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Learning GitHub Actions
Automation and Integration of CI/CD with GitHub
Brent Laster
Foreword by Julian C. Dunn

Learning GitHub Actions
by Brent Laster
Copyright © 2023 Tech Skills Transformations, LLC. All rights reserved.
Printed in the United States of America.
Published by O’Reilly Media, Inc., 1005 Gravenstein Highway North,
Sebastopol, CA 95472.
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Cover Designer: Karen Montgomery
Illustrator: Kate Dullea
August 2023: First Edition
Release History for the First Edition
2023-08-16: First Release

See https://oreilly.com/catalog/errata.csp?isbn=9781098131074 for release
details.
The O’Reilly logo is a registered trademark of O’Reilly Media, Inc.
Learning GitHub Actions, the cover image, and related trade dress are
trademarks of O’Reilly Media, Inc.
The views expressed in this work are those of the author and do not
represent the publisher’s views. While the publisher and the author have
used good faith efforts to ensure that the information and instructions
contained in this work are accurate, the publisher and the author disclaim all
responsibility for errors or omissions, including without limitation
responsibility for damages resulting from the use of or reliance on this
work. Use of the information and instructions contained in this work is at
your own risk. If any code samples or other technology this work contains
or describes is subject to open source licenses or the intellectual property
rights of others, it is your responsibility to ensure that your use thereof
complies with such licenses and/or rights.
978-1-098-13107-4
[LSI]

Dedication
To all my family and friends who have helped me write the best chapters of
my life.

Foreword
The fundamental concepts of continuous integration/continuous delivery
(CI/CD) have now been around for several decades, since Martin Fowler
and Matthew Foemmel of Thoughtworks first popularized CI in their
seminal essay of September 2000, and Jez Humble and Dave Farley wrote
about CD in their 2010 book Continuous Delivery: Reliable Software
Releases Through Build, Test, and Deployment Automation (Addison-
Wesley Professional). Yet it has taken years for widespread adoption of
tools for CI/CD and for the notion of a software delivery pipeline to take
root. I believe this is because three fundamental socio-technical changes in
how we do software development had to occur first:
Development had to become collaborative, rather than performed by
isolated, individual engineers. This was driven first by a truly
distributed version control system (Git) and then accelerated through
pull-request platforms like GitHub.
Widespread adoption of agile practices needed to occur. Motivated by
metrics from DevOps leaders like DevOps Research Associates
(DORA) that, contrary to intuition, showed more frequent delivery of
smaller changes reduces risk, savvy engineering leaders drove the
implementation of frequently used build pipelines where software was
continuously built, tested, and deployed directly to customers—
sometimes dozens of times per day.
The overburdening of traditional IT operations functions with
increased complexity drove massive cultural changes via the DevOps
movement. This led to a you-build-it, you-own-it approach to software
operations where, increasingly, developers take full ownership for the
success, failure, and performance of their software in production,
rather than throwing code over the wall to a release engineering team
that would operate a build process and somehow “add quality” to
software that didn’t have it already.
All these changes mean that GitHub Actions, as a relatively recent entrant
to the CI/CD pipeline and automation category, is a substantially different
product from incumbents. It is natively integrated into GitHub, making it a

natural fit for developers who are already familiar with storing their source
code there. GitHub Actions is also designed around the concept of a
workflow, which can be used to create CI/CD pipelines but also handle any
other kind of software automation tasks like managing open issues and
tasks that open source and enterprise developers alike need to perform in
the course of their work. Finally, GitHub Actions, as the name would
suggest, is based on the notion of an action: a reusable component that
helps to encapsulate common tasks and reduce repetition when authoring
workflows. The GitHub Marketplace offers nearly 20,000 actions at the
time of writing, making it easy for developers, DevOps engineers, and site
reliability engineers to get started with any kind of build automation task.
Although GitHub Actions is a sophisticated product, learning it doesn’t
need to be complicated. Brent Laster has written an excellent book that
relies on progressive disclosure, starting with the most basic concepts to get
you up and running with GitHub Actions while also providing a
comprehensive tour of GitHub Actions’ most advanced features to help you
to optimize your use of the product as you adopt it across your organization.
My team and I have been delighted to partner with Brent in ensuring that
the content covered here is as current as possible. Whether you are new to
CI/CD and starting with GitHub Actions as your first product in this space
or are already a CI/CD expert and migrating from another tool, Brent’s
book has the right balance of information to help you become productive
quickly.
We wish you the greatest success in automating your software delivery
processes.
Julian C. Dunn
Senior Director of Product Management
GitHub Actions

