n business letters when the correspondents are
acquainted with each other. The same forms are also used in letters of
friendship when the correspondents are not well enough acquainted with
each other to warrant the use of the more familiar forms, _My dear Mary,
Dear Edmund, My dear Friend, Dear Cousin, My dear little Niece_.

There is no set rule concerning the punctuation of the salutation. The
comma, the colon, or the semicolon may be used either alone or in
connection with the dash. The comma alone seems to be the least formal of
all, and the colon the most so. Hence the former is used more frequently
in letters of friendship, and the latter more frequently in business
letters.

+97. Body of the Letter.+--The body of the letter is the important part;
in fact, it is the letter itself, since it contains the subject-matter. It
will be discussed under another head later, and is only mentioned here in
order to show its place in connection with the beginning of a letter. As a
rule, it is best to begin the body of our letters one line below, and
either directly underneath or to the right of the salutation. It is not
improper, however, especially in business letters, to begin it on the same
line with the salutation. A few examples will be sufficient to show the
variations of the place for beginning the main part of the letter.

(1)
______________________________________________________
| |
| 1694 Cedar Ave., |
| Cleveland, Ohio. |
| June 23, 1905. |
| Messrs. Hanna, Scott & Co., |
| Aurora, Ill. |
| |
| Gentlemen:--I inclose a money order for $10.00, |
| etc. |
| |

(2)
______________________________________________________
| |
| Everett, Washington. |
| Oct. 20, 1905. |
| My dear Robert, |
| We are very glad that you have decided to make |
| us a visit, etc. |
|