1920’s High School Manners

The South Philadelphia High School for Girls Class of 1921

Image source The Library Company of Philadelphia Digital Collection

The tide has turned. The old-fogy grown-ups have been made
to see what is the matter with the great youth of America. It's not mortals that are bad, but it's manners.

A movement to improve the conduct of the boys and girls has
started among the girls of the South Philadelphia High school,
and in accordance with their request the faculty has prepared a
manual of manners.

The girls have all agree to obey the rules in the manual. Some of these rules are:

• Girls should be simply and inconspicuously dressed at all times.
• It is bad taste to wear pretty dresses to school
• Avoid high French heels.
• Avoid the bad taste of using rouge, too much powder, too striking hats, extreme decollate, too short skirts, unsuitable shoes and stockings, excessive jewelry.
• Avoid loud talking and laughter.
• A girl should not take a boy’s arm on the street.
• Manicuring should be done only in the privacy of one home.
• When invited to a theater and asked your preference of plays, keep in mind the ability of the boy to pay for seats.
• Discourage extravagance on his part.
• Refrain from reading aloud explanations on screens at the movies.
• Do not speak of illness, operations or vermin. Topics should be pleasant.

Besides these and other matters of various degrees of lament there is the important rule that a gentleman caller should leave a
girl's home at 10 o'clock. Because different conditions have held regarding the young folks of the present from those which constrained their elders in the hey-day of their youth, too many of the latter have condemned all the heedless conduct of modern young people as morally bad. This unfortunately in most cases is not the truth. But that their manners, judged any standard of well-bred people, are quite atrocious, is unquestionable.

When youth, innocent, though ill-mannered, is frowned upon as being bad, it is naturally sullen or impudent. No improvement is
made. When it becomes quite clear that the whole trouble is that of careless, bad manners, the whole outlook is different. This distinction seems to have been sensibly made by those Quaker
City girls. Undoubtedly the results of the campaign will be good.– Colusa Daily Sun, 1921

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