Page:Book of Etiquette, Volume 1, by Lilian Eichler.djvu/306



The young girl should follow her mother's example and advice in all things. Eighteen is the correct coming-out age for the young American girl, and until then she should obey her mother without question. She should be guided by her wider experience, by her more mature knowledge. But unfortunately this is not always so. Mothers and daughters are not the "pals" they ought to be.

Recently a woman was asked by a very close friend why she allowed her daughter to attend the theater and the dance with a young man who was of questionable character. "Surely you have some influence over her," the friend persisted. "Tell her to avoid him." But she simply smiled in a tired sort of way and said, "I am only her mother."

This should not be. The mother should guide her daughter in all she does, and the daughter should be willing to abide by her mother's decisions. Otherwise that sacred, beautiful friendship that can be created only between a mother and daughter will never exist.

A great many of us suffer from self-consciousness. We always imagine that people are looking at us, talking about us, ridiculing us. We are never at ease among strangers, never happy when people are around. We are always embarrassed, shy, ill at ease.

There is a story told about the famous Hawthorne who was so shy and self-conscious that he ran out of the house