Canada: Its Postage Stamps and Postal Stationery Part 31

(_c_) it is addressed to a _bona fide_ subscriber, or to a known news-dealer in Canada; and--

(_d_) it is delivered into the post office under such regulations as the Postmaster General, from time to time, makes for that purpose.

2. For the purpose of determining the weights of such newspapers or periodicals, each newspaper or periodical transmitted separately through the mails shall be held to weight not less than one-half of one ounce.

3. [_The Postmaster General to decide whether any publication comes under this section, and whether the requirements have been complied with in any case._]

4. [_Books for the blind transmitted free of Canadian postage._]

[158] 61 Vict. Chap. 20.

One other item, not strictly philatelic perhaps, but interesting to record here, is the announcement of the issue of postal notes, the system having been inaugurated throughout Canada on the 4th August, 1898. It was intended mainly to obviate the need of remitting small sums by mail in postage stamps, with the consequent difficulty to the recipient of disposing of any quant.i.ty. The notes were for certain fixed values, odd amounts between values being made up by affixing postage stamps.

Their denominations and dates of issue are recorded as follows:--

4th August issued notes of 25, 50 and 70 cents.

23rd " " " " $1, $2.50 and $5.

21st October " " " 40 cents, $1.50 and $2.

25th November " " " 20, 30, 60 and 80 cents.

23rd January, 1899 " " " 90 cents, $3. and $4.

In the Report for 1900 we find mention of the issue of stamp books.

In the month of June, 1900, the department commenced the issue to Postmasters, of a small book of 2 cent postage stamps, containing 12 stamps, disposed on two sheets of 6 stamps each, and interleaved with wax paper to prevent adhesion of the sheets. The size of the book is such as to make it convenient to be carried in the pocket or pocket-book. Printed on the cover is postal information calculated to be of interest to the public. The price at which the book is issued is 25 cents, one cent over the face value of the stamps being charged to cover the cost of binding, etc.

The stamp accounts give the date of issue of the stamp books as 11th June, 1900. That they have proved popular is evidenced by the increase in the number issued to postmasters from some 320,000 in 1901 to about 1,400,000 in 1910.

The books are about two by three inches in size, with stiff cardboard covers which are bound together by red cloth. The coat-of-arms of Canada with the words CANADA POSTAGE beneath are engraved in red on the front cover, while inside are four pages of postal information and the two sheets of six stamps each--three horizontal pairs--backed by leaves of paraffined tissue paper.

Notice is also given of the discontinuance of two denominations of postage stamps, the old 15 cent of 1868 pa.s.sing quietly away at the age of 31 years, 1 month and 1 day--or on the 2nd November, 1899, to be exact. The 6 cent stamp, for which there was but little call since the reduction of the letter postage to 2 cents, was discontinued on the 10th February, 1900.

From the Report of 1901 we learn that the last issue of the $1 Jubilee stamps took place on 27th June 1900, but nothing is said of dates for the cents values, all of which appear for the last time in the "issued to postmasters" column in amounts of 700 or 800, and even 2000 in the case of the 1/2 cent.

The Report of 1902 notes the last issue of the 3 cent stamp in March, 1901, and of the 8 cent stamp, which had been of but little use since the reduction of postage, on the 16th December, 1901.

The Report of 1903 announces the issue of the new King Edward stamps, and of the prepayment of printed matter in cash, instead of by stamps, under the "permit" system. Both of these subjects will be considered in their proper chapters.

Though the Report for 1904 takes us into the period of the King Edward stamps, yet we find it noted therein that the last issue of 6 cent and 8 cent stamps (Queen's head) took place on the 4th September, 1902. Both these values had already been disposed of apparently, but it seems that 100,000 of the 6 cent and 125,000 of the 8 cent were "received from manufacturers" and "issued to postmasters", according to the stamp accounts of 1902-3, and rumor has it that some large concern ordered them for the mailing of catalogues. The date, 4th September, was probably that of delivery to the purchasers.

CHAPTER XIV

THE "CHRISTMAS" STAMP OF 1898

Ocean Penny Postage, which became the dream of Postal Reformers almost from the date of the adoption of the plan of Rowland Hill, is at length within measurable distance of becoming an accomplished fact. It is true that it is not yet to be the Universal Penny Postage, or even the Imperial Penny Postage so perseveringly advocated by Mr.

Henniker-Heaton; but these will come in time, and an immense step in the desired direction has been taken by the adoption of the partial scheme, which is to come into force within a few months." So wrote Major Evans in July, 1898,[159] upon the conclusion of the Imperial Conference on Postal Rates which took place in London during that month.

[159] =Monthly Journal, IX=: 1.

Many of our readers may have seen the ill.u.s.trated envelopes, in various designs, which were issued some fifty or sixty years ago in advocacy of an "Ocean Penny Postage." Great Britain, having committed herself to domestic penny postage in 1840, after the herculean labors of Sir Rowland Hill in that behalf, seems to have been looked to by succeeding postal reformers to furnish over-sea transportation along the same lines. Chief among these advocates was Elihu Burritt, the "learned blacksmith" of New Britain, Conn., who not only published doc.u.ments on the subject but went to England and delivered addresses in support of the idea. Major Evans says:[160]--"What appears to have been the first pamphlet on 'Ocean Penny Postage', issued by Elihu Burritt, was probably published quite at the end of 1848, or early in 1849. It contains a poem dated Christmas, 1848, which may give us approximately the date of publication." This proves extremely interesting, inasmuch as Imperial Penny Postage was put into effect on Christmas, 1898, just a half century later to a day.

[160] =Stamp Lover, I=: 263.

But Burritt's proposal was not that which was accomplished so long afterward. In his own words:[161]--

By the term "_Ocean Penny Postage_" we mean simply this:--That the single service of transporting a letter, weighing under half-an-ounce, from any port of the United Kingdom to any port beyond the sea, at which the British mail-packets may touch, shall be performed by the British Government for _one penny_; or one penny for its mere conveyance from Folkestone to Boulogne, Liverpool to Boston, &c., and _vice versa_. Thus the entire charge upon a letter transmitted from any town in the United Kingdom to any port beyond the sea, would be two pence;--one penny for the inland rate, and the other for the ocean rate.

[161] =A Penny All the Way=, Melville, p. 23.

Of course this does not reckon in what might be added for an inland rate at the "port beyond the sea", but the main point was the transportation on the ocean part of the journey at a uniform rate of one penny.

This was practically accomplished--and even bettered--by the establishment of the Universal Postal Union in 1875; for where Burritt wrote:[162]--"It would meet the terms of our proposition if every letter under half an ounce, from any town in Great Britain to any town in the Colonies, should pay _three pence_; one penny for the home inland rate, another penny for the ocean, and the third for the colonial inland rate, and _vice versa_" the Postal Union fixed a charge of but twopence halfpenny as the standard rate between _all_ countries that subscribed to its provisions.

[162] =ibid.=, page 22.

To quote further:[163]--

The later discussion in England on the extension of Penny Postage across the seas has alternated between the proposals for Universal Penny Postage and Imperial Penny Postage. Mr. Henry Fawcett, who was Postmaster-General in 1880, was keenly interested in endeavouring to get the Colonies to accept a lower postal rate to and from the Mother Country, but the Colonies were afraid to lower their rates.... Mr. Henniker-Heaton brought up the subject in the House of Commons in 1885 by moving for the opening of negotiations with other Governments, with a view to establis.h.i.+ng Universal Penny Postage....

In 1890 the Jubilee of the introduction of Uniform Penny Postage was celebrated in London and throughout the United Kingdom, and public interest in postal matters received a new stimulus.... The long sustained agitation for Imperial Penny Postage was at last brought to a definite issue at the Imperial Conference on Postal Rates in 1898. The London _Standard_ of 13th July, 1898, stated:--

"We are authorized by the Postmaster-General to state that, as the result of the Imperial Conference on Postal Rates, it has been agreed, on the proposal of the Representative of the Dominion of Canada, that letter postage of one penny per half-ounce should be established between the United Kingdom, Canada, Newfoundland, the Cape Colony, Natal, and such of the Crown Colonies as may, after communication with, and approval of, Her Majesty's Government, be willing to adopt it. The date on which the reduction will come into effect will be announced later on. The question of a uniform reduced rate for the whole Empire was carefully considered; but it was not found possible to fix upon a rate acceptable to all the Governments concerned. A resolution was therefore adopted, leaving it to those parts of the Empire which were prepared for penny postage to make the necessary arrangements among themselves".

