The invitations should be sent out a week or five days in advance, and
should be answered at once.
Luncheons, in this country, are very apt to possess much of the
formality of a dinner, and are written or engraved, according to the
degree of stateliness that is to mark the occasion. Very formal
invitations are sent out ten days or two weeks in advance, and are
couched in precisely the same terms as a dinner invitation, save that
the word "Luncheon" is substituted for "Dinner." Written invitations,
also, follow the same plan as those written for dinners, and are not
usually issued more than a week or five days in advance. Some ladies
use their visiting card, thus: MRS. FRANK E. WENTWORTH. Luncheon,
Wednesday, at one o'clock.
A later hour, say two o'clock, is usually adopted for a more formal
affair. Replies should be sent at once that the hostess may be enabled
to make up her table.