Preface
Releasing software should be easy.… Automate almost everything, and
keep everything you need to build, deploy, test, and release your
application in version control.
—David Farley, Continuous Delivery: Reliable Software
Releases Through Build, Test, and Deployment
Automation
Back in 1968, the London Underground in the United Kingdom needed a
digital sign to warn passengers to be careful while crossing the gaps
between train doors and station platforms. Since data storage for such signs
was very expensive back in the day, they chose a very short phrase to help
keep riders alert: “mind the gap.”
These days, the word “mind” is less commonly used, but the intent to bring
awareness to missing parts or things that can trip you up and to act on them
is still meaningful. And it is just as important when we apply the idea to
business and technical processes that can benefit from automation.
From its inception in 2008, GitHub has filled gaps in terms of allowing
users to collaborate and build communities around open source software.
And it has done this very well. It is challenging not to overestimate the
significance of the SaaS hosting model that GitHub pioneered and the
collaborative ecosystem it has built around it. Yet up until a few years ago,
there was one key piece of that ecosystem that was clearly missing—a
tightly integrated automation platform for key functions like CI/CD.
Certainly, there has been no shortage of applications that have worked to fill
that gap. Tools such as Jenkins, Travis CI, CircleCI, Azure DevOps, and
more have provided integration methods through various approaches such
as webhooks. However, users of GitHub still had to go outside their
collaboration environment to use another application to get the basic
functionality they needed. All of that has changed with the addition of
GitHub Actions.

Actions is challenging to classify with a standalone designation. It is a
logical extension of the larger GitHub model. And while this is not a
general book on GitHub, I have tried to write it in such a way that you can
see how GitHub Actions plays with the larger GitHub ecosystem, regardless
of your experience level with automation in GitHub.
The Structure of This Book
Since you’re reading this book, I imagine you’re at least somewhat curious
and perhaps even excited about the potential of Actions. I’ve tried to
capture that potential along with the relevant details throughout the text. So
let me tell you a bit about the organization of this Learning GitHub Actions
book and how you can get the most out of it.

Part I: Foundations
As with any technical journey, we start off discussing the foundations of
GitHub Actions. Part I of the book covers the basics of what GitHub
Actions is and how it works, and it helps you understand its core pieces and
how to navigate its flow. My intent here is to answer the basic why and how
questions that you need to know to get up and running with the technology,
while providing you the insight and understanding to establish the firm
footing to launch your use of actions on.

Part II: Building Blocks
Part II extends your depth of knowledge on Actions with the building
blocks to take advantage of the wider range of options available to you for
configuration, sharing and storing data, and triggering and controlling the
execution of your workflows. These techniques form the core of using
actions to get your tasks done, while showing you how to customize their
use to best suit your needs.

Part III: Security and Monitoring
Use of a technology includes the explicit requirement to use it securely.
And the need to understand the security aspects of any new technology is
critical. So Part III of the book discusses the key areas of security and
monitoring. This section looks at security from the triple lenses of
configuration, design, and monitoring. Then it further delves into
monitoring in its own right, by describing the different options available for
logging and the techniques available to you for debugging issues.

Part IV: Advanced Topics
When you’re ready for more advanced interaction with Actions, Part IV
provides insight on a number of less typical (but arguably more fun) topics.
These include creating your own custom actions, creating your own starter
workflows and reusable workflows, working with the GitHub CLI, APIs,
and using matrix strategies and containers in your workflows. And to finish
up, I’ve included some practical tips and examples of how to migrate to
GitHub Actions if you’re using another automation toolset. The book’s last
chapter also includes an in-depth review and examples of the new GitHub
Importer tool to help bootstrap and automate migrations.
With this general structure in mind, the next section provides a further
breakdown by audience type.
Intended Audience
This book is for anyone who is trying to learn more about GitHub Actions.
If you’re picking this book up, you should already have a basic knowledge
of Git and GitHub, and now you’re trying to figure out how to implement
Actions into your workflow. You likely have some experience with
solutions like Jenkins, Travis CI, and so on, and the automation platform
and framework of GitHub Actions may improve your software development
lifecycle process.
You might be a software developer, SRE, DevOps engineer, or something
else entirely, but it is my hope that the sections outlined above will provide
a complete learning solution for GitHub Actions for all readers. Here are
some audiences that I had in mind while writing it and that I think can
benefit from it:
Those who are new (or newish) to GitHub and looking to understand
how the automation component of it works
Those who already understand the concepts and flow of GitHub
Actions and want or need assistance with actually implementing the
code and syntax for workflows

Those who want to understand and evaluate GitHub Actions as a
potential CI/CD/automation target
Those who already have some experience with GitHub Actions and
want to leverage it more fully for custom purposes
Those who are working on implementing or have implemented GitHub
Actions and need to make sure they do it securely
Those who are responsible for, or want to, roll out GitHub Actions
across a department, organization, or unit
Those who are experienced GitHub users and want to migrate their
current CI/CD solutions to GitHub Actions
If one of these fits your use case, I hope the book will provide you with the
value you’re looking for. If you read it and have the opportunity, feedback
is always welcome through reviews or interactions at future conferences or
training venues.
Continuing with GitHub Actions
Of course, technology continues to evolve, and we can predict it will evolve
more quickly in some areas than in others. Thus you will notice that some
sections of the text include disclaimers that reference “as of the time of
writing.” While GitHub and I have worked together to make this book
comprehensive and as current as possible as of the time of writing, you
should always consult the current GitHub documentation to get the most
timely information—especially on features that are currently marked beta.
Fortunately, the text contains many links to the current GitHub
documentation for relevant areas.
Over a decade of use in various forms has shown that continuous,
automated processes are durable models in the industry, proving out their
long-term potential, reliability, and adaptability. Over time, the tooling will
change, and the inputs will change, and the steps will evolve. But a well-
done CI/CD/automation framework will always provide the best means to
produce software in a timely manner to meet the demands of the users. If

