CHAPTER IX
THE SMALL "CENTS" ISSUE, 1870-82
In the American Journal of Philately for August 20, 1869 we find the following: "Canada is shortly to have a new set of stamps. Taking lessons in economy from our own country, it seems they are about altering their stamps to make them smaller, so as to save paper. The head will still remain exactly the same as now, but the frame and margin around the head will be considerably less." The 1869 set of the United States was then in use, and it may well be that the smaller sized stamps appealed to the authorities in comparison with their own rather large sized productions, even though their suggested parsimony had nothing to do with it. The current ½ cent stamp was taken as the model, and the other values reduced in size to correspond with it, while keeping their former colors. The main features of the designs were therefore retained.
No special announcement of the new series was made that we have been able to discover, and they were only introduced, apparently, as stocks of the large sized stamps on hand were used up. We find the first record of the change in the American Journal of Philately for February 20, 1870: "The stamps of the New Dominion have now made their appearance, altered as described by us last August." Though not specified, this referred to the 3 cent stamp, and its actual issue probably took place in January. The Philatelist chronicles it in the issue of March 1, 1870, as being of "the same colour and general description as before". [Illustration No. 28 on [Plate II].]
The next value to appear was the 1 cent, which was noted in the Stamp Collector's Magazine for April 1, 1870; it was probably issued, therefore, some time in March, for the American Journal of Philately records it in its issue of April 20, 1870. [Illustration No. 25 on [Plate II].]
Two years then elapsed before further additions were made, and lent some color to the report in several European journals that the cause of the new issue was the destruction by fire in Montreal of the plates of the 1 cent and 3 cent of 1868, and that the other values of the set would remain as before. The American Journal of Philately learned, however, that only the
press room of the Bank Note Co. was damaged, and that the plates were intact. At last the 6 cent in reduced size made its appearance and was chronicled in the American Journal of Philately for February, 1872, to be followed in the March issue by the announcement of the 2 cent. The former value must therefore have been issued in January and the latter in February. [Illustrations Nos. 30 and 26 on [Plate II].]
Again in the American Journal of Philately for November 20, 1874, we find it "reported" that Canada "has issued a 10c. rose", and the next issue says it "is printed in a peculiar pale rose, we can not call to mind any other stamp of this particular tint." The actual issue therefore, was probably about November 1, 1874. Just what called forth this new value in the Dominion series does not appear, unless it be the section in the Postal Treaty between Canada and the United States which fixed the rate on patterns and samples at 10 cents for not over 8 oz., with prepayment obligatory.[104] This rate did not go into effect, however, until January 1, 1875. Of course as a multiple of the 5 cent rates which came into force on October 1, 1875, the new 10 cent stamp was very useful, but that was nearly a year subsequent to its issue. The new stamp is illustrated as No. 32 on [Plate II].
The next of the series to make its appearance was the 5 cent, which was noted in the American Journal of Philately for February 20, 1876 as having "just been issued." [Illustration No. 29 on [Plate II].] This doubtless means about the 1st February, so that its large sized predecessor had only about four months of life. There were now left in the large sized stamps only the 12½ and 15 cents. In its issue for May, 1872, the Stamp Collector's Magazine quoted from the Canadian Philatelist as follows:—"It is unlikely that the 12½ c. small size will be issued, as the large ones are very little used, and can now be bought at the post-office at 12 cents." This last statement is rather surprising. Nevertheless, it was announced in the American Journal of Philately for October, 1879 that "Canada will shortly issue the 12½ and 15c. values of postals in small size, to correspond with the others of the series." This paper seemed to have been usually well informed concerning Canadian postal matters, but the expected new stamps did not materialize. The dies and plates were undoubtedly prepared, for the 12½ cent stamp at least exists in a finished state, but is very scarce. Proofs of both values were illustrated in Le Timbre-Poste for November, 1888, with the following remarks: "On nous envoie les essais des futurs timbres 12½ et
15 centavos qui doivent compléter un peu tardivement, la série des timbres à ce format. Nos exemplaires sont imprimés, le premier en lilas, le second en vert sur papier de la Chine." Commenting on this in the American Philatelist for December, 1888, Mr. W. C. Stone says: "We heard of these some ten or twelve years ago and saw them both last summer in New York." We have been fortunate enough to be able to illustrate the 12½ cent (see No. 89 on [Plate V]) from the Worthington collection, and this finished copy, with full gum, is in a bright blue as we should expect. We regret that it was impossible to locate a copy of the reduced 15 cent to illustrate as a companion piece. The reasons that the plates of these two stamps were never actually brought into use, though evidently prepared with the other values in smaller size, were probably these: The 12½ cent of 1868, as we have seen, though issued to postmasters for several subsequent years, was not printed after 1871, nor was the old stock exhausted when its use was discontinued. There was therefore no call for any supply to be printed from the new plate. The 15 cent was not printed between 1869 and 1875, and after that in such relatively small quantities each year until 1896, that, unless we are greatly mistaken, the original plate never wore out, but was used without change to the end.