A YOUNG man desiring to marry a young girl does not, in polite
society, "pop the question" to her by mail, unless she happens, at the
time, to be out of the city or otherwise unable to "receive." It is
often advisable, however, after she has said "yes," to write a letter to
her father instead of calling on him to ask for his permission to the
match, as a personal interview is often apt to result unsatisfactorily.
In writing these letters to prospective fathers-in-law, the cardinal
point is, of course, the creation by the young man of a good impression
in the mind of the father, and for this purpose he should study to make
his letter one which will appeal irresistibly to the older gentleman's
habits and tastes.
Thus, in writing to a father who is above everything else a
"business man," the following form is suggested:
