FORWARDED VIA PANAMA,/BY BUSH & CO.,/ LAHAINA. Beautifully clear strike of truncated box handstamp in red on March 10, 1850 datelined folded letter from Frederick A. Weld, captain of the whaling ship Italy of Greenport Long Island, written during a stop at Maui and addressed to his brother in Guilford Conn., includes a discussion of collecting 60 barrels of sperm whale oil and time in the Marquesas Islands, "San Francisco 40 15 May" 40c transcontinental rate circular datestamp in red, also clear strike of red "PER STR. ISTHMUS" straightline, absolutely fresh and choice condition

EXTREMELY FINE. FROM A NEW FIND, THIS IS THE FINEST CONDITION COVER OF ONLY THREE BEARING THE RARE BUSH & COMPANY, LAHAINA, "FORWARDED BY PANAMA" HANDSTAMP. AN EXCEPTIONAL HAWAII FORWARDER COVER FROM A WHALING SHIP CAPTAIN SOJOURNING AT MAUI.

All of the Hawaii forwarder markings from this period are scarce to rare. The Gregory census in Hawaii Foreign Mail to 1870 (Appendix III-C, No. 7) records only two examples of this Bush & Co. marking (there are also two others of a different and less desirable style, lacking the word "Panama"). This example becomes the third. They are as follows, listed chronologically:

1) Struck on front of March 10, 1850 folded letter to Guilford Conn., San Francisco May 15 and "PER STR. ISTHMUS" straightline, Extremely Fine condition, the cover offered here

2) Struck on front of March 27, 1850 folded letter to Lewiston Falls Maine, with the same markings and carried on same ships as the example offered here, some internal erosion and edge toning and wear, ex Ostheimer, Honolulu Advertiser (Siegel Sale 769, lot 2094, realized $9,500) and Peters

3) Struck on flap of July 1851 envelope addressed to Harrisburg Pa., forwarded to New Haven Conn, some erosion and age toning, ex Ishikawa (Sotheby Parke Bernet, 11/18/1980, lot 47)

Bush & Co. was formed in 1850 and dissolved in 1851 after Alfred Bush passed away. This Bush forwarder cover, along with the #2 cover listed above was picked up at Lahaina by the American bark Russell, which departed Honolulu on March 29. The letters from the Russell were transferred to either the Elizabeth or the Mariposa and arrived at San Francisco between May 10-12, with letters datestamped May 15 (Gregory pp. III-190). From San Francisco the covers were directed by the straightline handstamp to the Law's Pacific Line Isthmus, departing May 15 and arriving Panama June 16. After transiting to the Atlantic side they were carried by the USMSC Georgia, departing Chagres June 2 and arriving New York July 18. Although the Pacific Mail Steamship Company had an exclusive government contract to carry the mails, Law offered the San Francisco postmaster the use of his ships to convey mail. The postmaster agreed on condition that the senders had to indicate carriage by Law's steamers, thus the rare straightline seen on this cover and the #2 cover. This agreement was a breach of the government contract and was terminated after a few months. Only five Law's Line steamers carried mail to or from Panama during this brief period (Wierenga p. 328). In 1851 the Isthmus was sold to the Pacific Mail Steamship Company and continued to ply the San Francisco-Panama route.

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