One month after the birth of a child, a call of congratulation is made by acquaintances.
A call of condolence is made within ten days after the death, if the caller is on intimate terms with the family, or within a month if otherwise.
Calls of congratulation are due to the newly married, and to the parents who gave the invitations to the marriage.
A man invited by a woman to call upon her, cannot, without great discourtesy, neglect to pay the call within a week.
A lady will never keep a caller waiting, without sending word that she will be in immediately.
One ought always to return a call, but if the acquaintance is not desirable, the first call may be the last.
Some women only rise when their callers leave, others accompany them as far as the drawing-room door; but it is always polite for a hostess to accompany her visitors to the front door when they take their leave, if there is not a servant on hand to open the door for them. The best bred hostesses even go so far as to accompany their callers to the elevator in a hotel or an apartment-house. Of course, if one has more than one caller at a time, it would be discourteous to leave the others to accompany one to the door; but, otherwise, it is rude to permit a friend to go to the door alone, and get out as best she may.
A bride who is “At Home after November first,” should make a point of literally staying at home for an hour or two every afternoon during the month of November and the early part of December. She should be dressed to receive callers, and should have some dainty refreshments ready to serve,—tea and sandwiches or cake. After the first week of December the bride may begin to return her calls, calling first on those who first called upon her, and so on.
When the “at home” is a large and formal function, with engraved invitations and all the accessories of hired waiters, an elaborate repast, floral decorations, etc.,—such as a debutante’s coming out, a wedding reception, or a reception to celebrate a wedding anniversary, and other large entertainments of this order,—an after-call is obligatory. But an ordinary “at home” does not demand another call, for instance, the reception or “days” a bride has on her return from her wedding trip, or when she is settled in her new home; or a tea or “days” for which a hostess informally sends the invitations written or engraved on her visiting cards, and receives with little ceremony and serves only a modest menu. On the contrary, the hostess owes a return call to all who attend; and only those who were invited, but were unable to be present, are in debt to her.
The length of time proper for one to stay at an “at home” depends on circumstances. It is always a compliment to one’s hostess to make a long visit at “a day”, for it implies that one is having a pleasant time; but nobody should stay long enough to be a burden on the hostess’s hospitality, or to detain her from her other guests. If one finds that she does not know any one present, or if she is not introduced to a congenial person with whom she can have a pleasant chat, it would be wise for her to leave after a conventional ten or fifteen minutes’ call.