you are working in GitHub, you can find no better framework to achieve
that goal than GitHub Actions.
I hope that this book helps you mind the gaps in your knowledge of GitHub
Actions and fill them all in. Best of luck in your journey and thank you for
reading.
Conventions Used in This Book
The following typographical conventions are used in this book:
Italic
Indicates new terms, URLs, email addresses, filenames, and file
extensions.
Constant width
Used for program listings, as well as within paragraphs to refer to
program elements such as variable or function names, databases, data
types, environment variables, statements, and keywords.
NOTE
This element signifies a general note.
WARNING
This element indicates a warning or caution.
Using Code Examples
Supplemental material (code examples, exercises, etc.) is available for
download at https://github.com/techupskills/learning-github-actions.

Exploring the Variety of Random
Documents with Different Content

at pains to send cards, and these should be so timed in the sending
that they will reach their address on the day of the at home,
preferably in the afternoon.
At crowded affairs, the guest displays good manners as well as
good sense by making the stay short. Twenty minutes is a sufficient
time, and departure should not be delayed much beyond a half-hour.
It is better not to say farewell to the hostess, unless the going
should be at a time when few guests remain, and she is obviously at
leisure.
The punctilious guest will make a point of arriving neither too
early nor too late. Between half-past four and six is recommended.
The formal evening reception is less popular than in former days,
but it still prevails to a limited extent. The procedure throughout is
substantially the same as for that of the afternoon reception. The
wording of the invitation is identical, with the single exception of the
time specified.
The line that indicated the hours from four until seven o’clock
must be changed to read:
From nine until eleven o’clock
Or, it may be properly stated, if one’s taste so dictates:
After nine o’clock
While for the evening reception all other formal details are the
same as for an afternoon affair, the costumes of the guests, both
men and women, are changed as befits the change in hours. The
men are scrupulous in the exactitude of their evening garb—swallow
tail, white linen and white cravat and white waistcoat, and patent-
leather shoes; while the women array themselves in their
handsomest evening gowns, decolleté and sleeveless, and display
the richest of their jewels.

BACHELOR HOSTS
HEN A BACHELOR entertains either in the afternoon
or evening, he follows in a general way the procedure
indicated for receptions under the heading “At
Homes.” If the affair is to be elaborate, he may use
engraved invitations.
Mr. Hartley Fane Treadwell
requests the pleasure of
.................................
company
on Wednesday afternoon, November the first
From four until seven o’clock
Nine East Third Street
A word or two at the bottom on the left may indicate any special
entertainment, such as Music.
But there are certain proprieties to be observed that are peculiar
to the bachelor. For example, he is not permitted to use a visiting-
card with a line written on it for less formal invitations. Instead, he
must write a note in the first person, or he may give the invitation

orally. The invitations should be issued a week or a little less before
the appointed time.
There is one other requirement of vital importance. The bachelor
must always have a chaperon present for any gathering that
includes both sexes. And she must be invited by note, or orally—
even in cases where the formal engraved invitations are employed.
The chaperon pours tea, and on occasions when the guests are
seated at table, she is given the place on the host’s right, unless
there is a guest of honor, when she is given the position on his left.
The other women guests must take their departure at the same
time as the chaperon, unless they prefer an earlier hour.
The presence of the chaperon at such entertainments makes it
unnecessary for the unmarried girl to provide one for herself.
The chaperon should be a married woman, and her husband must
be included among the invited guests.
When a bachelor wishes to issue engraved invitations for a formal
dinner-party or luncheon, he uses the forms provided respectively in
the chapters entitled “Dinners” and “Luncheons.” The directions as
to breakfasts also will be found appropriate in a general way as set
forth in the special chapter.
A bachelor should always be punctilious in calling on a chaperon
shortly after any affair at which she has officiated, in order to tender
his grateful appreciation of her services in his behalf.

BALLS
HE INVITATIONS for a formal ball are engraved on a
sheet similar to that used for dinner-parties. But, like
the dinner-invitations, they may also be written by
the hostess. In sending these invitations by mail only
one envelope is used when the invitation is written
out. But the engraved form is enclosed first in an unsealed envelope
with merely the name of the guest on the cover. This is put in a
second envelope, which is sealed and has both the name and
address written on it for posting. An engraved invitation, however,
when delivered by a messenger requires only a single envelope,
sealed.
These invitations must be sent out not less than ten days before
the date of the ball, and they may be issued three weeks before the
appointed time.
The accepted form may be either of those following:
Mr. and Mrs. George Wheatley
request the pleasure of your company
on Wednesday evening, April the second
at half-past nine o’clock
Dancing 71 Hamilton Place
Mrs. George Wheatley
Miss Wheatley

