the student learns what is correct. Afterward,
the adoption of the "open" form becomes purely a matter of individual
taste and not a matter of carelessness or ignorance.

=b. An inside address and a greeting are required in business letters.=
Personal letters contain the greeting, but may omit the inside address,
or may supply it at the end of the letter.

The Jeffrey Chemical Works,
510 Marion Street,
Norfolk, Virginia.

Gentlemen:

Mr. Joseph N. Kellogg
1411 Lake Street
Cleveland, Ohio

Dear Mr. Kellogg:

Secretary of Rice Institute, Houston, Texas.

My dear Sir:

Greetings used in business letters are:

My dear Sir:
My dear Madam:
My dear Mr. Fisher:
Dear Sir:
Sir:
Sirs:
Gentlemen:
Ladies:

Greetings used in personal letters are:

My dear Miss Brown:
Dear Professor Ward:
Dear Jones,
Dear Mrs. Vincent,
Dear Robert,
Dear Olive,

"My dear Miss Brown" is more ceremonious than "Dear Miss Brown". As a
rule, the more familiar the letter, the shorter the greeting.

A colon follows the greeting if the letter is formal or long; a comma,
if the letter is familiar or in the nature of a note.

Both inside address and greeting begin at the left-hand margin. The body
of the letter begins on the line below the greeting, and is indented as
much as an ordinary paragraph (about an inch).

=c. The body of a letter should be written in correct style.=

=1.= Do not omit pronouns, or write a "telegraphic style".

Wrong: Just received yours of the 21st, and in reply would say
your order has been filled and shipped.

Right: I have your letter of March twenty-first. Your order was
promptly filled and shipped.

=2.= The idea that it is immodest to use _I_ is a superstition. Undue
repetition of _I_ is of course awkward; but entire avoidance of it is
silly.

=3.= Use simple language. Say "your letter"; not "your kind favor", or
"yours duly received", or "yours of the 21st is at hand".

=4.= Avoid "begging" expressions which you obviously do not mean,
especially the hackneyed "beg to advise".

Wrong: Received yours of the 3rd instant, and beg to advise we
are out of stock.

Right: We received your order of March 3. We find that we have
no more dining-room chairs B 2-4-6 in stock.

Wrong: I beg to enclose a booklet.