“‘(Signed) Robert Elmsly.’
“The stamps referred to in the letter were impressions from the old hand stamps in his office. To understand the latter part of this letter thoroughly, it must be understood that it was a rule of the Nova Scotia Post Office Department (and is now of the Canadian) that a stamp should not be cancelled with pen and ink, or with date stamp, but with a cancellor, so that in case the stamp should come off the postmark would be on the envelope, and the origin of the letter could thus be found. This of course could not be done if the postmark was on the stamp. The objection to ink was that it could be cleaned, and the stamp used again. This letter, of course, exploded the idea of a surcharge. Not long after this Mr. J. N. Crane showed me an envelope he had, which was mailed from Whycocomagh, C.B., February 29th, 1860, with a pair of Six Penny stamps with the figure 10 surcharged on each; but, as in my own case, there was no other cancellation on them. Mr. Crane’s theory is, that as the currency was changed to dollars and cents in the beginning of 1860, and that as 6d. was then worth only 10 c., that the postmaster at Whycocomagh put it on the Six Penny stamps to show that he sold them for that price. If this was the case I should think more would be found, and until then I will continue to believe that this surcharge was only an accidental cancellation, although in support of Mr. Crane’s argument there is a figure five alongside of my own Three Penny stamp, illustrated. It seems, however, a singular coincidence that his and mine should be mailed at almost the same dates, Mr. Crane’s being mailed at Whycocomagh, 1860. Another manner in which those stamps are likely to be thus overprinted is this: In 1854 there was a new postal treaty arranged between the United States and Nova Scotia, one of the agreements of which was that the rate should be 3d. per ½ ounce, and that all prepaid letters sent by Nova Scotia to the United States should be stamped on the face of them ‘PAID 5 CENTS,’ the equal in United States currency to 3d., or 10 cents if it was a double rate. This may have been occasionally struck on the stamp accidentally, and would thus make a surcharge. I have myself seen an envelope in which the edge of the paid stamp has missed the Three Pence stamp by only a hair-breadth. Some of the surcharges have no doubt originated in this manner.
“The provisional stamps of Nova Scotia are the split ones, of which only one value, the Three Penny, was authorized to be so used, and that for a specific purpose; viz., to allow the rate of postage to Great Britain, 7½d., to be made up. This cutting of the Three Penny was authorized by the Postmaster-General, as in his report for 1853 he says, ‘To remedy to some extent the serious inconvenience said to be experienced by merchants and others in consequence of there being no Seven and One Halfpenny currency postage stamps, by which parties who feel desirous could thus prepay their letters to England, and not wishing to put the province to any further expense in having another “die” prepared, I considered it expedient to allow half stamps to be used with those now in use to obviate the want of accommodation complained of; and a circular was accordingly forwarded to my deputies, and a notice issued to the public to the effect that letters could be prepaid to England by stamps, by parties using a Six Pence or two Three Penny stamps together with half a Three Penny stamp. The Three Penny stamp to be cut diagonally, and the half to be equivalent to 1½d. The Three Penny stamp alone to be used for that purpose.’
“Of the authorised split stamps I have met with five varieties. The Six Penny cut diagonally, and used as three pence; also Six Penny, but cut perpendicularly, an extremely rare variety, which is the only one I have ever seen cut in this manner. I have also seen three other varieties; they are the Ten Cents, cut diagonally and used as Five Cents, also cut perpendicularly and used for same; and the Five Cents, cut diagonally and used for the county postage of two cents.
“Another variety I have found is an oddity; it is a Six Penny cut, and used for what? Under it is written in red pencil ‘5 CTS.’ I have two almost the same; the other has, however, only the figure 5 in red under the half stamp. The stamps have undoubtedly prepaid the letter, as the colour in which the ‘5 CTS.’ is written shows it, red being the paid colour. They probably originated at some small post-office out of stamps, and who marked them in red as paid letters, and sent them and the money for stamps to the next post-office; or they were given by some one on the road to a mail courier (as was the practice then as now), with the money to prepay them, and he marked them in red as prepaid, and had them stamped at the nearest post-office.
“All the split stamps of Nova Scotia are very rare, and should be greatly valued by collectors. Off the original envelope they are valueless, and I have been sorely disappointed more than once on receiving them in that condition. While in Nova Scotia we have not got those varieties of types in stamps which some other countries have; still, we can make up a number of interesting varieties which are unknown to most collectors, and in nearly every case have never been mentioned in catalogues.
“Donald A. King.”
POSTAGE RATES FROM NOVA SCOTIA IN THE YEAR 1854.
LIMIT OF WEIGHT ¼ OUNCE.
| s. | d. | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| To | Alexandria | 2 | 3 |
| Algeria | 1 | 10 | |
| Austria | 2 | 8 | |
| Bavaria | 2 | 2 | |
| Belgium | 2 | 3 | |
| China | 2 | 10 | |
| France | 2 | 3 | |
| Gibraltar | 2 | 1 | |
| Holland | 2 | 2 | |
| Hong Kong | 2 | 10 | |
| India | 2 | 10 | |
| Norway | 2 | 7 | |
| Portugal | 2 | 1 | |
| Prussia | 2 | 2 | |
| Russia | 2 | 6 | |
| Spain | 2 | 2 | |
| Sweden | 2 | 2 | |
| Turkey | 3 | 0 |