In 1836, it was thought that to pick up sugar using fingers rather than sugar tongs was such a terrible faux pas, it might lead to a gentleman losing his good reputation. On the other hand, there was also an anxiety about seeming too refined or minding too much about the finer points of table manners. To go on too much about the right fork was a sign of insecurity or even fraudulence. Real aristocrats knew the “refined coarseness” of when to employ fingers instead of a fork: fingers were right for radishes, crackers, celery, unhulled strawberries, and olives.
