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Begging Letter
A begging letter is a letter to a rich person or organization, usually written by a poor person, or a person claiming to be poor, begging for money or help. Examples of begging letters include a variant of the Nigerian 419 scam, where a letter is sent to a wealthy individual asking for financial assistance for orphaned children, emergency surgery, etc. Works about begging letters The May 1850 edition of ''Household Words'' contained an article entitled ''The Begging-Letter Writer'' written by the novelist Charles Dickens. In the article Dickens describes examples of the many begging letters he had received over the years, and the ruses employed by their writers to gain funds from the recipients. '' Silly BeggarThe World's Stupidest Begging Letters'' is a 2009 book by Scottish author James Spence. It is a collection of comedy letters sent to companies, together with the replies and images of items the sender received. Letters included in the book were sent to such companies as Shell ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nigeria
Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, a population of more than 230 million, it is the List of African countries by population, most populous country in Africa, and the List of countries and dependencies by population, world's sixth-most populous country. Nigeria borders Niger in Niger–Nigeria border, the north, Chad in Chad–Nigeria border, the northeast, Cameroon in Cameroon–Nigeria border, the east, and Benin in Benin–Nigeria border, the west. Nigeria is a Federation, federal republic comprising 36 States of Nigeria, states and the Federal Capital Territory, Nigeria, Federal Capital Territory, where its capital, Abuja, is located. The List of Nigerian cities by population, largest city in Nigeria by population is Lagos, one of the largest List of largest cities, metr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Advance-fee Scam
An advance-fee scam is a form of fraud and is a common confidence trick. The scam typically involves promising the victim a significant share of a large sum of money, in return for a small up-front payment, which the fraudster claims will be used to obtain the large sum. If a victim makes the payment, the fraudster either invents a series of further fees for the victim to pay or simply disappears. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) states that "An advance fee scheme occurs when the victim pays money to someone in anticipation of receiving something of greater value – such as a loan, contract, investment, or gift – and then receives little or nothing in return." There are many variations of this type of scam, including the Nigerian prince scam, also known as a 419 scam. The number "419" refers to the section of the Nigerian Criminal Code dealing with fraud and the charges and penalties for such offenders. The scam has been used with fax and traditional mail and is no ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Household Words
''Household Words'' was an English weekly magazine edited by Charles Dickens in the 1850s. It took its name from the line in Shakespeare's '' Henry V'': "Familiar in his mouth as household words." History During the planning stages, titles originally considered by Dickens included ''The Robin'', ''The Household Voice'', ''The Comrade'', ''The Lever'', and ''The Highway of Life''. ''Household Words'' was published every Saturday from March 1850 to May 1859. Each number cost a mere tuppence, for the sake of a wider readership. The publication's first edition carried a section covering the paper's principles, entitled "A Preliminary Word": A longer version of the publication's principles appeared in newspapers such as '' The Argus'' in September 1850. Theoretically, the paper championed the cause of the poor and working classes, but in fact it addressed itself almost exclusively to the middle class. Only the name of Dickens, the journal's "conductor", appeared; articles were u ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Novelist
A novelist is an author or writer of novels, though often novelists also write in other genres of both fiction and non-fiction. Some novelists are professional novelists, thus make a living wage, living writing novels and other fiction, while others aspire to support themselves in this way or write as an avocation. Most novelists struggle to have their debut novel published, but once published they often continue to be published, although very few become literary celebrities, thus gaining prestige or a considerable income from their work. Description Novelists come from a variety of backgrounds and social classes, and frequently this shapes the content of their works. Audience reception, Public reception of a novelist's work, the literary criticism commenting on it, and the novelists' incorporation of their own experiences into works and characters can lead to the author's personal life and identity being associated with a novel's fictional content. For this reason, the environment ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Charles Dickens
Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English novelist, journalist, short story writer and Social criticism, social critic. He created some of literature's best-known fictional characters, and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian era.. His works enjoyed unprecedented popularity during his lifetime and, by the 20th century, critics and scholars had recognised him as a literary genius. His novels and short stories are widely read today. Born in Portsmouth, Dickens left school at age 12 to work in a boot-blacking factory when his father John Dickens, John was incarcerated in a debtors' prison. After three years, he returned to school before beginning his literary career as a journalist. Dickens edited a weekly journal for 20 years; wrote 15 novels, five novellas, hundreds of short stories and nonfiction articles; lectured and performed Penny reading, readings extensively; was a tireless letter writer; and campaigned vigor ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Silly Beggar
''Silly BeggarThe World's Stupidest Begging Letters'' is a book by Scottish author James Spence. The book was published on 14 May 2009 by Aurora Metro, and is a collection of comedy begging letters sent to companies, together with the replies and images of items the sender received. Letters included in the book were sent to such companies as Shell, Hovis, Boots and Starbucks. Popularity Some newspapers including the ''Daily Mirror'' and the Daily Record ran full page articles about the book and the author was interviewed in various media including '' Chris Evans Drivetime'' on BBC Radio 2, ''MacAulay and Co'' on BBC Radio Scotland and '' Richard & Judy's New Position'' on the Watch A watch is a timepiece carried or worn by a person. It is designed to maintain a consistent movement despite the motions caused by the person's activities. A wristwatch is worn around the wrist, attached by a watch strap or another type of ... channel. References External links ''Sill ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Royal Dutch Shell
