One more point in regard to behavior I wish to impress upon your mind as of very great importance, although it relates less to the home and more to general society.  I mean that of modest behavior as distinguished from forwardness and boldness.  One of the greatest charms of young girlhood is modesty; one of the greatest blemishes in the character of any young person, especially of any young girl or woman, is forwardness, boldness, pertness.  The young girl who acts in such a manner as to attract attention in public; who speaks loudly, and jokes and laughs and tells stories in order to be heard by others than her immediate companions; who dresses conspicuously; who enjoys being the object of remark; who expresses opinions on all subjects with forward self-confidence, is rightly regarded by all thoughtful and cultivated people as one of the most disagreeable and obnoxious characters to be met with in society.  Modesty is one of the loveliest of graces, and should be constantly cultivated.

And now you will see what I mean by saying that the root of good manners is good behavior.  In other words, good manners have their time and living root in moral qualities and the Christian graces.  There is a certain surface display of manners which may be acquired and which may deceive and pass with those who do not know us intimately; but there is all the difference between such superficial good manners and those which are real, that there is between the cut bouquet of flowers which delights for an hour or two and then withers away, and the living, growing plant which constantly delights us with fresh beauty and bloom.

What are the characteristics of the agreeable and beautiful manners that are the ornament and charm of the well-behaved girl?  First we should place gentleness, quietness, and serenity or self-possession.  It has been well said by an observing social critic, that the person who has no manners at all has good manners.  What is meant by this, and there is a deep truth in it, is that gentle and quiet manners do not attract attention at all.  Their greatest charm is their unobtrusiveness, just as the charm and distinguishing mark of a well-dressed person is that the dress is not striking or obtrusive.  You can infer from this how inconsistent with good manners is heat and exaggeration in conversation.  It is a just complaint among refined and cultivated people that many, even of the well-educated young women of the present day, talk too loudly and vehemently; are given to exaggeration of statement and slang expressions.  The greatest blemish of the conversation and manners of the young people of to-day is obtrusiveness and exaggeration.  By obtrusiveness I mean a style of speech and manners that attracts attention and remark; by exaggeration I mean the too constant use of the superlative in conversation, and a certain incongruity and inappropriateness of expression which is very offensive to the cultivated taste.  Such expressions as “perfectly awful,” “perfectly