E. Cobham Brewer 1810–1897. Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 1898.
Barber.
Every barber knows that
1
“Omnibus notum tonsoribus.”
Horace: 1 Satires, VII. 3.
In Rome the tonstri’næ or barbers’ shops were the fashionable resort of loungers and idlers. Here every scandal was known, and all the talk of the town was repeated.
