no severe tax on the memory to
recollect who has called, especially as the infrequency of calls gives
ample time for each one to make an individual impression. This is not
possible when a steady stream of visitors is pouring in and out of a
drawing-room on a fashionable woman's "at home" day, scarcely giving
the hostess opportunity to gaze upon one face before another has
displaced it; so that at the end of the hour her memory recalls a
composite photograph. Cards are her indispensable aids in resolving
this picture into its component elements. But those who "live
quietly," receiving but few calls, have no such bewildering complexity
to deal with.

At the same time, these people thus quietly environed may represent the
most refined and cultivated circle. They may know perfectly well what
formal etiquette would demand in the matter of cards if the conditions
were more formal. The omission of cards whenever their use would be
forced, so far from indicating ignorance, is a proof of discrimination.

Personal calls are made in the following cases:

In returning a first visit, made in person.

After a dinner party to which one has been invited, whether the
invitation was accepted or not.

After any entertainment other than a dinner it is allowable to leave or
send cards instead of paying a personal call. This is a wise rule in
cases where a hostess, has a long visiting list, and entertains
frequently. To receive afterward personal visits from all of her
guests would be practically impossible. The majority will express
their acknowledgments by card, leaving it to the most intimate friends
of the hostess to pay their respects in person. But among quiet
people, where one "Tea" is the extent of a hostess' efforts for the
season, the personal call is desirable as showing greater respect and
friendliness. Among congenial friends only the plea of a busy life can
make the card acknowledgment quite as graceful and acceptable as the
personal visit. But if the guest is a comparative stranger, and, for
any reason, there is a wish not to extend the acquaintance, the sending
of a card meets all the requirements of etiquette, without committing
the sender to any further intimacy.

(The alternative for personal calls, is personal card-leaving; the next
point to be considered.)

CARD-LEAVING IS LIEU OF PERSONAL CALLS

When personal calls are not practicable, nor desirable, the leaving of
cards is accepted as an equival