bank of elegance

slumry commented on the word bank of elegance

Counterfeit:

"As in most civilized countries rejoicing in that paper medium which Cobbett tersely denounced as 'rags,' the imitation of bank notes is prohibited and severely punished, however innocent may be the intent. Just as in the last century debtors in the Fleet Prison printed notes on the 'Bank of Fleet,' and later jokers got up drafts on the 'Bank of Elegance,' both of which were employed, particularly when intermixed with genuine notes, to deceive the public, so is there a class still ignorant enough to be fleeced by gross deceptions."

From Tales of the Bank of England, published in 1882

July 21, 2015