the new rates in her correspondence with the Mother Country. This included a 2 cent rate for post cards, and on the 1st January, 1877, a 2 cent post card made its appearance which was intended particularly for British correspondence as is shown by the sub-heading "TO UNITED KINGDOM." It was quite similar in design to the 1 cent card, with the same medallion portrait of Queen Victoria on the stamp. The frame of the card is of engine-turned work but of different pattern from the 1 cent card, and has corner pieces. The arrangement of the inscriptions is shown by the illustration. The card is cut to the same size as the 1 cent (4¾ × 3 inches) and is of medium thickness and of a very light yellowish buff. The impression is in a deep yellow green.
Of these 2 cent cards the stamp accounts give 200,000 as having been delivered in 1877 and 5000 more in 1879. But the issues to postmasters are given as 98,300 in 1877, 6090 in 1878, and 13,680 in 1879, a total of 118,070; and as there is a record of the return of but 35, it seems fair to assume that the remaining 87,000 were destroyed.
Canada was finally admitted to the Postal Union on the 1st July, 1878, and consequently the 2 cent rate on post cards became applicable to all the other Postal Union countries. We therefore find the "United Kingdom" card altered to conform to the new conditions, the words "Union Postale Universelle" now appearing at the top as shown in the illustration. The stamp has also been re-engraved, the frame being changed and the words CANADA and POSTCARD added in small capitals above and below the medallion. The card is of the same size as before, on good stock of a very pale yellowish tone and with a smooth surface, and the impression is in a strong yellow green.
This card appeared early in 1879 and continued in use until 1896. Its issue to postmasters increased from 27,300 in 1879, to 67,400 in 1892, though it dropped to 47,000 in 1895.
All the previous cards had been line engraved on steel plates and of artistic appearance and fine workmanship. Beginning with 1882, however, a cheaper form of production began to be employed, the impression being typographed probably from electrotypes. The frame of the card is now omitted, the design consisting simply of a curved banderole bearing the words CANADA POST CARD with the instructions beneath, and at the right the oval stamp which, from now on, corresponds to the contemporary stamp of the newspaper wrapper.
The Philatelic Monthly for 1st May, 1882, chronicled a new one cent card as having just appeared, but did not describe it. It doubtless appeared early in April and was of the design detailed in the last paragraph, the stamp being that of the second type of the newspaper wrapper, which lacked the foliations around the numerals and had the inverted triangular ornaments beneath the circles containing the figures "1". The impression was in blue or in ultramarine on a very light buff card of stout quality and cut to 5⅛ × 3 inches (129 × 76 mm.)
About the end of the same year a reply card made its appearance concerning which the following notice was issued:—