Rituals of the Season

Many believe that politeness is but a mask worn in the world to conceal bad passions and impulses, and to make a show of possessing virtues not really existing in the heart; thus, that politeness is merely hypocrisy and dissimulation. Do not believe this; be certain that those who profess such a doctrine are themselves practising the deceit they condemn so much . . . True politeness is the language of a good heart.

Florence Hartley, The Ladies’ Book of Etiquette, 1873