Oh, My

Another excerpt from the previously mentioned book Bennett Cerf's The Sound of Laughter:
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Well-brought-up young ladies in the 1870's learned their good manners from the pages of a book that is unbelievable by present-day standards.  It was called Hill's Manual of Social and Business Forms and it has just been republished under the slightly updated title of Never Give a Lady a Restive Horse.

Professor Hill gave strict orders to young ladies just climbing out of bed in the morning.  "Take a complete bath at once," he commanded, adding, "A simple washing out of the eyes will not do at all."  In the chapter headed "Errors to be avoided," Professor Hill brooked no nonsense from male readers, either.  "NEVER," he ordered, "allow butter, soup, or other food to remain on your whiskers."  There are forty-one other "nevers" listed by Professor Hill, including things not to be done in hansom cabs and other horse-drawn vehicles.
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OK, I'm now kinda grossed out at the thought of what bearded men are allowing to remain in and on their whiskers.  Ick!  At least he was trying to get people to bathe regularly.  It certainly helps to reduce the 'funk' in a room full of mostly unwashed people.

Hmmmm, I may go over to Amazon and see if I can locate a copy of this book.  It sounds like it could be a fun read.  Perhaps similar to a list I read a while back from perhaps the 1940's or 1950's with rules for wives and how they should maintain their households and keep their husbands happy.  It's a good thing I wasn't a housewife back then or my head would have been inside that gas oven hoping for a quick end.

Papillon