At Home
Tuesday, April the ninth
at eleven o’clock
Dancing 71 Hamilton Place
It is permissible to write the initials, R.s.v.p. below the word
Dancing.
In place of Dancing, the word Cotillon may appear, if the whole
evening is to be devoted especially to this dance. So, too, the words
Bal Poudré may be substituted for Dancing, if the affair is to be a
costume ball. Or any other form of entertainment may be similarly
indicated.
The form used in accepting or declining such an invitation follows
exactly the wording given in a later chapter in connection with
dinner-invitations.
It is the duty of the hostess to greet her guests as at a dinner-
party, and a daughter or daughters may assist her in her hospitable
duties, but such assistance is not required of them. The host, also,
may join his wife in receiving, and may make himself socially useful
by various attentions to the guests. But such action on his part is
discretionary, except that in the case of a woman guest of particular
importance, he should take her in to supper if this is served at
tables. Where a buffet supper is served, it is fitting that he should
escort various guests from time to time.
It is not always necessary to invite mothers or chaperons to a
private ball, and in that case a girl may be sent with a maid to
accompany her. When the mother receives an invitation and accepts
it, she may choose not to remain, but to leave after entrusting her
daughter to the care of the hostess, or some other friend.

At elaborate dances, the supper at midnight is served on small
tables, at which the guests are seated. The buffet supper is popular
on account of its convenience, since the guests select whatever
pleases them at any time.
Unlike the rule as to dinners, there is no obligation for prompt
arrival on the ball guest. Likewise, the guest may leave at any time.
It is not necessary to seek the hostess for a farewell, but if she is
near, she should be addressed with appropriate phrase in
appreciation of the hospitality that has been enjoyed.
A girl at a ball usually establishes herself in a seat by her
chaperon, to whom she returns according to her convenience after
dancing. It is perfectly proper for her, if at any time she wishes to be
rid of a partner, to ask that he accompany her back to this seat
beside her chaperon.
Evening clothes are essential for the male guest at a ball, and the
wearing of white gloves is obligatory. A careful man is very likely to
provide himself with an extra pair. At informal dances, ungloved men
often cover the hand with a handkerchief to avoid any risk of soiling
a partner’s bodice. If a man serves as escort for a woman, or for a
girl and her chaperon, it is a part of his duty to provide a carriage to
and fro.
The ball-dress for women is usually the most elegant their taste
and means will contrive. It is always decolleté, and commonly
sleeveless.

BREAKFASTS
HOSTESS MAY USE her visiting-card for invitations
to breakfast, simply writing on it below her name:
Breakfast at eleven o’clock
April the fourth
A more formal affair may have an engraved invitation on paper
similar to that used in the case of dinners. This would have the
following form:
Mrs. George Vinton Thorne
requests the pleasure of
................................
company at breakfast
on....................................
at.............................o’clock
Eleven Green Street
Or the hostess may, if she prefers, write a brief note of invitation
in the first person. Whatever form is employed, the invitations
should be sent out a full week, or a little more, before the date set
for the breakfast.
The answer to such an invitation should be sent promptly,
whether in acceptance or in refusal. The form is identical with that

for dinner-invitations, except that the word breakfast is substituted
for the word dinner.
Where the invitation is a note written in the first person, the
answer must follow the same style.
A breakfast of the more informal sort, with no more than eight or
ten guests, may begin as early as ten o’clock, but a later hour is
preferred for very ceremonious affairs, with noon most esteemed as
the hour.
Grapefruit is usually served, with finger-bowl accompaniment, and
the meal that follows may be as simple or as elaborate as the taste
and resources of the hostess dictate.
Usually both sexes are included among the guests at a breakfast.
The women remove their gloves after taking their places at table,
but not their hats. Veils may be removed entirely or pushed up out
of the way, according to the wearer’s choice.
The guest should remain at least a half-hour after the conclusion
of the meal, but not longer than an hour unless justified by
exceptional circumstances.
Frock or cutaway coats are worn by the men, and afternoon dress
by the women. The costumes for a ten o’clock breakfast should be
somewhat plainer than for one at the more formal hour of noon.

CALLS
ORMAL CALLS are to be made in the afternoon
between three o’clock and half-past five.
If a hostess has a day at home, formal calls on
her should be made on that day. It is well also so to
time visits for congratulation or to return thanks for any hospitality,
or the like, as to have them also fall on the day at home. Usually, a
due attention by visitors to this set time for calling is appreciated by
a hostess.
While the formal hours for calls are in the afternoon as indicated
above, the time varies in different neighborhoods. Evening calls are
common in the country necessarily as a matter of convenience. And,
while in the city women pay no formal calls on Sunday, these are
permitted in smaller places. Ordinarily, too, there is license in the
country as to the length even of formal calls, which may be
extended without impropriety far beyond the limit of fifteen or
twenty minutes which is well established in the city. A new resident
or visitor in any community should be at pains to get information as
to the local usage, and conform to it in all details.
It is permissible for men in our country to make social calls in the
afternoon on Sunday, or in the evening. The exigencies of business
are the excuse for the departure from the stricter form, which still
holds in the case of women. The hour of such evening calls in the
larger cities is from eight to nine, but the time is earlier in smaller
towns and in the country. In every instance, the local custom is to
be followed. Of course, too, men of leisure may pay their calls in the
afternoon.
New residents in a neighborhood must await calls from those
already established there. In the city, the first calls of the social

