CHAPTER VI
COMMON STAMPS
Probably the twelve commonest stamps which have ever been issued are the following:
1. Great Britain, Queen, 1d. lilac, 1881.
2. Great Britain, King Edward, 1d. scarlet, 1902.
3. Germany, 1880, 10 pfennig (without the final "e") rose.
4. Germany, 1889, 10 pfennig rose.
5. Austria, 5 kr., Francis Joseph, 1857, red.
6. Austria, 5 kr. rose, 1883, double-headed eagle.
7. Austria, 5 kr., Francis Joseph, 1890, red.
8. Belgium, 10 c., Leopold II., 1885, rose.
9. Belgium, 5 c., arms, 1893, green.
10. France, 15 c., Mercury and Commerce, blue, 1877.
11. France, 5 c., Mercury, etc., green, 1877.
12. Hungary, 5 kr., numeral on envelope, rose, 1875.
From the above list it will be seen that all but three of the adhesives are of the penny value, or its foreign equivalent. The presence of the French three-halfpenny (15 c.) stamp is due to the fact that, for many years, this was the rate charged for letters circulating within the Republic.
Of these stamps the Queen's head of Great Britain enjoyed the longest life, whilst the two French specimens took second and third place, they having a prosperous run of sixteen years to their credit.
Whilst speaking of the length of currency enjoyed by stamps, it may be well to say that, of all the adhesive specimens issued throughout the world, the large fivepenny green, New South Wales, remained unchanged for a longer period than any other; whilst the Queen Victoria penny embossed envelope, with a light pink stamp—not, of course, an adhesive—was current still longer, being on sale from 1841 to 1902. Neither of these labels, it should be added, may be reckoned among the commonest varieties.
Of each of the twelve stamps mentioned in the list above prodigious numbers must have been issued. Just how many copies of each were used for franking letters cannot be gauged, but by turning to the postal records published annually by Great Britain some idea may be obtained of their colossal totals. During the year 1913 the General Post Office dealt with—
3,298,300,000 letters.
899,000,000 postcards.
1,079,000,000 halfpenny packets.
202,300,000 newspapers.
130,200,000 parcels.