Motor Car Etiquette (with Humor)

After you have run down a pedestrian be sure and "honk-honk" very vigorously, especially if you have previously given no warning signal. This little act of attention may be soothing to the last moments of the unfortunate. 

1. Always assist your lady passengers to their seats before taking your own; when alighting suddenly at a stone wall or fence, however, the question of precedence is not considered.
2. When a tire is punctured beyond repair it is considered the correct thing on the part of a host to be explicit as to the number if miles the party must walk to reach home.
3. If anything disagreeable happens, lay it to the chauffeur; if he is bigger than you it is permissible to do this behind his back.
4. After you have run down a pedestrian be sure and "honk-honk" very vigorously, especially if you have previously given no warning signal. This little act of attention may be soothing to the last moments of the unfortunate. 
5. If a horse shows signs of fright, put on all possible power and go by at full speed. In this way he will get rid of his fear- and possibly of his driver -more quickly.
6. If a village constable stands in the road watch in hand, head your machine at the watch. A correct aim destroys evidence.
7. No matter how well you can run your car, always keep a chauffeur in your pay: court rooms and country Jails are stuffy places,
8. If ladies are present when you get on your back under the machine to fix that little trouble." It is the custom to gag yourself with cotton waste.
9. If you have been persuaded to pur- chase a copy of the "Rules of the read,' 'throw it away; there are no rules for motorists.– New York Press 1906

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Carriage and Auto Etiquette

Slowly and deliberately she turns to the footman and mentions the destination to which she will be driven. It is regarded as a shade more elegant for the lady to look directly in front of her, and, not noticing the waiting footman entirely, to speak her wishes as if she were addressing the wind, as if it ought to be glad to obey her.

Shades of snobbery and class warfare in early 20th century America – “My dear footman, you are the wind and happy to obey me!”

Carriage etiquette is rigid and precise. Take the matter of getttng into a Victoria, for example. The footman stands on the sidewalk. He may have the lap robe over his arms, or it may be spread over the front of the carriage. The lady steps into the Victoria without noticing the respectful way in which he touches his cockaded hat. She settles herself comfortably down in the cushions. Then her part is done and his begins. 

It is his task to tuck the lap robe about you, and then pass back of the carriage, and see that it is properly adjusted on the other side. All this must be done with the greatest deliberation. The footman finally finishes his work and places himself on the sidewalk by the Victoria to receive his mistress' orders. It is then that his mistress for the first time says where she is going. To be really elegant, the lady must show no signs of hurry.

Slowly and deliberately she turns to the footman and mentions the destination to which she will be driven. It is regarded as a shade more elegant for the lady to look directly in front of her, and, not noticing the waiting footman entirely, to speak her wishes as if she were addressing the wind, as if it ought to be glad to obey her.

In calling, the lady does not leave her carriage until the footman has rung the doorbell and learned if the lady of the house is at home. If she it not, he leaves the card and returns to the vehicle for orders, says the Washington Post. The same thing is required of the chauffeur of a private motor. The arrival of a private motor in front of a house has, indeed, come to be an occasion of ceremony.

The vehicle hurdles up. The chauffeur alights, opens the door, and receives the card. He goes up the steps and rings the bell. The lady is at home. He hands in the card and returns to the motor.

Its occupant then alights. If there is a footman, he accompanies her up the steps to ring the bell again if necessary. In any case, he must extricate the occupant of the vehicle before he allows her to alight from the motor. – Los Angeles Herald, 1906

Etiquette Enthusiast, Maura J. Graber, is the Site Editor for the Etiquipedia© Etiquette Encyclopedia 

Driving Etiquette Affects Accident Stats

On the road, "stripped of the varnish of modern culture, the primal instincts reveal themselves." accccording to car dealer.

Road Courtesy is Asked by Chandler Manager — Says Real Instinct Reveals Man Behind Wheel

"The courtesy of the road” — that's where the true gentleman reveals himself." So declares Ron Smith, sales manager of the Earl V. Armstrong, Inc., local distributer for the Chandler car. "Nowhere does the exemplification of the Golden Rule count for more than on the highways,” he contends. 

"Here, stripped of the varnish of modern culture, the primal instincts reveal themselves. "If every man who drove would treat fellow motorists as he does guests in the home or office, we would see the frightful toll of auto accidents cut in half."

Accident Analysis

"Analysis of the majority of accidents shows that some one disregarded traffic rules and courtesies, some one wanted to ’beat the other fellow,' or worse still, some one was a 'road hog' and tried to monopolize the whole landscape. It is indeed a real and rare treat to meet one of the altogether too few genial, courteous drivers. I got to a busy street intersection the other day just as a kind-faced, elderly gentleman reached it from the otherside. He really had the right of way, but instead of jamming on power and glowering at me, he smiled genially and with a wave of his hand, signaled me to go on."

Kindly Act

“It was a little thing, of course, but do you know that kindly act and that smile started the day right for me, and left me thinking human folks weren’t so bad after all. The strangest part of the whole thing, is that the worst tyrants of the wheel are often business men of superior education, who practice extreme courtesy in their daily pursuits and wouldn't think of committing a breach of etiquette in the social world. The same simple rules apply in the motor world as In business or social life. Simply think of the other fellow first, and accord him every consideration possible. Try it and you'll find it pays big in motor satisfaction." – Los Angeles Herald, 1917

Etiquette Enthusiast Maura J Graber is the Site Moderator and Editor for the Etiquipedia© Etiquette Encyclopedia

Etiquette for the Road

Every man in this country who drives a car knows that he has to look out for two cars—his own and the other fellow’s.

Motor Car Etiquette

A Georgia editor claims to he able to judge a man's character by the way he drives a motor car—or words to that effect. He says that when he sees a gentleman coming toward him in a motor car, he gives him half of the road; when he sees a fool coming he gives him all of it. And when he sees a darn fool coming, he takes to the woods or climbs a telephone pole.

Every man in this country who drives a car knows that he has to look out for two cars—his own and the other fellow’s. He is not afraid of an accident from his own driving; that is. He is not afraid of his own. It is the other fellow’s car that causes him the most anxiety. And here, as in Georgia, it is the fool and the darn fool that is most to be feared.—Columbus Dispatch, 1919

Etiquette Enthusiast, Maura J. Graber, is the

Site Moderator and Editor for the Etiquipedia© Etiquette Encyclopedia