For the first time in 18 years a Liberal, or Reform government has full control of the Dominion.... Mr. William Mulock, J. C., of Toronto, is the new Postmaster General and I am informed that considerable pressure is being brought to bear upon him to have an entirely new set of stamps issued to replace those which have been in use in Canada for something over a quarter of a century.
Under the same "Notes" in the issue of the above paper for January 23, 1897, we find the result of the "pressure":—
The British American Bank Note Company, which for so many years have had the contract for printing Canada's paper currency and postage stamps, have been notified that their services will no longer be required. The shareholders in that company were not of the right political stripe for the new Government. The contract has now been given to the American Bank Note Company of New York. This company will have to establish a branch office at Ottawa and all the work will have to be done in Canada.
Mekeel's Weekly Stamp News gives further details in a clipping from the Montreal Herald, dated "Ottawa, Jan. 11," [1897]:[121]—
The contract for the Government engraving, for which tenders were called two months ago, has been awarded to the American Bank Note Company, of New York, for a period of five and a quarter years. The contract is worth $600,000, and may be renewed for a similar period. The work consists of engraving Dominion bank notes, revenue and postage stamps, postal cards, etc. At present the British American Bank Note Company, better known as Burland and Company, formerly of Montreal, have the contract. They tendered this time, but the New York company was the lowest. The New York company is one of the largest and best known in the world. The firm engraves notes for some of the banks in Canada, including the Canadian Bank of Commerce. Under the terms of the new contract, the Company will require to establish a place in Ottawa to do the work, where the Government can have supervision of it. As compared with the prices paid under the Burland contract, the Government will effect a saving of $120,000 by the new contract.
The next step appears in the Weekly Philatelic Era of January 30, 1897, where we read under "Canadian Notes":—
Many suggestions are being made and many plans laid for the fitting celebration of the sixtieth year of Her Majesty's reign. In Canada this celebration is being coupled with that of the four hundredth anniversary of Cabot's discovery of America. Tn this connection a proposal has been made and an agitation started for the issue of a commemorative set of postage stamps by the Dominion government.... It has been suggested that the new stamps be made a trifle larger than the present ones, that a somewhat recent picture of Her Majesty replace the present one, and that the figures and colors be made more pronounced. If possible some reference to the combined celebrations will likely be made. The agitation for a new issue is quite pronounced and is by no means confined to philatelists. There appears to be general desire on the part of the people to have a change.
A step further is recorded in the Era for March 27th, as follows:—
The Toronto World in its edition of March 15th. contained the following as one of its leaders: "Here is good news for postage stamp collectors. The Postmaster-General proposes, as far as his department is concerned, to commemorate Her Majesty's diamond jubilee by the issue of a new 3-cent postage stamp appropriate to the occasion. It will have