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Does anyone know title, author, possibly link to a ghost story, possibly originally in French, possibly intended for children.

In which a secretary (employee with desk job) dies, and after his death haunts his boss, who he dislikes because the boss forbade the employee of ending his letters with polite formulations (e.g. “Veuillez agréer, Monsieur, l’expression de mes sentiments les plus distingués”) for efficiency reasons?

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The forbiddance of ending letters with polite phrases reminds me of the story Le Passe-muraille, or The Man Who Walked Through Walls, by Marcel Aymé in 1941.

The "third gade clerk" Dutilleul discovers he can walk through walls without discomfort.

One of the things he uses it for is to drive a new manager, Lecuyer, insane because Lecuyer insisted that staff started and ended their letters with shorter greetings.

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  • third grade clerk ? Apr 2, 2020 at 5:26

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