Lonely and impecunious girls or women were frequently about her; she tried to keep them in good spirits, tried to marry them if marriage seemed possible, and, it was whispered, used a good deal of her income for the practical benefit of those who needed assistance.

A sprinkling of maidens who were neither lonely nor impecunious served to attract young men, generally strugglers in some profession or other, on the lookout for a wife.
Intercourse went on with a minimum of formalities.

Chaperonage--save for that represented by the hostess herself--was as often as not dispensed with.
'We want to get rid of a lot of sham propriety'-- so she urged to her closer friends.

'Girls must learn to trust themselves, and look out for dangers.

If a girl can only be kept straight by incessant watchfulness, why, let her go where she will, and learn by experience.