Letter Express (Wells), 10c Black on Pink Glazed, Half used as 5c (96L3a). Top half, tied by pen cancel on large portion of westbound cover front addressed to Rev. Hicks in Chicago, conjunctive service and mixed franking with Pomeroy's Letter Express and American Letter Mail Company stamps, pair of Pomeroy's Letter Express 5c Lake on Thin Bond (117L6), tied by pen cancels, two slightly overlapping singles of American Letter Mail Co., 5c Black (5L1), red "Paid" straightline cancels, the Wells stamp with typical oxidation, other stamps with couple small flaws

VERY FINE APPEARANCE. ONE OF ONLY TWO RECORDED INDEPENDENT MAIL USES WITH STAMPS OF THREE DIFFERENT COMPANIES.

This partial cover front demonstrates the cooperation among Independent Mail companies that allowed them to provide service across a huge area for significantly lower rates than the U.S. Post Office charged. It also shows how postage was divided among the participating service providers by using each other's stamps. A thorough explanation of how this worked can be found in our description of the incomparable complete eastbound cover with three company stamps, offered in our sale of the Puliafito collection (Siegel Sale 1124, lot 210). That is the only complete cover and is widely acknowledged as the greatest item of the Independent Mail period. It is franked with stamps of the same three companies as the front offered here, but each from a different issue. This item is a new discovery and has never before appeared at auction.

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