In old books and movies set in Britain, the price for items in a store will be stated "X and Y," where X and Y are two, typically low, whole numbers. For example, when asked the cost of a few groceries the clerk will say the price is "3 and 2." What do these numbers refer to?
The Answer
I am quit sure that this is referring the price in shillings and pence. Up until 1971, British money was made up of pence, shillings and pounds. There were 12 pence in a shilling and 20 shillings in a pound. So in a store you would be told "that will be 4 and 6," meaning four shillings and six pence.
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