season should be received by the hostess who first sends out her at-
home cards. Where women have met out of town, and wish to
continue the acquaintance in the city, the unmarried woman should
call on the matron, or one who is under any obligation for hospitality
should make the first call. Unless a distinction be drawn for some
such reason, either may properly pay the first visit.
It is notorious that in the large cities there is no welcome for the
newcomer from the dweller next door or across the street. The
conditions of city life justify such aloofness. On the other hand, the
conditions of life in the smaller places warrant exactly the opposite in
the matter of hospitality. It is the recognized duty of the older
residents to welcome new arrivals by calling on them promptly, after
the strangers have had time to dispose themselves comfortably.
There are many varieties of those calls that are imposed by
formal courtesy. Thus, in the matter of weddings, it becomes the
duty of any one who has taken official part in the affair, such as a
bride’s-maid or a best man, to call on the mother of the bride within
a few days after the marriage ceremony, and also to call on the
bride immediately after her return from the honeymoon trip. The like
duty devolves on invited guests to a home wedding, to a wedding-
reception and to a wedding-breakfast.
A similar formal call should be paid to the hostess by each guest
at a dinner, or breakfast, or other special entertainment. Such a call
must be made within two weeks. The obligation is the same even in
cases where the invitation has been declined.
As to the returning of calls, such visits should be made on the day
at home if there is one, and otherwise at a suitable time according
to the social usage of the neighborhood within a fortnight. But this
ruling applies properly only to the return for a first call. Afterward, a
longer or shorter interval may elapse between visits according to the
desire of the parties concerned. A former acquaintance may be
maintained merely by an annual exchange of calls. It must be noted,

however, that a call in person demands a personal visit in return.
The formal leaving of a card at the door does not suffice.
Persons giving up their residence in a community or going on a
long journey should send their cards to their full visiting-list with the
initials P.p.c. (Pour prendre congé, for leave-taking).
It occurs often that a person wishes to call on a friend in the
home of a stranger. Such a call is permissible, but the visitor should
ask for the hostess as well as the friend, and leave a card for her.
In the matter of initiative, it is fitting that an elder woman should
invite a younger to the exchange of cards and calls, and that the
matron should thus invite the maiden. Where there is equality of
years or station, the first advance must depend on the personal
inclinations of the parties.
The proprieties in reference to calls between women are thus
seen to be simple enough. There is more complexity in the
procedure when it has to do with the calling of men on women. It is
not deemed proper for a young unmarried woman to invite calls
from men. Such visits on their part are left to the discretion of the
mother or chaperon. But, undoubtedly, the débutante will see to it
that mother or chaperon does not fail in her functions. As to the
older women, and those married, there is some variation locally in
the polite usage. Sometimes the woman feels it her privilege to
invite the man to call without awaiting solicitation on his part;
sometimes she requires that the advance should be on the part of
the man in the form of a request for permission to visit her.
If any person requires that a definite time should be given for the
emancipation of a girl from the social dominance of her mother or
chaperon, it may be set at about the twenty-fifth year, after which
time a young woman is theoretically fitted to decide for herself as to
who her visitors shall be.
A young woman of sensibility will be extremely chary of her
invitations to men, and very sure before extending them that they

are really desired. If at any time a man fails to avail himself of such
an invitation, her self-respect will not permit her to repeat it.
The strictness of the above rules of conduct has been greatly
relaxed in the case of the average American girl, who democratically
insists from the outset of her social career on her own choice in the
matter of acquaintances and friends. But even this laxity does not
permit an invitation to a man on the first meeting. Such haste is
neither good form nor ordinary prudence.
In a consideration of formal calls, it should be noted that in
practise the offices of the wife are commonly accepted in her
husband’s behalf by her leaving his card when she pays her dinner-
call, or the like. The exigencies of business are supposed to justify
this vicarious method.
While it is proper for a woman to call upon a man for business
reasons, social calls are forbidden.
Calls of condolence, except when there is an intimate friendship,
are properly made by leaving a card. The expression of sympathy is
usually best made by a brief note.
Calls of congratulation may be made by acquaintances of both
sexes on a woman who announces her engagement to be married.
Calls following the announcement of a birth are expected by the
mother from the women of her acquaintance.
The day at home is such a social convenience that it is popular,
not only in the cities, but in many smaller towns. It is usually set for
one afternoon in the week, sometimes for an afternoon each two
weeks during the social season. The day should appear on the
visiting-card. The hours for entertaining on the day at home are
from three until six, but this period is frequently extended for
another hour. The hostess should devote herself assiduously to her
guests, and should provide some light forms of food and drink.
Usually, tea is served. Sufficient notice is given of the day at home
by sending out the visiting-cards at the beginning of the season.

