ITS PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE BY GEORGE BURTON HOTCHKISS, M.A. COPYRIGHT, 1916, BY GEORGE BURTON HOTCHKISS AND CELIA ANNE DREW All rights reserved HOTCHKISS-DREW BUSINESS ENGLISH W. P. 9 ル PREFACE THE business man must finally judge the value of any textbook on business English. Its value is measured by its success in preparing young men and women for practical everyday work in his office; in helping them to use English, written and spoken, more effectively in conducting his transactions. For that reason this book has been written primarily from the business man's stand'point. What he wants to know and what he wants his employees to know about English, is presented here. These are the four main requirements: 1 An understanding of people and of the ways to 2 A command of the essentials of good English, 4 A general knowledge of the most important types The fourth requirement is capable of indefinite expansion, but it is obviously impossible to ask more than a general knowledge. The student cannot be given a set of formulas for writing every conceivable type of business message. These types are innumerable; they differ according to the individual requirements of business 459831 houses. There are some general principles, however, that apply to all, and other principles that apply to each main group. These principles can and should be mastered by the student. A complete mastery of principles comes only after practice in their application. Throughout the book is a profusion of exercise material, all of which has been selected from the actual day's work of business houses. These exercises have been carefully graded and arranged progressively from the easy to the more difficult. A large proportion of them have been planned for written work, but may also be used for oral work. The four parts of the book correspond only roughly to the four requirements of business English enumerated above. Part I begins by explaining the right business attitude toward people. In the other parts this requirement is still further explained and illustrated. In fact, it is the backbone, so to speak, of the book, for the right mental attitude is the most important factor in good business English. Part I also presents the important elements of good English. Grammar and punctuation are treated not as a system of rules, but as a structural part of composition. This method has been adopted not only because the business man is not interested in grammar and punctuation except as they are applied, but also because experience has shown that students obtain a better working mastery of good sentence structure and diction when it is taught in this way. The experienced teacher knows that a knowledge of rules and the ability to write clearly are often far apart in actual practice. No essential principle of syntax or punctuation has been omitted. The plan here used also makes the book especially suitable for advanced classes who are already well grounded in grammar and punctuation and need only a review in their application. As nearly all the examples used in the exercises are taken from actual business letters, the student is able to avoid the more common mistakes and to secure the important virtues. Part II contains the most important forms and usages of business, and many other technical matters a knowledge of which will enable the beginner to overcome some of the difficulties commonly met in the business office. Material of similar character which is not important enough for class study, but is helpful for reference, is included in the appendix. Part III treats of general business correspondence, which forms the largest part of business English. The principles of writing the most important types of business letters are explained separately and are illustrated by good and bad examples. None of these is to be taken as a model for imitation. The imitation of models is a handicap to the development of power in using business English. Part IV is devoted to the most difficult types of businesss English, including sales letters, advertisements, and reports. This part may well be used for the work of advanced classes, and its treatment presupposes familiarity with the material given in the other three parts. The whole plan of the book, however, has purposely ⚫ been made elastic so as to suit the requirements of classes working under widely different conditions. In the order here presented it has been tested out successfully not only with classes of students preparing for business, but with those already engaged in business. From the business man's standpoint the plan and material have been found practical. It is believed that the teacher and stu |