Shave and a haircut..two bits

[Al Smitley]

...Another potentially stupid question, though my last one certainly generated a lot of discussion.  What is the origin of "Shave and a haircut, two bits"?  In what time period did it originate and when was it not unusual to end a song/tune with it?  I always thought it predated mid-19th C, but then maybe I've been subconsciously mixing it up with "Chippy, Get Your Haircut".

[Bell Banjos]

Very good question, Al. And I'm dying to know, too, after playing about a million variations of it through the years.

[Strumelia]

The feel of it always makes me think of English music halls/vaudevillestage/Victorian...something along those lines.

[Tim Twiss]

I recall reading something about it a while ago..and I believe there was a connection to vaudeville.

[Ian Bell]