The Postmaster-General who had the distinction of issuing this important communication was the Duke of Norfolk, and the representative of Canada was the Hon. (now Sir) William Mulock, LL.

D., Q. C., Postmaster-General of Canada, who gave the chief credit for the reform to the British Empire League.

[163] =ibid.=, page 36.

Nevertheless, Mr. Mulock had been interested not only in the scheme of Imperial Penny Postage but also in endeavoring to obtain a reduction of the Canadian domestic postage to the penny (2 cents) basis. The inland letter rate, it may be remembered, was made 3 cents per half ounce throughout the new Dominion on the 1st April, 1868. Not until the 2nd May, 1889, did legislative enactment raise the limit of weight to one ounce. Meanwhile the United States, on the 1st October, 1883, had lowered its inland rate, which also applied to letters for Canada, to 2 cents per ounce. Agitation for the same reduction had naturally taken place in Canada, but instead of this it was proposed late in 1897[164]

to reduce the Postal Union rate of 5 cents per half ounce to the domestic rate of 3 cents per ounce on letters to Great Britain and the Colonies. An Order in Council was actually pa.s.sed announcing a rate of 3 cents per half ounce to any place in the British Empire, to take effect on 1st January, 1898, but the Imperial authorities objected to it as exceeding Canada's powers as a member of the Postal Union, and it was necessarily abandoned.

[164] =Weekly Philatelic Era=, XII: 129.

Finally legislative enactment was pa.s.sed on the 13th June, 1898, making the long desired reduction in the domestic rate to 2 cents, but not to come into operation until the date named by the Governor-General[165].

Within a month, as we have already detailed, the Imperial Conference in London decided on a penny (2 cent) rate for the British Empire and in November it was decided to put this in operation on Christmas day of 1898. Thus the anomaly was created of a 2 cent rate from Canada to England or Africa, but a 3 cent rate from one town to another in Canada.

This was remedied a week later, as we have seen, by the proclamation putting the domestic 2 cent rate into force from 1st January, 1899.

[165] See page 169.

As a leader in the final adoption of Imperial Penny Postage, Canada could look with pride upon its accomplishment and may be pardoned for its mild celebration of the event in the guise of a _single_ commemorative stamp. It was unnecessary, of course, and no other Colony attempted it, but Mr. Mulock recognized the opportunity and rose to the occasion. The following clipping from the _Ottawa Evening Journal_[166]

gives some interesting details:--

The new Imperial Penny Postage Stamp, to be used between Great Britain and a number of her colonies after Christmas Day next, has been designed by the Postmaster-General and is ready to be issued.

It is not to be a special issue, but will take its place among the regular issues. When Mr. Mulock was in Britain he was surprised to notice that the great ma.s.s of the people did not appreciate the value of the greatness of the British possessions abroad. This was especially true of Canada. The idea therefore suggested itself to him, when he was considering a new stamp, to prepare something that would show the dimensions of Great Britain compared with all other countries. Mr. Mulock asked for some designs from a few artists when he came back to Canada, but they did not meet with his views, and he roughly sketched out something himself and pa.s.sed it over to an artist to have it touched up.

The feature of the new stamp is a neatly executed map in miniature of the world, showing the British possessions as compared with all other countries. The empire is distinguished from the possessions of the other powers by being in red. Surmounting this map is a representation of the crown, underneath which is a bunch of oak and maple leaves, symbolizing the unity of the Mother Country and Canada. At the upper edge of the stamp are the words "Canada Postage" in a neat letter. Underneath the map is placed "Xmas, 1898", so that the date of the inauguration of Imperial Penny Postage shall be a matter of record. On the lower corners are the figures "2", indicating the denomination of the stamp, and at the lower edge is this suggestive pa.s.sage taken from the works of one of our patriotic poets: "We hold a vaster empire than has been". Mr.