Sherwood, Mrs. John M. E. W. / 2008-10-04 00:00:00

It is never
proper to call on a guest without asking for the hostess.
Again, if the hostess be a very fashionable woman, and the visitor
decidedly not so, it is equally vulgar to make one's friend who
may be a guest in the house a sort of entering wedge for an
acquaintance; a card should be left, but unaccompanied by any
request to see the lady of the house. This every lady will at once
understand. A lady who has a guest staying with her who receives
really calls should always try to place a parlor at her disposal
where she can see her friends alone, unless she be a very young
person, to whom the chaperonage of the hostess is indispensable.
If the lady of the house is in the drawing-room when the visitor
arrives to call on her guest, she is, of course, introduced and
says a few words; and if she is not in the room, the guest should
inquire of the visitor if the lady of the house will see him or
her, thus giving her a chance to accept or decline.
In calling on the sons or the daughters of the house, every
visitor should leave a card for the father and mother. If ladies
are at home, cards should be left for the gentlemen of the family.
In Europe a young man is not allowed to ask for the young ladies
of the house in formal parlance, nor is he allowed to leave a card
on them--socially in Europe the "_jeune fille_" has no existence.
He calls on the mother or chaperon; the young lady may be sent
for, but he must not inquire for her first.
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