As social rules of behavior changed, so did laws to reflect that. In 1702 legislature in London required a license to carry a cane. It was treated as a privilege to carry one and thus the cane itself was also a sign of proper behavior. [1]
This some 380 years of popular use only worked to solidify the idea of class and gentlemanly behavior. The fact that it was also rude and in the case of the law in London, illegal, to carry a cane under an arm or lean on it thus tying one hand up in a similar manner to a modern ladies purse and signifying that he did not have to fetch and carry for himself. [2]
The psychology of associating an object with a desirable trait, in this case, class, is one of the main reasons why the cane lasted so long: