lder and more conservative women (and, of course, all
men) keep to the plain fashion of yesterday, which will just as surely be
the fashion of to-morrow.

=MOURNING PAPER=

Persons who are in mourning use black-edged visiting cards, letter paper
and envelopes. The depth of black corresponds with the depth of mourning
and the closeness of relation to the one who has gone, the width
decreasing as one's mourning lightens. The width of black to use is a
matter of personal taste and feeling. A very heavy border (from 3/8 to
7/16 of an inch) announces the deepest retirement.

=DATING A LETTER=

Usually the date is put at the upper right hand of the first page of a
letter, or at the end, and to the left of the signature, of a note. It is
far less confusing for one's correspondent to read January 9, 1920, than
1-9-20. Theoretically, one should write out the date in full: the ninth of
January, Nineteen hundred and twenty-one. That, however, is the height of
pedantry, and an unswallowable mouthful at the top of any page not a
document.

At the end of a note "Thursday" is sufficient unless the note is an
invitation for more than a week ahead, in which case write as in a letter,
"January 9" or "the ninth of January." The year is not necessary since it
can hardly be supposed to take a year for a letter's transportation.

=SEQUENCE OF PAGES=

If a note is longer than one page, the third page is usually next, as this
leaves the fourth blank and prevents the writing from showing through the
envelope. With heavy or tissue-lined envelopes, the fourth is used as
often as the third. In letters one may write first, second, third, fourth,
in regular order; or first and fourth, then, opening the sheet and turning
it sideways, write across the two inside pages as one. Many prefer to
write on first, third, then sideways across second and fourth. In certain
cities--Boston, for instance--the last word on a page is repeated at the
top of the next. It is undoubtedly a good idea, but makes a stuttering
impression upon one not accustomed to it.

=FOLDING A NOTE=

As to whether a letter is folded in such a way that the recipient shall
read the contents without having to turn the paper, is giving too much
importance to nothing. It is sufficient if the paper is folded _neatly_,
once, of course, for the envelope that is half the length of the paper,
and twice for the envelope that is a third.

=SEALING WAX=

If you use sealing wax