5c Red Brown (1). Two, bright reddish shade and intermediate impression, each with mostly full margins to just barely in at bottom, tied by two strikes of red "10" in circle handstamp on blue part-printed "Office of Quebec and Lake Superior Mining Association" letterhead dated February 5, 1850, from Quebec, Canada, to New York City, Kennedy correspondence, marked "Pd to lines" by sender, mostly clear strikes of red "Paid at Quebec. L.C." crowned-circle handstamp and matching "Quebec L.C. FE 5 1850" circular datestamp, red manuscript "11-1/2" pence for Canadian postage paid, Montreal Feb. 7 backstamp, 5c stamps cancelled on arrival at New York City, vertical file fold thru left stamp

VERY FINE. THE FINEST OF ONLY SEVEN COVERS KNOWN WITH THE 5-CENT 1847 ISSUE AND "PAID AT QUEBEC" CROWNED-CIRCLE HANDSTAMP.

The two 5c stamps were applied in Canada, but were cancelled on arrival in New York. The "Paid at Quebec" crowned-circle handstamp was used at British colonial post offices as acknowledgement of cash payment for postage. Quebec was the only Canadian city to use this marking, because the main branch of the colonial post office was located there.

The USPCS census records only seven covers with the "Paid at Quebec" marking used with the 5c 1847 Issue (one is listed with the 10c). Six bear two stamps and are from the Kennedy correspondence. A seventh is known with a single 5c used to Boston. In terms of condition, several are faulty and the one that is of comparably choice condition to this cover has pen-cancelled stamps. In fact, the other 5c covers bear pen-cancelled stamps except for one (which has more significant faults). Similar covers from the Kennedy correspondence are illustrated in Boggs The Postage Stamps and Postal History of Canada (pp. 72-73). This cover is accompanied by a stampless cover from the Kennedy correspondence with identical markings.

Signed Ashbrook. Ex Gibson, Rust, Boker and Gross.

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