Check, Please!

Why is the bill in a restaurant called the check? I don't know, but under normal circumstances, isn't a check pretty much the opposite of a bill? Hey, you can pay the check by having them bill your credit card. Or pay your credit card bill by writing out a check. And what if your name is Bill? Or you come from the Czech Republic? Or your server comes from the Czech Republic? Or your server's named Bill and he comes from the Czech Republic? Then things really get complicated.