mmediately under the name of
the firm and then his signature below that. This custom counteracts
illegibility in signatures.

In circular letters the matter of a personal signature is a very
important one. Some good points on this subject may be gathered from the
following extract from _Printers' Ink_.

Who shall sign a circular letter depends largely on
circumstances entering individual cases. Generally speaking,
every letter should be tested on a trial list before it is sent
out in large quantities. It is inadvisable to hazard an
uncertain letter idea on a large list until the value of the
plan, as applied to that particular business, has been tried
out.

There are certain things about letter procedure, however, that
experience has demonstrated to be fundamental. One of these
platforms is that it is best to sign the letter with some
individual's name. Covering up the responsibility for the letter
with such a general term as "sales department" or "advertising
department" takes all personality out of the missive and to that
extent weakens the power of the message. But even in this we
should be chary of following inflexible rules. We can conceive
of circumstances where it would be advisable to have the letter
come from a department rather than from an individual.

Of course the management of many business organizations still
holds that all letters should be signed by the company only. If
the personal touch is permitted at all, the extent of it is to
allow the writer of the letter to subscribe his initials. This
idea, however, is pretty generally regarded as old-fashioned and
is fast dying out.

Most companies favor the plan of having the head of the
department sign the circular letters emanating from his
department. If he doesn't actually dictate the letter himself,
no tell-tale signs such as the initials of the actual dictator
should be made. If it is a sales matter, the letter would bear
the signature of the sales manager. If the communication
pertained to advertising, it would be signed by the advertising
manager. Where it is desired to give unusual emphasis to the
letter, it might occasionally be attributed to the president or
to some other official higher up. The big name idea should not
be overdone. People will soon catch on that the president would
not have time to ans