acknowledging," and so forth.

* * * * *

Suppose the letter replying to his inquiry starts out in this style:


"The picture on page 5 of our catalogue is a pretty fair
one, but I wish you could see the desk itself."

* * * * *

The reader's attention is immediately gripped and he reaches for the
catalogue to look at the picture on page five.

To get attention and arouse interest, avoid long-spun introductions
and hackneyed expressions. Rambling sentences and loose paragraphs
have proved the graveyard for many excellent propositions. Time-worn
expressions and weather-beaten phrases are poor conductors, there,
is too much resistance-loss in the current of the reader's interest.

The best way to secure attention naturally depends upon the nature
of the proposition and the class of men to whom the letter is
written.

One of the most familiar methods is that known to correspondents as
the "mental shock." The idea is to put at the top of the letter a
"Stop! Look! Listen!" sign. Examples of this style are plentiful: