REFERENCE LIST OF THE PHILATELIC SOCIETY, LONDON.

Issue I. 5th (?) April, 1851.

Three values. Engraved and printed in taille-douce by Messrs. Rawdon, Wright, Hatch, and Edson, of New York, on thin white paper; laid horizontally in the case of the Three Pence, and vertically in the other two values; brownish gum. Designs: Three Pence.—Beaver on bank of river; trees in the distance, with sun shining above them; oval coloured frame, broken at the top by a Royal Crown, beneath which are heraldic flowers, with “V” on the left and “R” on the right. The oval is inscribed with white Roman capitals. In each spandrel is an arabesque and the Arabic numeral of value. Two plain outer lines complete the design. Six Pence.—Nearly full face bust portrait of Prince Albert, in military uniform, looking to right, within coloured oval, lettered in white Roman capitals. Heraldic flowers on either side separate the upper and lower portions of the inscription. Arabesques and Arabic numeral of value in each spandrel; border of two plain outer lines. Twelve Pence.—Three-quarter face bust portrait of Queen Victoria on ground of horizontal lines, looking to left, with diadem and necklace within coloured oval, inscribed in white Roman capitals; a Crown on either side separating the upper and lower parts of the inscription. Arabesques and Arabic numerals of value in each spandrel; border of two plain outer lines. Shapes: small oblong rectangular for the Three Pence; small upright rectangular for the Six Pence and Twelve Pence. ([Illustrations 8, 9, 10.])

T. “CANADA POSTAGE.” B. “THREE PENCE,” “SIXPENCE,” “TWELVE PENCE.”

Remarks.—In The Halifax Philatelist for July, 1888, a copy of the official order notifying the issue of these three stamps is given. It is as follows:

“P.O. DEPARTMENT. (Order No. 4.)

“P. O. Department, Toronto, 1st April, 1851.

“Stamps for Prepayment of Postage on Letters.

“Postage Stamps are about to be issued, one representing the beaver, of the denomination of 3 pence; the second representing the head of Prince Albert, of the denomination of 6 pence; and the third representing the head of Her Majesty, of the denomination of 1 shilling, which will shortly be transmitted to the postmasters at important points.”

Issue II. 1852.

Three values. Identical in type with the preceding, but printed upon white wove paper. The paper varies considerably in substance, especially in the Three Penny value, which ranges from stout to nearly pelure. The latter value is also found printed upon closely-ribbed thin paper. ([Illustrations 8, 9, 10.])

(A) Wove paper.

(B) Closely-ribbed thin paper.

Remarks.—The Twelve Pence has not been catalogued before as found upon wove paper, but undoubted used copies have been seen by members of the Society.

Issue III. 1855-57.

Three values. Engraved and printed in taille-douce by Messrs. Rawdon, Wright, Hatch, and Edson on white wove or closely-ribbed paper; brownish gum. Designs: Ten Pence.—Profile bust portrait of Jacques Cartier to right, on ground of horizontal lines, within an oval, coloured border, inscribed with white Roman capitals. A cluster of leaves on the left and a beaver on the right separate the upper inscription from the lower; cross-hatched spandrels. In the upper “8d. STG.,” or sterling; in the lower “10 CY.,” or currency, in white. Outer border of two plain, coloured lines. Seven Pence Halfpenny.—The same portrait of Queen Victoria as in the Twelve Pence of the first issue, within coloured oval frame, inscribed with white block letters, the upper inscription now reading “CANADA PACKET POSTAGE.” The upper and lower left spandrels are inscribed “6d. STG.,” or sterling; and the upper and lower right spandrels “7½d. CY.,” or currency, all in white, on coloured cross-hatched ground. Outer border of two plain lines. Halfpenny.—Diademed profile of Queen Victoria to left, on ground of horizontal lines, in oval frame, lettered with white Roman capitals; reticulated spandrels; outer border of two plain lines. Shape, small upright rectangular. ([Illustrations 11, 12, 13.])

T. “CANADA POSTAGE.” B. “TEN PENCE,” “SIX PENCE STERLING,” “ONE HALF PENNY.”

(A) Wove paper.

(B) Closely-ribbed thin paper.

Remarks.—Two soi-disant provisionals have been chronicled; viz., the Halfpenny surcharged in black—one with an Arabic numeral “1,” and the other with “8d. STG.” The Society can furnish no information concerning these two stamps; but supposing the surcharges to be genuine, they are probably only notifications of insufficient postage applied after the letters were posted.

With regard to the portrait on the Ten Pence, tradition has always assigned it to Jacques Cartier; but in the Catalogue of the Collection of Stamps, &c., in the Museum at the Berlin Post Office, it is given as that of Sebastian Cabot. However, as the same catalogue pronounces the portrait on the Six Pence of issue I. to be that of Lord Elgin, it is probably equally incorrect in the former case, more especially as a writer in The Halifax Philatelist for July, 1888, says “it is identically the same as that of all the existing portraits of Jacques Cartier, and totally unlike those existing of Sebastian Cabot.”

In the same article on Canadian Stamps in The Halifax Philatelist an extract from the Postmaster-General’s Report for the year 1855 is given, showing us the reason for the issue of the Ten Pence value. It was, “To promote the general convenience in prepaying letters to Great Britain at the new rate, postage stamps of the value of 10 pence currency, equal to 8 pence sterling, were procured and issued for sale.” The same article gives the following extracts from the Postmaster-General’s Report for 1857: “To facilitate the prepayment of letters passing from Canada to England by the Canadian steamers, a new stamp bearing the value of 6 pence sterling, or 7½ pence currency, being the Canadian Packet rate, has been secured and put in circulation.” The article goes on to say, “This stamp was rendered necessary on account of the contract between the Canadian Government and the Allan Line of Steamers in regard to carrying the mails, and by which contract the postage was reduced.” The other extracts read: “A new stamp has also been introduced of the value ½ penny to serve as the medium for prepaying transient newspapers.” “Moreover, the Department has been led by the increasing use of postage stamps to take measures for obtaining the Canadian Postage Stamps on sheets perforated in the dividing line in the manner adopted in England, to facilitate the separation of a single stamp from the others on a sheet when required for use.”

Issue IV. 1857.

Three values. Previously described, but machine-perforated. ([Illustrations 8, 9, 13.])

(A) Laid paper. Perforated 12.

(B) Closely-ribbed thin paper. Perforated 12.

(C) Wove paper. Perforated 12.

Sub-variety. Perforated 13.

Remarks.—The Seven Pence Halfpenny, green, and Ten Pence, blue, perforated, exist in the collection of a well-known Parisian collector. The authenticity, however, of the perforations appears to be doubtful.

Issue V. 1st July, 1859, and 1st August, 1864.

Six values. Printed by the American Bank Note Co., and consisting of the previous designs, slightly modified in order to change the currency from pence, to cents. One Cent.—The same as the One Halfpenny, save for the alteration in value. Two Cents.—Almost the same design as the One Cent, but differing somewhat in the spandrels, each of which contains an oval, with Arabic numeral of value. This stamp was not issued until 1st August, 1864. Five Cents.—Same design as the Three Pence, with substitution of the new value and numerals of value and small ornaments between the two portions of the inscriptions. Spandrels cross-hatched. Ten Cents.—Same design as the Sixpence, with substitution of the new value, and the Roman numeral “X” in each spandrel. Twelve and a Half Cents.—Same design as the Seven Pence Halfpenny of 1857, with substitution of the new value in the spandrels only. Seventeen Cents.—Same design as the Ten Pence of 1835, with substitution of the new value in the oval, and in the lower spandrels. The leaves and beaver which separate the inscription in the Ten Pence are replaced by small oval ornaments. The paper of this issue varies considerably in substance, and the perforation is 12. Shapes: small oblong rectangular for the Five Cents; small upright rectangular for the other five values. ([Illustrations 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19.])

Varieties.—(A) The Five Cents has been met with imperforate. (B) The Five Cents is also known cut in half and used with a Ten Cents to make up the “packet” rate of 12½ Cents.

ENVELOPES.

Two values. On paper laid obliquely, watermarked “Ca” above “P.O.D.” (Canadian Post Office Department?), in double-lined letters, repeated twice in each envelope. Size, 5½ × ¼ inches. Yellowish gum, extending nearly the length of the flap. The stamp is embossed in the right upper corner. Design: Diademed head of Queen Victoria to left in white relief, on ground of solid colour, enclosed within a narrow oval band inscribed in Roman capitals, in white relief, “CANADA POSTAGE” at the top, and the value in words at the bottom. Shape of stamp, small upright oval. ([Illustrations 20, 21.])

(A) On yellowish-white laid paper. Flap rounded.

(B) On bluish-white laid paper. Flap more pointed than in Variety A.