Mr. and Mrs. Benjamin Nottingham announce that the marriage of their daughter Mary Katharine and Mr. Jerrold Atherton will not take place =FORMAL ACCEPTANCE OR REGRET= Acceptances or regrets are always written. An engraved form to be filled in is vulgar--nothing could be in worse taste than to flaunt your popularity by announcing that it is impossible to answer your numerous invitations without the time-saving device of a printed blank. If you have a dozen or more invitations a day, if you have a hundred, hire a staff of secretaries if need be, but answer "by hand." The formal acceptance to an invitation, whether it is to a dance, wedding breakfast or a ball, is identical: Mr. and Mrs. Donald Lovejoy accept with pleasure Mr. and Mrs. Smith's kind invitation for dinner on Monday the tenth of December at eight o'clock The formula for regret: Mr. Clubwin Doe regrets extremely that a previous engagement prevents his accepting Mr. and Mrs. Smith's kind invitation for dinner on Monday the tenth of December or Mr. and Mrs. Timothy Kerry regret that they are unable to accept Mr. and Mrs. Smith's kind invitation for dinner on Monday the tenth of December In accepting an invitation the day and hour must be repeated, so that in case of mistake it may be rectified and prevent one from arriving on a day when one is not expected. But in declining an invitation it is not necessary to repeat the hour. =VISITING CARD INVITATIONS= With the exception of invitations to house-parties, dinners and luncheons, the writing of notes is past. For an informal dance, musical, picnic, for a tea to meet a guest, or for bridge, a lady uses her ordinary visiting card: To meet Miss Millicent Gilding =MRS. JOHN KINDHART= Tues. Jan. 7. Dancing at 10. o'ck. 350 PARK AVENUE or Wed. Jan. 8. Bridge at 4. o'ck. =MRS. JOHN KINDHART= R.s.v.p. 350 PARK AVENUE Answers to invitations written on visiting cards are always formally worded in the third person, precisely as though the invitation had been engraved. =INVITATIONS IN THE SECOND PERSON= The informal dinner and luncheon invitation is not spaced according to set words on each line, but is written merely in two paragraphs. Example: Dear Mrs. Smith: Will you and Mr. Smith dine with us on Thursday, the seventh of January, at eight o'clock? Hoping so much for the pleasure of seeing you, Very sincerely, Caroline Robinson Town. =THE INFORMAL NOTE OF ACCEPTANCE OR REGRET= Dear Mrs. Town: It will give us much pleasure to dine with you on Thursday the seventh, at eight o'clock. Thanking you for your kind thought of us, Sincerely yours, Margaret Smith. Wednesday. or Dear Mrs. Town: