As a safe rule in whist is, “When in doubt, lead trumps,” so a safe rule for a man in public would be, “When in doubt, take off your hat.”
Some men of fine feeling take off their hats when a funeral procession passes them in the street, indeed in Europe this is an established custom. In the South, in this country, old-fashioned gentlemen sometimes raise their hats to each other. Abroad, men who pass women on a stairway invariably lift their hats. In hotel elevators, gentlemen always take off their hats when ladies are present,—some men do it in all elevators under these circumstances.
When a man meets a woman on the street, and wishes to talk with her for a moment, he should, if time allow, turn and walk a little way with her, rather than stop and thus hinder her. If he have a business engagement that makes this impossible, he should apologize for not doing so, in a few words, as—“Pardon me for not walking with you instead of stopping you, but my train leaves in fifteen minutes,” or, “I have an appointment in ten minutes.”
On a cold day, when a man stands talking with a woman with his head uncovered, she should say, “Pray put on your hat! I am afraid you will catch cold.” He should accede to her request, saying “Thank you!” as he does so.
It is a woman’s place to bow first, when she meets a man. Unless they are old friends, the man does not lift his hat until he has received this sign of recognition from a woman.
Men who were called on to shake hands with women formerly murmured an apology for the glove, but this is no longer customary. A man waits for a woman to make the first move to shake hands unless he knows her very well.
When men meet each other on the street they may recognize each other as they please,—by a nod, a wave of the hand, or by touching the hat. For a man to touch his hat to a woman is an insult, unless he be a servant—as a coachman receiving an order from his mistress—when he acknowledges the order by touching the brim of his hat with his hand. Did more men appreciate that they were giving the “coachman’s salute” to a woman, mortification, if not courtesy, might prevent a repetition of the offense.