Sale 1211 — The William H. Gross Collection: United States Postal History
Sale Date — Tuesday-Wednesday, 29-30 October, 2019
Category — 1847 Issue to and from British North America
One of ten recorded 1847 Issue Retaliatory Rate uses--only three have the 5¢ and 10¢ stamps combined, and only two are addressed to the Maritime ProvincesDESCRIPTION
5¢ Red Brown (1), horizontal strip of three, and two 10¢ Black (2) singles arranged as a pair, 5¢ strip has full margins to clear on three sides, full to just in at right, left 10¢ has large margins to clear, right 10¢ large margins to just in at bottom, latter shows slip of the engraver's tool in frameline at lower left, one 5¢ and both 10¢ have pinpoints in neat rows from the use of affixing wafers, tied by red square grid cancels, matching "New-York Aug. 22" (1848) circular datestamp, red "BALTIMORE R.R." straightline handstamp clearly struck on blue part-printed notice (a front panel with one original flap) to Halifax, Nova Scotia, addressed to John Esson & Co., sender's directive "pr Cunard steamer from Boston of 23 August" at lower left, as well as "paid by stamps" which is mostly covered by the 5¢ strip--carried on the Cunarder Acadia, departing Boston on August 23, 1848, and arriving at Halifax August 25 before continuing its transatlantic voyage to Liverpool, where it arrived September 4--the Halifax office first backstamped the cover with "SHIP-LETTER/HALIFAX N.S./25AU1848" framed datestamp, but this was crossed out in manuscript and the same clerk rated the cover "1/-" one-shilling due for British packet postage, disregarding the prepayment, backstamped with the appropriate packet receiving datestamp "UD. STATES/HALIFAX/AU 25 1848"
PROVENANCE
John F. Seybold, J. C. Morgenthau, Sale 29, 3/15-16/1910, lot 37
Creighton C. Hart, Robert G. Kaufmann sale, 4/30/1990, lot 248
John R. Boker, Jr. (collection sold privately to William H. Gross, 1994)
CENSUS, LITERATURE AND EXHIBITION REFERENCES
USPCS census no. 8887 https://www.uspcs.org/resource-center/censuses/1847-cover-census/
Creighton C. Hart, "1847 Covers to the Maritime Provinces," Chronicle 78, p. 80
David D'Alessandris, "1847 Covers to the Maritime Provinces: An Update," Chronicle 238, fig. 11
CONDITION NOTES
Very Fine appearance; a front with one original flap (with backstamps) and other flaps added, silked inside, one 5¢ creased from file fold
HISTORY AND COMMENTARY
The British and American Postal War
The so-called Retaliatory Period resulted from Great Britain's effort to maintain its monopoly on transatlantic mail carriage through the subsidized Cunard steamship line, which operated without competition from 1840 through 1846. In response to the emergence of subsidized American packets in 1847 (the Ocean Line), the British issued an order (effective June 9, 1847) authorizing its receiving offices to collect the usual British packet postage on letters carried to England by American subsidized steamers. This effectively allowed England to collect 24¢ packet charges for every inbound letter, whether or not any service had been performed.
The United States vehemently protested the British order through diplomatic channels, but efforts to persuade the government to rescind the anti-American postal tariff were unsuccessful. In December 1847, U.S. Postmaster General Cave Johnson petitioned Congress for power to levy like charges on mail carried by British steamers to or from the U.S., but he was not authorized to do so until June 1848. On all inbound and outbound Cunard sailings from June 24, 1848, through December 31, 1848, American packet postage was required, whether or not an American vessel was used, creating the so-called Retaliatory Rate. Beginning with the departure of the Europa on January 10, 1849, earlier rates were restored.
The first mail affected by the U.S. Retaliatory Rate was outbound mail carried on the Cunard Line's Britannia, which left New York on July 5, 1848, and arrived in Liverpool on July 19. Days later, on July 8, the Cunarder Caledonia arrived in New York with its mail. Every letter on these ships and all subsequent packets during the Retaliatory Period were charged both British and U.S. packet postage, including packet letters to Nova Scotia.
On December 15, 1848, a postal treaty between the two nations was signed. It was ratified in January and the treaty terms commenced on February 15, 1849.
This cover to Nova Scotia reflects the dispute between the U.S. and Great Britain. The sender paid 10¢ for U.S. postage from Baltimore to Boston and the 24¢ sea postage (1¢ overpayment). The letter was carried on the Cunarder Acadia from Boston, which stopped at Halifax on August 25, 1848. At the Halifax office, the 24¢ prepayment was ignored and the "1/-" shilling due marking indicated the amount owed for sea postage.
Only ten 1847 Issue uses are known with Retaliatory Rate charges. Of the ten, only two are addressed to the Maritime Provinces (both to Nova Scotia) and three have a combination of the two 1847 denominations.
