Part one found here.
There is a right and wrong way to ask a lady to dance. It puts her in an awkward spot if you say: “Have you the next dance taken?” What girl wants to admit that her dances are not taken! Instead, say: “May I have the next dance?” Don’t forget this… it holds true for all invitations. It is more polite to say: “Will you go dancing with me on Friday night?” …than to tactlessly say: “What are you doing on Friday night?” See the difference?
At the end of each dance, a man must always escort his partner back to where she was sitting. He must never leave her in the middle of the floor. But don’t forget, he doesn’t have to take her by the arm to lead her off!
When leaving a girl after dancing with her, a man should make some pleasant remark like: “Thank you so much—I enjoyed dancing with you.” He should be careful not to say: “I’ll be back later,” unless he plans to return. A man is well protected by the rules of etiquette. If he has had an uncongenial or dull partner, he can make his exit very smoothly by saying that he must find the girl with whom he has the next dance. Or, that he has not yet dance with the hostess.
Cutting-in
This is an acceptable custom at almost all dances that are held in America. If a man wants to cut-in on the girl of his choice, he should wait until she is dancing fairly near him, at the outer edge of the floor. Then he can easily step up to her side and nod pleasantly, saying “May I?” to her partner.
It is considered childishly bad form to refuse to “break”. Instead, the man who has been cut-in on, should step aside good-naturedly, with a slight bow and a smile, and join the stag line. From there, he can do a little cutting-in himself.
There is a generally accepted rule that there must be an intervening cut-in before a man can return to claim his original partner. For instance, if Bill cuts-in on John… John should not cut back on Bill. He should wait until another man is dancing with the lady.
The cut-in system is very cruel to a woman. Even when she likes the partner she has, she yearns for cut-ins, to prove her popularity. But, no matter how welcome the “cut” is, a woman should not show undue glee. She should smile equally at her original partner and at her new one.
A girl who pounces on a new cut-in with obvious delight makes him wary and suspicious. Further, her stock goes down with a bang because she has been noticeably insulting to her original partner. Neither can she show reluctance to break, even when her original partner is her dream man. Ladies must chart their course very carefully for smooth sailing.
