An older lady can very properly refuse to dance and then perhaps dance briefly with her son or husband, without hurting her guest’s proper pride, but having refused to dance with one gentleman she must not change her mind and dance later with another.

A young girl who is dancing may not refuse to change partners when another “cuts in.”  This is the worst phase of the “cutting in” custom; those who particularly want to dance together are often unable to take more than a dozen steps before being interrupted.  Once in a while a girl will shake her head “No” to a “stag” who darts toward her.  But that is considered rude.  A few others have devised dancing with their eyes shut as a signal that they do not want to be “cut in on.”  But this is neither customary nor even a generally known practise.

It is always the privilege of the girl to stop dancing; a man is supposed to dance on and on, until she—­or the music—­stops.

=ASKING FOR A DANCE=

When a gentleman is introduced to a lady he says, “May I have some of this?” or “Would you care to dance?”

A lady never asks a gentleman to dance, or to go to supper with her, though she may if she is older, or if she is a young girl who is one of a “flock,” she may say “Come and sit at our table!” This however would not imply that in sitting at “their” table he is supposed to sit next to her.

In asking a lady to go to supper, a gentleman should say “Will you go to supper with me?” Or “May I take you to supper?” He should never say, “Have you a partner?” as she is put in an awkward position in having to admit that she has none.

=A BALL IS NOT A DANCING SCHOOL=

Since a girl may not without rudeness refuse to dance with a man who “cuts in,” a man who does not know how to dance is inexcusably inconsiderate if he “cuts in” on a good dancer and compels a young girl to become instructress for his own pleasure with utter disregard of hers.  If at home, or elsewhere, a young girl volunteers to “teach” him, that is another matter, but even so, the ballroom is no place to practise—­unless he is very sure that his dancing is not so bad as to be an imposition on his teacher.

[Illustration:  THE MOST ELABORATE DINNER-DANCE EVER GIVEN IN NEW YORK

“The scene represents the palace and garden at Versailles.  There were only four tables.  Singers appeared on the balcony during dinner, other performers danced, sang and juggled on the pathways.  After the dinner the pathways of grass were taken up to permit dancing by the guests.” [Page 271.]]

=NOVELTIES AND INNOVATIONS=