The French, with the marvellous tact that has for centuries made them the law-givers on all subjects of etiquette and breeding, have another way of avoiding useless introductions.They assume that two people meeting in a drawing-room belong to the same world and so chat pleasantly with those around them.On leaving the SALONthe acquaintance is supposed to end, and a gentleman who should at another time or place bow or speak to the lady who had offered him a cup of tea and talked pleasantly to him over it at a friend's reception, would commit a gross breach of etiquette.
I was once present at a large dinner given in Cologne to the American Geographical Society.No sooner was I seated than my two neighbors turned towards me mentioning their names and waiting for me to do the same.After that the conversation flowed on as among friends.This custom struck me as exceedingly well-bred and calculated to make a foreigner feel at his ease.
Among other curious types, there are people so constituted that they are unhappy if a single person can be found in the room to whom they have not been introduced.It does not matter who the stranger may be or what chance there is of finding him congenial.
They must be presented; nothing else will content them.If you are chatting with a friend you feel a pull at your sleeve, and in an audible aside, they ask for an introduction.The aspirant will then bring up and present the members of his family who happen to be near.After that he seems to be at ease, and having absolutely nothing to say will soon drift off.Our public men suffer terribly from promiscuous introductions; it is a part of a political career;a good memory for names and faces and a cordial manner under fire have often gone a long way in floating a statesman on to success.