Photo: REX USA.
Women's etiquette books from way back when tend to be pretty cringe-worthy. There are certainly little gems of wisdom here and there, but generally, we get a tad frustrated with all the tips on how to keep your husband happy with a drink at the door, and so on. However, we came across these scans from a vintage etiquette book for young gents on Jezebel's GroupThink, and we have to say, we're really digging it.
Our favorite bits? Well, there's the necessity to accommodate a young lady's "wraps." These are the many scraps of clothing she drapes around herself when attending a dance, which is also known as "the most frequent form of social activity for young people." It's required that a man be quite concerned with his upkeep — perhaps even more concerned than the lady herself. Then, there's the recommendation that you "don't smoke in the ballroom." The fact that this tip was written in a time when that was even legal, much less appropriate, is a clear indication of how much times have changed.
We also found plenty of pearl-clutching stuff about how to properly address a lady, but more than anything, we're just giggling with delight over how very proper it all is. Ah, different times. A golden age of politesse. We're not sure if we'd trade our texting, Tweeting, Snapchatting ways for a calling card just yet. But, if we do, there's bound to be some rustic apotheckary/general shoppe in Williamsburg that can provide all the necessary hipster-ized monocles, snuffboxes, skull-measuring devices, and other trappings of life in times past. (Jezebel)