"Mr. and Mrs. John Smith, New York."
He never enters his street and house number. Neither "John Smith and Wife" nor "John Smith and Family" are good form. If he does not like the "Mr." before his name he can sign his own without, on one line, and then write "Mrs. Smith" on the one below. The whole family should be registered:
| John T. Smith, | New York |
| Mrs. Smith, | " |
| and maid | |
| (if she has brought one) | |
| Miss Margaret Smith, | " |
| John T. Smith, Jr., | " |
| Baby and nurse, | " |
Or, if the children are young, he writes:
Mr. & Mrs. John T. Smith, New York, 3 children and nurse.
A lady never signs her name without "Miss" or "Mrs." in a hotel register:
"Miss Abigail Titherington" is correct, or "Mrs. John Smith," never "Sarah Smith."
Ladies Alone In American Hotels
If you have never been in a hotel alone but you are of sufficient years, well behaved and dignified in appearance, you need have no fear as to the treatment you will receive. But you should write to the hotel in advance—whether here or in Europe. In this country you register in the office and are shown to your room, or rooms, by a bell-boy—in some hotels by a bell-boy and a maid.
One piece of advice: You will not get good service unless you tip generously. If you do not care for elaborate meals, that is nothing to your discredit; but you should not go to an expensive hotel, hold a table that would otherwise be occupied by others who might order a long dinner, and expect your waiter to be contented with a tip of fifteen cents for your dollar supper! The rule is ten per cent, beginning with a meal costing about three or four dollars. A quarter is the smallest possible tip in a first class hotel. If your meal costs a quarter—you should give the waiter a quarter. If it costs two dollars or more than two dollars, you give thirty or thirty-five cents, and ten per cent on a bigger amount. In smaller hotels tips are less in proportion. Tipping is undoubtedly a bad system, but it happens to be in force, and that being the case, travelers have to pay their share of it—if they like the way made smooth and comfortable.