ult., inst., prox.

[Edward Hyde]

These used to be common abbreviations in UK commercial correspondence.
For example, "We have your favour of the 2nd inst". This means "We
have received your letter dated the 2nd of this month". Ult means of
last month and prox of next month.

Does anyone know any other examples of old commercial usage which may
be of interest?
--

Ed.

[kevin...@my-deja.com]

In article <37fc8aa8...@news.freeserve.co.uk>,

Your message of the 5th inst. to hand...

If you mean in the letter-writing area, I miss

"I beg to remain your obedient servant"

from government officials.

(Sorry, that's not *commercial* usage, though)

Kevin Flynn.

Sent via Deja.com http://www.deja.com/
Before you buy.

[dpdavi...@gmail.com]

Kevin, To your comment about missing "I beg to remain your obedient servant" from government officials, my grandfather always used to say, "There is no such thing as a civil servant or a level crossing" (If you don't know what a "level crossing" is, just reply to this post).

[Whiskers]

Kevin posted 16 years ago. So don't hold your breath.

Try looking at the date of things you're replying to; then only reply if
the date is less than a month old. You won't annoy the rest of us so
much then.

--
-- ^^^^^^^^^^
-- Whiskers
-- ~~~~~~~~~~

[Jenny Telia]

On 16/11/2015 20:56, Whiskers wrote:
> On 2015-11-16, dpdavi...@gmail.com <dpdavi...@gmail.com> wrote:
>> Kevin, To your comment about missing "I beg to remain your obedient
>> servant" from government officials, my grandfather always used to say,
>> "There is no such thing as a civil servant or a level crossing" (If
>> you don't know what a "level crossing" is, just reply to this post).
>
> Kevin posted 16 years ago. So don't hold your breath.
>

Oh, go on. Let him.

[Whiskers]

I wonder how long it will take for all the threads in Google's usenet
archive to end in necro-posted exchanges? And how long after that for
necro-necro-posting ...?

[alien8er]

Wait ten or fifteen years, then post to this thread again. Fulfill your own prediction.


Dr. HotSalt

[Hen Hanna]

On Tuesday, October 5, 1999 at 12:00:00 AM UTC-7, Edward Hyde wrote:

> These used to be common abbreviations in UK commercial correspondence.
> For example, "We have your favour of the 2nd inst". This means "We
> have received your letter dated the 2nd of this month". Ult means of
> last month and prox of next month.
>
> Does anyone know any other examples of old commercial usage which may
> be of interest?

> --
>
> Ed.


I wonder if c.i.f. and F.O.B. are still common.

http://www.ourcivilisation.com/smartboard/shop/gowerse/abc/cmmrcls.htm

Commercialese
From 'Vocabulary' part of The ABC Of Plain Words by Sir E Gowers (1951)

...........

Some readers of the Report may be unacquainted with "commercial English". We therefore give a few examples of the words and idiom in the dialect:-- prox (next month); ult (last month); of even date (of today);

beg to or hereby beg to (a meaningless prefix, found before verbs of all kinds, e.g. "I beg to inform you" "hereby beg to say" etc.);

Your favour, Your esteemed favour, yours (your letter); I am in receipt of your favour, Your favour duly to hand, or, more familiarly, Yours to hand (Your letter has reached me); per (by); as per (in accordance with);

same (it, e.g. "Yours to hand and we beg to say we shall give a11 attention to same");

make or quote you (make you an offer, e.g. "We can make you a discount of 6 per cent", "My traveller had the pleasure of quoting you for the order");

The favour of your immediate reply will oblige (I shall be glad to hear from you at once).


To these might be added Please find, Thanking you in anticipation, the use of item to mean anything the writer pleases and that curious piece of tortuous politeness Your good self.


-------- Yes, we miss you, Frank Doel! HH

[John Bull]

Not if I beat him to it?

[Paul Purves]

This may be the last necro-post, as from 22nd inst, Google will no longer allow posts to these archives.