One advantage of the day at home is that it justifies the hostess in
not receiving casual callers on other occasions.
It is the duty of the hostess to meet and address each guest with
a handshake. “How do you do, Mrs. Smith? I am so glad to see you!”
or a similar phrase, should be used in greeting each arrival. She
should also introduce strangers to other guests near by. She should
not leave the reception-room to make her farewells to departing
guests, unless in case of some person of particular distinction.
“Good-afternoon, Mr. Brown. I shall hope to see you again very
soon,” or the like, affords a sufficient form of farewell.
If the husband is present during his wife’s at home, he should
undertake to second her hospitable efforts to the best of his ability,
showing attention to any requiring it.
A woman caller does not remove her gloves or veil, or even her
wrap, unless it is a heavy one. But rubbers and umbrella and any
heavy outer garment should be left in the hall.
For a man, formal politeness permits the carrying of both hat and
stick into the drawing-room. But this rule is to-day more honored in
the breach than in the observance. And, too, the right hand at least
is usually ungloved. The hat and stick, when carried, are held in the
left hand, and should be retained throughout the call, though it is
permissible to put them down on the floor beside one, for greater
convenience when taking refreshments.
When the day at home is of a formal sort, the women do not
exchange kisses in greeting, and the gloves are not taken off even
when tea is drunk.

CARDS
ISITING-CARDS are of three sizes, which remain
practically the same year after year. The largest is
that used by matrons, while that of the unmarried
woman is a very little smaller, and that of the man
much smaller. The present style as to materials favors
a polished bristol board that is white and substantial without being
too heavy. This should be printed from an engraved plate in black
ink. The lettering may be a running script or old English.
Under no circumstances should a woman’s card carry any prefix
other than Mrs. or Miss, but one or the other of these invariably
appears. This rule does not apply in the case of professional women
who may wish a distinctive card for business purposes, with its prefix
of Dr. or Rev. Such a card would also carry the address in the lower
right-hand corner and perhaps office-hours in the lower left-hand
corner. But even the professional woman requires the plainer form of
card for social purposes.
There is a tendency at present to give the name in full on the
card. For example, Mrs. John James Smith, or Miss Maude
MacArthur.
It is permissible for the senior matron of a family to use only the
family name on her card with the prefix: for example, Mrs. Fuller. It
is more common, however, to omit the Christian name of an eldest
daughter who is unmarried: Miss Fuller. The other daughters require
the Christian name on their cards: Miss Mary Fuller, Miss Gladys
Fuller.
The tendency in this country is strongly against the omission of
the name in either of the above cases. Although it is perfectly

correct as a social usage, it is opposed to the spirit of our
institutions.
There is some variation in the use of the name on the card in the
case of a widow. It is within the woman’s choice whether she will
continue to use the Christian name of her husband on the card, or
will put her own in place of it. In other words, she may use the same
cards after the death of her husband as before if she prefers, or she
may follow the Mrs. with her own Christian name. A common form
to-day gives the woman’s Christian name and the surname to which
she was born and finally the surname of her husband. A present
vogue permits also the use of only the two surnames, without the
Christian name. Thus, Mary Brown marries James Robinson. The
husband dies and the widow changes her visiting-cards, which have
read, Mrs. James Robinson, so that they now read, Mrs. Mary
Robinson. Then presently she grows ambitious socially and has her
cards changed to read, Mrs. Mary Brown Robinson. Soon, she seizes
on a newer style, and again changes her cards in accordance with it
to read, Mrs. Brown Robinson.
It should be noted that the variations in cards practised by
widows are used also by divorced women. And when a divorcée
resumes her maiden name she properly uses with it the prefix Mrs.,
not Miss.
As a matter of strict propriety, a girl during her first social season
does not formally use an individual card. Her name appears below
that of her mother in the same lettering. When making calls
unaccompanied by her mother, the latter’s name is crossed out with
a pencil mark.
Where two daughters of nearly the same age are concerned, both
are included on the mother’s card by the words The Misses, followed
by the family name.
The above details are applied especially to a débutante in the first
season. Afterward, a young woman uses her own individual card

when calling alone. But this card should not carry on it the day at
home. The at-home statement appears on the mother’s individual
card. It is given also on the card combining the names of mother
and daughter. The combination card may with correctness be
frequently used in appropriate circumstances until the daughter’s
marriage.
The notice of the day at home is placed in the lower left-hand
corner of the card. Only the day of the week is given, or with such
qualification as may be required if the at-home day is not of weekly
recurrence. The hours should not be specified unless they are a
distinct variation from the customary time, between three and six. In
addition, a time limit to the at homes may be specified. Thus,
Fridays until March. Of course, the beginning is set for any individual
by reception of the card.
A married woman finds frequent use for a card in combination
with her husband, though this by no means takes the place of her
individual cards, and, while it bears the address in the lower right-
hand corner, does not usually give the at-home day. This card may
properly be used for those formal occasions in which her husband is
concerned. For example, it may fittingly accompany a gift from
husband and wife. It serves also for announcing a marriage with the
residence of the bridal couple.
A man’s visiting-card always carries the prefix Mr. The single
exception to this is when Jr. follows the name. The name is
commonly given in full, but it is permissible to use only the initial of
the middle name. It is strictly proper for the male head of a family to
use only the family name on his card, preceded by Mr. Thus, the
head of the Smiths—could he be located—might use on his visiting-
card merely Mr. Smith, instead of Mr. John Smith.
The home address appears in the lower right-hand corner of the
card, and a bachelor may add also the name of a club in the lower
left-hand corner. The business address, of course, should never
appear on the card used for social purposes. Likewise, a day at

