Specimen telexes

attn: vice general director petrov

pls confirm our understanding that your requirement will be the purchase of equipment in western countries in accordance with your own specifications and thus our company will not be required to carry out any engineering design work.

regards

hatton

411194a tmi su

667844 simcar g

attn: deputy director “techmashkhmapparat”

informing you that our sales manager and myself will be in Moscow again 15-22 november inclusive. we wish to discuss delivery progress of current contract and your recent further enquiries to which quotations were mailed to you lately. pls advise as soon as possible by telex suitable firm date and time of our appointment. wednesday or thursday would be more convenient for us if that is ok with you.

best regards

bottomley

411194 tmi su

848296 ihferm g

attn: dr grover

re: adreement no i-73/79

reference is made to our letter dated 10.10.91 about submitting an invoice to us every year to the amount as stated in para. 3.2. of the licence agreement stop we would ask you to send us respective invoice in august this year.

regards

licensintorg

7256545 sel d

411246 lit su

Telegrams (cables)

Messages transmitted by telegraph are called telegrams if they are sent by means of wire and cables (cablegrams) if they are sent by means of cable (laid underground or on the ocean bottom). Nowadays in Britain, and in most other English-speaking countries, however, the word “cable” is used for any telegrams which are sent out of the country. It is even applicable to wireless communication (to radiograms). Telegrams are usually typed out in capital letters without any punctuation, the word “stop” may be used if necessary to make the meaning clear.

Since telegrams are charged according to the number of words, they must be economically worded, i.e. kept short:

1. By means of omitting nonessential words such as articles, link words, pronouns as subjects, some preposition (not “within” or “without”) and other auxiliary parts of the sentence. But the message to be sent must not be cut down so far as to make it ambiguous.

2. By leaving out the Opening Salutation and Complimentary Closing. Such courtesy-words, however, as “thanks (thank you-TU), please (PLS), kindly, appreciate, regards (RGDS) and some others are widely used.

3. By using abbreviations such as:

ABT = about

ASAP = as soon as possible

B/F = Bill of exchange

BIBI = bye-bye

B/L (blading) = Bill of Lading

CFM = please confirm

DLRS = dollars

DOZ = dozen

INFO = information

LC = Letter of credit

OK = agree

PLS = please

QOK = question OK, do you agree?

RE (Lat.) = relating to

REF = referring to

RGDS = regards

RPT = repeat

TLX = telex

YR = your

4. By joining parts of words and whole words: OURLET = our letter, YOURLET = your letter, OURTEL = our telegram (telex), YOURTEL = your telegram (Telex), RELET = relating (referring) to letter, RECABLE = relating (referring) to cable, REPHONE = referring to telephone conversation, REURLET = referring to your letter/ REYRLET, REURTEL = referring to your telegram (telex)/ REYRTEL, PRODOC = project document, PERDAY = per day, PERTON = per ton, FIVEPERCENT = five per cent (%). To avoid mistakes numbers in cables are written in words, and certain numbers e.g. double figures (cardinal and ordinal) from twenty one (twenty first) and on – twentyone, thirtyfirst, fortyfive – are written in one word. Numbers “one hundred (thousand), etc.” are written in one word as well: ninehundred, seventhousand, fivethousand and fiftyfive (= 5 055). e.g. “REYTEL TENTH MAY QUOTING LOWEST TWOHUNDRED PERUNIT INCLUDING FIVEPERCENT TRADE DISCOUNT RGDS”

5. By preferring to use single words to phrases:

cannot instead of are unable to не можемо, не взмозі

try ‘’ make an effort намагатися

concerning ‘’ having regard to у відношені, відносно

during ‘’ in the course of під час

to ‘’ with the object of з метою

6. By using “ cable language” (“telegrafic English”), which is not always correct in ordinary writing, for example:

“PLS QUOTE LOWEST AND SOONEST TWO MACHINETOOLS CIF CALCUTTA RGDS” (The words “Lowest” and “soonest” are understood to mean: “the lowest price” and “the soonest (earliest) delivery time”)

“CONFERMING SHIPMENT EARLY MAY TWO MACHINETOOLS PLS ADVISE SHIPMENT TIME SECOND LOT ASAP RGDS”

(“confirming” = we are confirming)

“REGRET PRICE UNACCEPTABLE” (we regret we cannot accept your price)

“REGRET POOR DEMAND COMPETITORS POSITION VERY STRONG” (= we regret that there is poor demand for your equipment. Our competitors are in a very strong position.)

For the sake of economy and occasionally of secrecy instead of writing cables in clear you may use commercial codes (Marconi, Bentley’s) and cyphers. There are special “Code Books”, for example the British A B C Code, which serve as dictionaries (to read cables written in code).

Remember that:

1. certain words are very frequent in cables, for example:

to advise – повідомляти,

advise – повідомлення

to expedite – прискорювати

to finalize – закінчувати, завершувати

to report – прибувати

Examples: