Pilita Clark (“The strange death of the salutation”, Business LifeMarch 21) reminds me of my time as an articled clerk several years ago.
I was then told that the proper salutation for a client who was a peer of the realm was to begin “My lord” and end “We remain my lord, your obedient servants”. When I suggested to the senior partner that, grammatically, it would be preferable to write “Oh Lord” or perhaps “Our lord”, he was not amused.
Giles Dixon
London TW9, UK