The Long Ago Times

Crocs! Are they back in style? Or did they never go away?

Either way, they’re today’s sponsor! Crocs!

LONDON, February 13th, 1824 — In a cunning episode yesterday morning at 10 o’clock, Mr. Woolridge, a poulterer located in Everett-street, Brunswick-square, fell victim to a sophisticated scam involving counterfeit sovereigns, a troubling trend among modern fraudsters. An elegantly dressed woman entered his establishment, commissioning a delivery of a brace of fowls to Lansdown-place, No. 2, for the sum of 6s. 6d. She indicated that her servant would provide a sovereign from which change was to be given.

Subsequently, Mr. Woolridge dispatched his servant with the fowls and the required change. Near the culmination of Everett-street, the woman intercepted the servant, feigning distress over the delay. After exchanging the fowls and 10s. 6d. in change for what was presumed to be a legitimate sovereign, she swiftly departed. Upon the servant’s return, Mr. Woolridge’s inspection revealed the sovereign’s counterfeit nature. A prompt investigation at No. 2, Lansdown-place revealed no trace of the woman, who was described as resembling a country lady, with a notable ruddiness and a robust figure, leaving no leads on her whereabouts.

This incident underscores the increasing audacity of counterfeiters infiltrating the currency system, posing significant risks to local businesses. The deceptive ease with which these frauds are executed calls for heightened vigilance among tradespeople, reminding the community of the persistent threat of financial deceit.

⁂

The content on this website is for entertainment purposes only.
Much of it has not been thoroughly reviewed by humans,
although we do get a blast from reading it ourselves.
But it should absolutely not be cited
as a source for anything other than itself.

We use OpenAI’s GPT-4 API to extract text
from the public-domain archive of The Times,
and rewrite this to contemporary standards.
Graphics are also largely AI-generated.

This website is supported by advertising and donations!
Please consider supporting today’s sponsor,
Crocs, by clicking here to learn more.
Please also consider making a donation here—
we get so excited every time we hear the bell ding,
and there’s no donation too small!