home should not be given by a bachelor even though he may
entertain regularly.
It is a safe rule to avoid titles on the visiting-cards of men as of
women. The only exceptions are in instances little likely to concern
the average reader of this book. Such instances are afforded by the
President of the United States, the Vice-President, Ambassadors, the
higher Judiciary, Army and Navy Officers, clergymen and physicians.
The custom in the army, however, forbids any prefix except plain Mr.
to an officer below the rank of Captain.
In the case of all officers the nature of his command is properly
stated in a lower corner of the card.
Lawyers and physicians should have only the home address on
the card used for social purposes. Another card with the business
address should be used for business purposes. But Dr. is properly
used by the physician in place of Mr. on his visiting-cards. Likewise, a
clergyman uses Reverend, or its abbreviation Rev., on all his cards,
which are commonly identical for both social and professional uses.
The letters indicative of degrees are not given after the name on
the visiting-card, though a single exception is sometimes made by
clergymen who omit Rev. before their names and, in lieu of it, use
D.D. following the name.
When it becomes necessary, for any reason, to write one’s name
on a visiting-card, the prefix Mr. should be given, following the
ordinary form of the engraved card.
Care should be taken in the case of mourning-cards to avoid a too
ostentatious parade of grief by an unduly broad margin of black.
Somewhat less than a half inch is permissible for a widow’s card,
and, after the first year, it is well to have this width reduced. Often,
other reductions in the size of the border are made at intervals of six
months, as long as the period of mourning continues.

The card of a widower must carry a border proportionately
narrower, as its size is smaller than a woman’s card, but the
decrease in width is made after the same manner.
When a woman elects to remain in mourning permanently, the
narrow black border may be retained throughout her lifetime.
It is not customary to make variations in the mourning border for
the commemoration of persons other than husband or wife. For
these, a fitting width is about a twelfth part of an inch, which
remains the same throughout the period of mourning.
When a call is made on a day at home, the card or cards are
commonly left in the hall on a tray placed for that purpose. A
married woman calling on the at-home day of another married
woman for the first time in the season leaves her own card and two
of her husband’s cards. But in later calls on the at-home day she
leaves her card and the two cards of her husband’s only when the
call acknowledges entertainment offered to them by the hostess.
There has been considerable simplification in recent years as to
the leaving of cards. They are no longer weirdly bent in sign of
delivery in person, and a smaller number are used. Thus, though the
hostess referred to above may have unmarried daughters receiving
with her, cards for them need not be left. But the presence of a
married daughter or a friend formally assisting in the reception of
the guests requires the leaving of a card.
A woman leaves no cards for the men of the family where she
visits.
It is the business of the wife to fulfill her husband’s formal social
duties by leaving his cards with hers whenever entertainment should
be acknowledged.
Where two spinsters share a residence, a woman caller, the first
time in the season, should leave two of her cards, and also, if she is
a married woman, two of her husband’s. So, too, a card should be

left for a daughter or sister who is hostess of the house, even
though she may be unmarried.
When an unmarried girl uses her individual card, she should
follow the procedure indicated for the matron in the use of hers. Or
she may use the combination card of her mother and herself as
already described above.
A call on a mother and daughter who are out requires the leaving
of two cards. The same procedure is necessary in the case of a
hostess who has a friend staying with her. Likewise, a call made on a
friend who is a guest in another’s house demands the leaving of two
cards. This rule applies in the case of a man as well as of a woman.
It should be observed that two cards are deemed sufficient in most
cases. Where, however, the hostess has a guest staying with her and
also daughters of her own, three cards are to be left.
A man wishing to call on a particular woman must be punctilious
in leaving cards not only for the particular one in whom he is
interested, but also for the mother or chaperon, and still a third for
the host. But, if a call is made on a woman on her at-home day, no
card need be left, unless the call is in acknowledgment of
entertainment. In the latter case, a single card is left for the host. It
is advisable, however, that in his first call he should leave a card for
convenience in the matter of address.
It is permissible on certain occasions to leave visiting-cards with
the servant at the door, or to send them through the mail or by a
messenger, instead of making the call in person. Sometimes a
woman who is owing a call thus sends her card along with an
invitation, as for luncheon or dinner. The invitation is considered to
justify the merely formal matter of the card. So, too, a person
receiving an invitation from a hostess who is a stranger must, if the
invitation is declined, leave cards within two weeks after the date of
the entertainment. An invalid may send cards through the post in
acknowledgment of calls of inquiry, and a woman in mourning is
able to fulfill her obligations in the same manner. Cards are formally

left by all who receive invitations to a church wedding, and the
requirement is the same for those to whom an announcement of the
marriage is sent. Such cards are demanded of men and women
both, to be left for the mother of the bride within a fortnight after
the ceremony. Cards are left within a proper time after any form of
entertainment to which the members of a club are invited, though
there may be no other social acquaintance with the hostess. In calls
of condolence or inquiry, cards are always left. They may be used
also, as hereinbefore stated, to announce a prolonged absence or a
change of address.
When cards are left in person, they are delivered to the servant at
the door. One or two or three are to be left according to the
circumstances. The caller should tell the servant the persons for
whom the cards are designed.
Good taste dictates that calls of inquiry concerning the condition
of a sick person should be made in person. Cards should be left at
the time of such calls, except in the case of intimates. The cards
should not be mailed or sent by messenger.
Acknowledgment of cards of condolence are made after a funeral
by a large black-edged card of thanks, which should be sent within a
month. Such cards are usually merely printed, not engraved. The
wording should be of the simplest.
Mrs. Jack Robinson
returns thanks to
.............................
for her kind sympathy
The address of the one sending the card should appear at the
bottom.
The form is varied according to circumstances. Thus:

