The Issue of 1847.
Notwithstanding these manifest dangers, noticed by the Courier and Express, the public continued to demand and use, and the postmasters to issue, as we have seen, these unauthorized stamps, without action on the part of Congress, or interference by the Department, until the beginning of 1847 when, apparently in response to the necessities of the case the following law was passed:
Statutes of the United States, XXIX Congress, Session II, Chapter LXIII, Section 1, approved March 3rd, 1847. An Act to establish certain Post Roads and for other purposes.
"And be it further enacted, that to facilitate the transportation of letters by mail, the Postmaster General be authorized to prepare postage stamps, which, when attached to any letter or packet, shall be evidence of the prepayment of the postage chargeable on such letter, which said stamps the Postmaster General may deliver to any deputy postmaster who may apply for the same, the deputy postmaster paying or becoming accountable for the amount of the stamps so received by him, and if any of said stamps shall not be used, but be returned to the General Post Office, the amount so returned shall be credited to such deputy postmaster, and such deputy postmaster may sell or dispose of any stamps so received by him to any person who may wish to use the same, but it shall not be lawful for any deputy postmaster, to prepare, use, or dispose of any postage stamps not authorized by and received from the Postmaster General. And any person who shall falsely and fraudulently make, alter or forge any postage stamp with intent to defraud the Post Office Department, shall be deemed guilty of felony, and on conviction shall be subject to the same punishment as provided in the 21 Section of the Act approved March 3rd, 1825, entitled an Act," etc.
This is the first authorization of postage stamps in the United States, and it will be well to observe that the use of any stamps other than those authorized and received from the Postmaster General is strictly prohibited. The use of the stamps of the postmasters herein before treated of, must therefore have ceased from and after the 1st of July, 1847, when the law went into effect, or as soon thereafter as supplies were received from the Department. This effectually determines the character of such locals, as the so-called "Horseman," and "U. S. Mail Prepaid," before referred to.
According to the law and custom in the United States, a contract for the engraving and printing of stamps, under the authority of this Act, was made by the Postmaster General with Messrs. Rawdon, Wright, Hatch and Edson, for four years. During this time they furnished 4,400,000, five cent stamps, and 1,050,000, ten cent stamps, of which 3,712,000 five cent, and 891,000 ten cent stamps are officially reported to have been distributed by the Department to deputy postmasters for sale. A portion of these, valued at $12,038.55, were however afterwards returned to the Department and exchanged for those of the subsequent issue, and credited to the deputies who returned them.
Issue of July 1st, 1847.
The issue consisted of two values only, five and ten cents.
Five Cents. Portrait of Benjamin Franklin, Continental Postmaster General, facing three quarters to the left, on an oval disk with hatched ground, 14½ by 17¼ mm., bounded by a broad colorless line with a fine colored line outside, in a rectangular frame, also bordered by a broad colorless line with a fine colored line outside. The ground work of this frame is composed of fine horizontal colored lines, and is ornamented by foliations, and inscribed in outlined colorless capitals, "U." and "S.," in the upper corners, with "Post Office," between, following the form of the oval, large numeral "5," and "5," in the lower corners, with "Five Cents" between, following the form of the oval.
Between the lines of the outer border, exactly in the centre, are the initials of the engravers, "R. W. H. & E.," in small colored capitals.