DEAR MISS MANERS: My mother told me a long time ago why table knives are placed with the edge toward the plate, but I had forgotten. Would you be so kind as to remind me since my mother is no longer available?
GENTLE READER: This was to prevent knives from being used to attack fellow diners – or at least to lessen the possibility. Really.
In cruel times, if you can imagine such a thing, people would bring their hunting knives to the table, which they would use to slash at the animals they were hunting (now cooking).
But since they were no more immune than we are to strongly held differences of opinion, the boarders were sometimes known to express their contempt for the beliefs of others.
But blood on the table can ruin dinner. So it was decreed that the blades of the knives should be turned towards their owners, symbolizing their peaceful intent.
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Dear Miss MANERS: Unfortunately, all my etiquette books do not mention the time interval between receiving a wedding/baby gift and sending a thank you letter. Is there a too early/too late window?
GENTLE READER: That’s because there’s not supposed to be an interval. Too early is before the gift is received, and too late is any interval after—though not while the giver is still standing there.
(Send your questions to Miss Manners at her website, www.missmanners.com; to her email, dearmissmanners@gmail.com; or by mail to Miss Manners, Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106.)
COPYRIGHT 2025 JUDITH MARTIN
DISTRIBUTED BY ANDREWS MCMEEL SYNDICATION
1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106; 816-581-7500
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