Mrs. Montgomery James and Family
return thanks for your kind sympathy
Some persons prefer to leave their visiting-cards with the
mourning border on those to whom acknowledgment is due, instead
of sending the special card by mail. Personal calls, however, are not
made by those in mourning within three months at least of the time
of the funeral. If earlier acknowledgment is to be made, the visiting-
card with mourning-border may be sent by mail within a few weeks.
A word of thanks should be written on the card. For example:
With grateful appreciation of your sympathy
The use of P.p.c. cards has already been described in the chapter
on calls. It should be added that they are convenient when one is
leaving on short notice without time to pay in person all calls due.
The P.p.c. card involves no duty of acknowledgment on the part of
its recipient.
A woman temporarily stopping in any place sends cards
containing her address to any acquaintances she may have there.
Her ordinary visiting-card serves the purpose, with a pencil line
drawn through the engraved address and the temporary one written
above it. But a man, in the same circumstances, makes his calls in
person.
The new-born infant embarks on its social career by means of the
card. The birth of a child is made known to the mother’s social list by
mailing the mother’s card, which has tied to it by a strip of white
satin ribbon a card only a quarter as large carrying the full name of
the baby. In this case, the prefix Mr. or Miss is omitted, but the date
of birth appears in a lower corner. The recipients of these cards are
required to call with inquiry as to the health of the senders, and to
leave their cards in return. Persons residing at a distance may post
their cards of acknowledgment, with a penciled phrase of
congratulation.

DINNERS
ORMAL INVITATIONS to dinner should be sent
between five and ten days before the date. A
hostess may use her own discretion as to whether
she will write the invitations by hand or use an
engraved form. The wording is the same in either
case.
Mr. and Mrs. Walter Peck
request the pleasure of
...........................................
company at dinner
on.................evening
at........................o’clock
401 Armstrong Street
The engraved form should be printed on a large, heavy piece of
bristol board in old English or block type, or in script. When the
dinner has a guest of honor, notice of the fact may be given by a line
across the bottom of the invitation:
To meet Captain Arthur Shayne

Or a special small card may be inclosed with the invitation, on
which is engraved a similar phrase.
When the affair is of extraordinary importance, the form of
invitation may dignify the purpose by announcing it at the outset.
To meet
The Bishop of Albany
Mr. and Mrs. William Astor
request the pleasure of
........................................
company at dinner
on...........................evening
at.............................o’clock
401 Armstrong Street
For dinners to which only a small number of persons are invited
and these mutually acquainted, the formal mode of invitation is not
required. A simple note is sufficient.
31 Hamilton Place,
March 7th, 1919
My Dear Mrs. Robinson:
Will you and Mr. Robinson, if disengaged,
give us the pleasure of your company at dinner
on Friday the thirteenth, at half-past seven
o’clock?

Yours sincerely,
Edith MacArthur
This form may be varied according to the taste of the writer and
the degree of intimacy with the person to whom the invitation is
sent.
When it becomes necessary to invite some one to take the place
of a guest who is unable to be present, this late invitation should not
be of the formal sort, but should be contained in a note frankly
explaining the circumstances. Such invitations, of course, are never
made to merely formal acquaintances.
The custom formerly prevailed of writing the initials R.s.v.p., on
the dinner invitations, the initials of the French words, répondez, s’il
vous plaît (reply if you please). But this usage has lost favor.
An invitation to dinner demands an immediate answer, either
accepting or declining. The invitation cannot be accepted
conditionally, nor can the decision be delayed. The form of reply
should be as simple as the form of the invitation.
17 North Street
April 30th, 1919
Mr. and Mrs. Sloan Potter
accept with pleasure
Mr. and Mrs. John Morehouse’s
invitation to dinner
Tuesday evening, May the sixth
at half-past seven

For a declination, the following form may be used:
17 North Street
April 30, 1919
Mr. and Mrs. Sloan Potter
regret that their absence from the city
must prevent their acceptance of
Mr. and Mrs. John Morehouse’s
invitation to dinner on
Tuesday evening, May the sixth
at half-past seven
The invitation in the form of a note is answered similarly by a
note. Thus:
42 Chestnut Street
April 30, 1919
My Dear Mrs. Morehouse:
It is with much pleasure that I accept your
kind invitation to dinner on Tuesday evening,
the sixth, at half-past seven o’clock.
Yours sincerely,
Helen Potter
A declination should state a courteous reason.
All such answers are addressed to the hostess alone. If she is
married the husband is, nevertheless, omitted from the address.

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