anxious
to improve, and if you would care to give her a trial, I think
she might be satisfactory in new surroundings.

I hope this reply will answer your questions.

Very truly yours,
Flora B. Scott.

_Letter to a former servant_

Dear Delia,

If you will not be too busy next week, will you come out and
take care of the children for three or four days? Mr. Stone
and I expect to be away. I am sure your husband can spare you.
You will be surprised at the way Jack is growing. He often
speaks of you.

Let me know immediately.

Cordially yours,
B. L. Stone.

(Note the signature--the use of initials instead of writing the full name.)

_Inquiry concerning house for rental_

48 Cottage Road,
Somerville, Mass.,
April 8, 1921.

Schuyler Realty Company,
49 Fulton Street,
Brooklyn, N. Y.

Gentlemen:

Will you be good enough to send me the following information
concerning the house at 28 Bedford Park which you have
advertised for rental:

Location of the house with regard to subway and L station,
and the nearest public school. General character of the
immediate neighborhood.

Distance to the nearest Methodist Episcopal Church.

Condition and kind of plumbing in each of the three
bathrooms.

Make of furnace and the amount of coal necessary to heat
the house.

Is the house completely screened? Are there awnings?

The floors--of what wood and in what condition are they?

Is the cellar dry?

Where is the laundry?

When can the house be ready for occupancy?

I should like to have the facts as soon as you can furnish
them.

Very truly yours,
George M. Hall.

_Inquiry concerning house for purchase_

345 Amsterdam Avenue,
Philadelphia, Pa.,
May 10, 1921.

Wheaton Manor Development Co.,
Dobbs Ferry, New York.

Gentlemen:

Will you let me know without delay, if possible, if you have
any property in your immediate neighborhood fulfilling the
following requirements:

House--Twelve rooms, four bathrooms, and sun porch. A
modern house of stucco and half-timber construction
preferred.

Ground--about five acres, part woodland, part cleared;
lawn, vegetable, and flower garden.

Distance from railroad station--not more than fifteen
minutes' ride.

I do not want to pay more than $25,000.

I shall be here until the twentieth of the month. After that a
reply will reach me at the Hotel Pennsylvania, New York.

Very truly yours,
Jerome Hutchinson.

_Inquiry concerning a child at school_:

1842 Riverside Drive,
New York, N. Y.,
February 10, 1922.

My dear Professor Ritchie,

My son John's report for the term just closed is far from
satisfactory. While I do not expect perfection from him, I
think--in fact, I know--he is capable of better work than is
shown by his present rating.

I observe that he did not pass in mathematics, a subject in
which he was always first in the elementary school. My first
thought was that possibly he was not physically well, but his
activity in athletics would seem to refute this. This leads me
to another thought--perhaps he is giving too much time and
interest to athletics. What is your opinion and what course
would you recommend?

Would it be possible by coaching to have him make up the
required averages?

As I am leaving New York in two weeks for an extended trip, I
would like to take some steps toward improving his scholarship
status. Will you let me hear from you as soon as possible?

Very truly yours,
John Crandall.

_Letter ordering Easter gifts from a magazine shopping service_

Quogue, Long Island,
March 27, 1922.

Standard Shopping Service,
100 West 38th Street,
New York, N. Y.

Gentlemen:

I enclose my check for $25.00 for which please send by express
the following articles to

Miss Dorothea Allen
Sunrise Lodge
Highland, Pa.

Two sterling silver candlesticks in Colonial pattern at $12.50
each, on Page 178, March issue.

Or if you cannot secure them, will you purchase as second
choice

Two jars in Kashan ware, with blue as the predominating color?

Very truly yours,
Laura Waite.
(Mrs. Herbert Waite)