Shell plc is a British multinational oil and gas company, headquartered in London, England. Shell is a public limited company with a primary listing on the London Stock Exchange (LSE) and secondary listings on Euronext Amsterdam and the New York Stock Exchange. A core component of Big Oil, Shell is the second largest investor-owned oil and gas company in the world by revenue (after ExxonMobil), and among the world's largest companies out of any industry. Measured by both its own emissions, and the emissions of all the fossil fuels it sells, Shell was the ninth-largest corporate producer of greenhouse gas emissions in the period 1988–2015. Shell was formed in April 1907 through the merger of Royal Dutch Petroleum Company of the Netherlands and The "Shell" Transport and Trading Company of the United Kingdom. The combined company rapidly became the leading competitor of the American Standard Oil and by 1920 Shell was the largest producer of oil in the world. Shell first ente ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hovis
Hovis Ltd is a British company that produces flour, yeast and bread. Founded in Stoke-on-Trent, it began mass-production in Macclesfield in 1886. Hovis became part of Rank Hovis McDougall (RHM) in 1962 after a succession of mergers. RHM, with its brands including Hovis and Mother's Pride, was acquired by Premier Foods in 2007. In April 2014 it became a limited company after Premier Foods sold a 51% stake in the business to The Gores Group to form a joint venture between the two companies. In November 2020, it was announced that both the Gores Group and Premier Foods had sold their stakes in the business to British-based private equity firm Endless LLP. Hovis specialises in high wheatgerm wholemeal flour, the bread being baked independently. It also produces the Nimble brand reduced-calorie bread. History The brand began in 1886; the Hovis process was patented on 6 October 1887 by Richard "Stoney" Smith (1836–1900), and S. Fitton & Sons Ltd developed the brand, milling ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Boots UK
Boots UK Limited (formerly Boots the Chemists Limited) is a British health and beauty retailer and pharmacy chain that operates in the United Kingdom. It also operates internationally, including Ireland, Italy, Norway, the Netherlands, Thailand and Indonesia. The parent company, The Boots Company plc, merged with Alliance Healthcare, Alliance UniChem in 2006 to form Alliance Boots. In 2007, Alliance Boots was bought by Kohlberg Kravis Roberts and Stefano Pessina, taking the company private, and moving its headquarters to Switzerland, making it the first-ever FTSE 100 Index, FTSE 100 company to be bought by a private equity firm. In 2012, Walgreens bought a 45% stake in Alliance Boots, with the option to buy the rest within three years. It exercised this option in 2014, and as a result Boots became a subsidiary of the new company, Walgreens Boots Alliance, on 31 December 2014. Boots is one of the largest retailers in the UK and Ireland, both in terms of revenue and the number of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Starbucks
Starbucks Corporation is an American multinational List of coffeehouse chains, chain of coffeehouses and Starbucks Reserve, roastery reserves headquartered in Seattle, Washington. It was founded in 1971 by Jerry Baldwin, Zev Siegl, and Gordon Bowker at Seattle's Pike Place Market initially as a coffee bean wholesaler. Starbucks was converted into a coffee shop serving espresso-based drinks under the ownership of Howard Schultz, who was chief executive officer from 1986 to 2000 and led the aggressive expansion of the franchise across the West Coast of the United States. the company had 35,711 stores in 80 countries, 15,873 of which were located in the United States. Of Starbucks' U.S.-based stores, over 8,900 are company-operated, while the remainder are licensed. It is the List of coffeehouse chains, world's largest coffeehouse chain. The company is ranked 120th on the Fortune 500, ''Fortune'' 500 and 303rd on the Forbes Global 2000, ''Forbes'' Global 2000, as of 2022. Th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Writing
Writing is the act of creating a persistent representation of language. A writing system includes a particular set of symbols called a ''script'', as well as the rules by which they encode a particular spoken language. Every written language arises from a corresponding spoken language; while the use of language is universal across human societies, most spoken languages are not written. Writing is a cognitive and social activity involving neuropsychological and physical processes. The outcome of this activity, also called ''writing'' (or a ''text'') is a series of physically inscribed, mechanically transferred, or digitally represented symbols. Reading is the corresponding process of interpreting a written text, with the interpreter referred to as a ''reader''. In general, writing systems do not constitute languages in and of themselves, but rather a means of encoding language such that it can be read by others across time and space. While not all languages use a writ ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Letters (message)
Letter, letters, or literature may refer to: Characters typeface * Letter (alphabet), a character representing one or more of the sounds used in speech or none in the case of a silent letter; any of the symbols of an alphabet * Letterform, the graphic form of a letter of the alphabet, either as written or in a particular type font * Rehearsal letter in an orchestral score Communication * Letter (message), a form of written communication ** Mail * Letters, the collected correspondence of a writer or historically significant person ** Pauline epistles, addressed by St. Paul to various communities or congregations, such as "Letters to the Galatians" or "Letters to the Corinthians", and part of the canonical books of the Bible ** Maktubat (other), the Arabic word for collected letters * The letter as a form of second-person literature; see Epistle ** Epistulae (Pliny) ** Epistolary novel, a long-form fiction composed of letters (epistles) * Open letter, a public letter a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
