The cents issue of Canadian stamps therefore dates from July 1, 1859. The stamps themselves were merely an adaptation of the designs of the pence series to the corresponding values of the decimal currency. The ONE CENT stamp was unchanged from the half-penny except for the substitution of the new for the former value. The FIVE CENTS stamp had these words in place of the old denomination, with a quarterfoil ornament separating them at each side from CANADA and POSTAGE. Oblique figures 5 were
placed in the spandrels on a cross-hatched ground instead of the upright figures 3 on foliations. A similar change was made in the TEN CENTS, Roman numerals X being placed obliquely in the spandrels on a cross-hatched ground where upright figures 6 were previously on foliations; while the new denomination was substituted for the old. The sole change in the 12½ cent stamp was to substitute "12½c." in the spandrels for the former values in sterling and currency. The 17 cent stamp had the value in words replacing TEN PENCE, but the new value was so much longer that the emblems between the old value and CANADA POSTAGE were removed and replaced by two small elliptic ornaments. "8d. stg." still occupies the upper spandrels, but figures 17 are placed in each of the lower ones. The central designs in each of the above stamps are absolutely identical with those of the pence stamps that preceded them—indeed the portrait and surrounding oval with inscriptions on the 12½ c. are all unchanged. From this it is evident that the new dies were "built up" from the old ones, the central portions being transferred and the required changes in surrounding inscriptions, etc., being newly engraved. This was easy enough of accomplishment since the American Bank Note Co., who furnished the new stamps, were the successors of Messrs. Rawdon, Wright, Hatch and Edson, the firm name having been changed on May 1, 1858, and the dies of the pence issue were of course in their possession. Illustrations of the five values will be found as Nos. 10, 15, 12, 13 and 14, respectively, on [Plate I].
There was one addition to the list of values in this set during its period of use—a 2 cent stamp. In the Postmaster General's Report for 30th June, 1864, it is noted:—"A new Postage Stamp, of the value of two cents, was added to the other denominations supplied, from the 1st. August last [1864]." The Report for the succeeding year has this further to say:—"A provision has been made for the transmission and delivery of Canadian periodicals, addressed to the United Kingdom, at the reduced rate of two cents each," and it was evidently largely on account of this that the new stamp was ordered. Its design was unmistakably "built up" as with the rest of the set, the 1 cent stamp serving as the model, figures 2 being placed in ovals in the spandrels and the wording of the value being changed to correspond. (Illustration No. 11 on [Plate I]). The stamp was issued as stated on the 1st August, 1864.
All the stamps of this issue were, as before, line engraved and printed in sheets of 100, ten rows of ten. The same style of marginal inscriptions as
in the first issue is found—"American Bank Note Co. New-York" in minute letters of the type known as "diamond," repeated twice in each margin, reading up on the left, down on the right, and inverted at the bottom of the sheet. In the 1, 2, 5 and 12½c. stamps the imprint is placed against the third and eighth stamps of each marginal row of ten, but from a block of 10c. at hand the inscriptions in the case of this value are apparently "centered" over the space between the third and fourth and the seventh and eighth stamps of each marginal row, thus bringing them over two stamps instead of one. Curiously enough, the 17c. value has no marginal inscriptions at all.
The same plate variety that occurs in the 3d. stamp—the "shifted transfer" or "double strike"—is repeated in its successor, the 5c. stamp. That it is a true plate variety is abundantly proved by the fine block of seven stamps illustrated as No. 96 on [Plate VII]. The variety will be found in the upper right corner stamp, and the doubling of the frame lines at the left and of the oval frame line above CANADA will be readily apparent. A single copy is illustrated as No. 19 on [Plate I]. It seems to have been first noted by Mr. R. Wuesthoff in the American Journal of Philately for June, 1892.
A minor variety of the 5c. stamp printed from a worn plate is also to be noted, in which the fine lines of the groundwork have almost disappeared.
The entire series comes regularly perforated 12, the identical normal perforation of the pence stamps that immediately preceded it, and which we have endeavored to trace to the same source. The abnormal varieties in this series are of course the imperforate ones, and of these we present cuts of a full set in blocks of four, numbered 100 to 105 on [Plate IX]. That the stamps were actually issued and used in this condition is proved by copies of several with the proper postmarks of the period in the Pack collection. Mr. Pack writes of them[82]:—
I have the 1c. and 5c. postmarked in 1860 and 1861 at Toronto and Prescott, Canada West. I also believe that these varieties were on sale at Kingston, Canada West, at about that time. I have also the 2c. and 10c. in undoubtedly early used condition.
Further varieties are formed by "split" stamps, as before, though these were never authorized and seldom used. We are fortunate in being able to illustrate two five cent stamps used with half of a third to make up the 12½c. packet rate. This is No. 97 on [Plate VII]. The postmark is unfortunately mostly torn away, but is evidently "Montreal," and the last numeral in the