What part of Hans Andersen's letter do you think would be most interesting to Anna? How does he show by his letter that he kept in mind that he was writing to a little girl? In both of the letters given here the writers have observed the two most important rules of good letter writing. These rules should guide every one. First. Write about things in which the friend to whom you are writing is interested. If Hans Andersen had been writing to a man, he would have written an entirely different kind of letter. Second. Write freely and naturally. Letters are simply written conversations. 64. THE PARTS OF A LETTER Look carefully at the first letter on page 92. Where was it written? when? to whom? by whom? Every letter should give all this information. It is customary to arrange the parts of a friendly letter in the following order: I. The Heading.1 Ulra Cottage Hamilton, Scotland 1 The date is sometimes written at the close of a friendly letter but it is better to form the habit of writing it as part of the heading. This tells where and when the letter was written. Notice where it is placed on the letter page. Notice, too, the punctuation. Commas are used to separate items on the same line, but are unnecessary at the ends of lines. A period is placed at the end of the heading and after any abbreviation that may be used. II. The Salutation. Dear Hans Andersen, This shows to whom the letter was written. III. The Body of the Letter. This contains the written conversation that you are carrying on with your friend. IV. The Complimentary Ending. Your affectionate little friend, Just as one is in the habit of saying " Good-by when leaving a friend, so it is customary to use some polite or friendly phrase at the close of a letter. If Anna had been writing to her father, she would probably have written, "Your loving daughter." Suggest other complimentary endings for a friendly letter." Yours truly" and "Yours respectfully" are more appropriate when writing to a business acquaintance than to a friend. V. The Signature. Anna Mary Livingstone This tells who wrote the letter. The arrangement of the parts of a letter is further shown by the following form: I. Following the form above, write a short letter of two or three sentences to your teacher telling her which among the stories read in class this are your favorites. Use the school address. year Be very careful to place the various parts correctly on the page, and to punctuate as shown in the book. II. Write a short letter to one of your classmates inviting him or her to spend next Saturday with you, and telling what you are planning to do to have a good time. Hand the letter to your teacher and ask her to deliver it to the person to whom it is addressed on condition that it is well expressed, neatly written, and correctly arranged, spelled, and punctuated. 66. DRAMATIZATION THE BURIED TREASURE An old man, calling his three sons to him and reminding them that his days were numbered, told them that many years before he had buried a great treasure somewhere in his vineyard. He now gave this vineyard into their keeping and he charged them to search diligently for the hidden treasure. The sons begged their father to tell them more about the One asked if it was a pot of gold, another if it was a chest of silver, and the third if it was a bag of precious stones. Slowly shaking his head, the old man answered that he would reveal neither what the treasure was nor where it was hidden. treasure. "At least tell us why you buried the treasure, father," exclaimed the eldest son. "That you might dig for it, my boy," responded the father. "A man values only that which he must work to obtain.' "But the vineyard is so big," remonstrated the youngest son, "that without some hint as to where the treasure is, we may dig for weeks before we find it!" "My son, the treasure is great enough to repay you for much labor," replied the old man. "I warn you to leave no clod of earth unturned till you find it. Be patient and diligent, and your reward is sure.' Soon after this the old man died and the three sons began at once to search for the treasure. Toward the close of their first long day's work they met to talk over their progress. The youngest complained that the ground was as hard as stone, and that although he had worked faithfully, he had dug up only one little corner. The second son said that he, too, had worked hard digging about the roots of vine after vine, but had come upon no sign of the hidden treasure. They were ready to throw down their spades in discouragement, when the eldest brother reminded them of their father's assurance that the treasure was great enough to repay them for all their work. At this they seized their spades with renewed energy and again began to dig. But after a short time they concluded that they had done enough for one day, and they sat down and planned what they would do with their wealth when they had found it. The youngest son said that he would buy the finest horse that could be found, and, like a knight of old, ride forth to seek adventure. The second said that he would journey around the world and visit distant lands and see the wonderful sights of which he had often dreamed. The eldest said that he would buy the best farm in all the country round, and on a hilltop overlooking his waving fields of grain he would build a great mansion and fill it with the richest treasures that money could buy. While the young men thus talked, darkness overtook them and they returned home. So they toiled and planned week in and week out. At length a day came when the last foot of ground in the vineyard was turned up, but no pot of gold, no chest of silver, no bag of precious stones had been found. Tired and discouraged, the three brothers looked at one another and wondered what their father could |