Epistolary Garden

of the mind. Although it is, as it were, only a quiet conversation and a mute speech between two persons separated by the distance of some places, it is nevertheless, more often than not, the way through which the heart is refreshed, the eyes are amused, the will is satisfied, the spirits of the understanding are sharpened, and lasting love is bound between distant souls.

Chapter II.

How many pieces belong to the arrangement of a completely perfect epistle, and how to condense them into a sound classification.

The parts required for a German epistle are generally counted as nine, namely:
1. Salutatio the greeting.
2. Exordium the introduction.
3. Narratio the narration.
4. Confirmatio the confirmation.
5. Petitio the request.
6. Conclusio the conclusion.
7. Valedictio the farewell.
8. Subscriptio the signature.
9. In-vel Superscriptio the address or superscription.

These aforementioned pieces must be kept in the presented order when composing a well-sounding letter, and the following classification is also to be observed; namely, that some of them