The other convict, named Riganson, and his kept woman, known as la Biffe, were a most formidable couple, members of the swell-mob. ❋ Unknown (2007)
Fil-deSoie — he had thirty names, and as many passports — will henceforth be spoken of by this name only, as he was called by no other among the swell-mob. ❋ Unknown (2007)
The swell-mob, or more exactly, the upper class of thieves, which is the Faubourg Saint – Germain, the aristocracy of the tribe, had, in 1816, after the peace which made life hard for so many men, formed an association called les grands fanandels — the Great Pals — consisting of the most noted master-thieves and certain bold spirits at that time bereft of any means of living. ❋ Unknown (2007)
Whether you be male or female, gentle reader, do not wear much jewellery -- beware of being taken for one of the swell-mob and the doubtfuls; but if you are a lady, and wish for jewellery in the evening, choose between pearls and diamonds; better have a few of these, and good, than whole caskets of topazes and amethysts. ❋ Various (N/A)
For thefts, again, whilst occasional simple thefts are largely the effect of social and economical conditions, this influence becomes feebler in comparison with impulses due to the personal constitution, organic and psychical, as, for instance, in the case of thefts with violence, and especially of murder for the purpose of robbery, which scoundrels of the "swell-mob" so frequently commit in cold blood. ❋ Unknown (1899)
Were it not blasphemy to sully Barrington with slang you would call him a member of the swell-mob, but, having cultivated a grave and sober style for himself, he recoiled in horror from the flash lingo, and his susceptibility demands respect. ❋ Unknown (1896)
Barrington with slang you would call him a member of the swell-mob, but, having cultivated a grave and sober style for himself, he recoiled in horror from the flash lingo, and his susceptibility demands respect. ❋ Charles Whibley (1894)
He wore the chamois-leather belt buckled tightly round his waist next to his inner shirt, and was able to defy the swell-mob, had those gentry been aware of the treasures which he carried about with him. ❋ Unknown (1875)
Austere iron railings guard the subterranean kitchen areas, and austere looks indicate a desire on the part of the passengers to guard their own pockets; gradually little gardens usurp the places of the cramped areas, and, with their humanizing appearance, softer looks assume the place of frowning _anti_ swell-mob ones. ❋ Robert Smith Surtees (1833)
Biffe, were a most formidable couple, members of the swell-mob. ❋ Honor�� De Balzac (1824)
Pere Ralleau, called le Rouleur, alias Fil-de-Soie -- he had thirty names, and as many passports -- will henceforth be spoken of by this name only, as he was called by no other among the swell-mob. ❋ Honor�� De Balzac (1824)
The swell-mob, or more exactly, the upper class of thieves, which is the Faubourg Saint-Germain, the aristocracy of the tribe, had, in ❋ Honor�� De Balzac (1824)
Selerier, alias l'Avuergnat, Pere Ralleau, and le Rouleur, who in the sphere known to the hulks as the swell-mob was called Fil-de-Soie (or silken thread) -- a nickname he owed to the skill with which he slipped through the various perils of the business -- was an old ally of Jacques ❋ Honor�� De Balzac (1824)
_Trompe-la-Mort_ so keenly suspected Fil-de-Soie of playing a double part, of being at once in the secrets of the swell-mob and a spy laid by the police, that he had supposed him to be the prime mover of his arrest in the Maison Vauquer in 1819 (_Le Pere Goriot_). ❋ Honor�� De Balzac (1824)
The "chum," in thieves 'slang, is a skilled thief, a professional who has cut himself adrift from society, and means to remain a thief all his days, and continues faithful through thick and thin to the laws of the swell-mob. ❋ Honor�� De Balzac (1824)
Biffon was the male of la Biffe -- for nothing is sacred to the swell-mob. ❋ Honor�� De Balzac (1824)
_Trompe-la-Mort_ so keenly suspected Fil-deSoie of playing a double part, of being at once in the secrets of the swell-mob and a spy laid by the police, that he had supposed him to be the prime mover of his arrest in the Maison Vauquer in 1819 (_Le Pere ❋ Unknown (2007)
The “chum,” in thieves’ slang, is a skilled thief, a professional who has cut himself adrift from society, and means to remain a thief all his days, and continues faithful through thick and thin to the laws of the swell-mob. ❋ Unknown (2007)
Rouleur, who in the sphere known to the hulks as the swell-mob was called Fil-deSoie (or silken thread) — a nickname he owed to the skill with which he slipped through the various perils of the business — was an old ally of Jacques Collin’s. ❋ Unknown (2007)
