DEAR MISS MANNERS: When I receive a reply from an email correspondent, I am often chagrined that -- most of the time -- I receive my original message back, in addition to the response.
I always make sure to delete what I have received before replying. Why return what I already know I have written? Is there any protocol concerning this?
GENTLE READER: It is true that to return a paper letter to its writer is considered an insult. In email, however, it cannot be considered so, because that is the default form.
Mind you, Miss Manners understands that it can be annoying, especially when there are several exchanges and a trail of the entire correspondence keeps reappearing. But while she agrees that it would be tactful to delete what was sent, she asks you to acknowledge that sometimes it is necessary to leave a reminder of what is being answered. Not everyone remembers, and you will admit that this is an improvement over that awkward opening, "In regard to your letter of the 15th ..."
(Please send your questions to Miss Manners at her website, www.missmanners.com; to her email, dearmissmanners@gmail.com; or through postal mail to Miss Manners, Universal Uclick, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106.)