STAMP DEALER - EDWIN ENGLAND

We have only seen two addresses for the Stamp Dealer, Edwin England. J.H., Raymond, in the International Dealers Directory, published in Chicago during October 1893, gives his address as Victoria Terrace, Lorne Street, Hull, England. While Oscar van der Vliet, in the August 2011 edition of The Transvaal Philatelist', illustrated the cover pictured above. It was posted to London on 7^th July 1893 from Pretoria, giving an address in London. Therefore Oscar noted that Edwin England had moved from Hull to London or had two addresses.

The two adhered stamps on the cover are a Transvaal 1/6d. olive-green revenue stamp, printed by Bradbury Wilkinson & Co. London, which was issued during the first British Occupation of the South African Republic for revenue purposes only, possibly in 1980. The other stamp is a 1d. rose Vürtheim postage stamp, issued from 1885. The two Pretoria datestamps have ‘P.W.K.’ *. There is also a single circle ‘PRETORIA / Z.A.R.’

Following the First South African War, the Republic became the ‘Transvaal State’ which had been created under the ‘Treaty of Pretoria’, signed on the 3^rd August, 1881, until the Second Republic came into being following the signing of the ‘London Convention’ on the 27^th February, 1884. Both the postage and Revenue stamps continued to be used during this period while stocks lasted; before being replaced by the re-issue of the first South African Republic’s stamps, and later (13^th May 1893) the Vürtheim designs, which were printed in the Netherlands by Enschedé & Sons. Some of the Revenue stamps may have been used on mail, although such stamps should only to be used for revenue purpose and not for postage.

The cover here was posted during the Second South African Republic when the 1/6d. revenue stamp was no longer in use. It is therefore a contrived cover, posted to a dealer in England to obtain a postage datestamp on a revenue stamp that had been issued under the British occupation. The cover was first of all taxed to pay the postage fee of 2d. however, this has been crossed out with a blue pencil and a 'F.R.' tax mark for 4d. was added at lower right. Edwin England would have been pleased to pay that sum and to sell on to a collector to make a tidy profit.

* ‘P.W.K.’ or 'Postwisselkantoor' is a Post Office which was authorised to sell Postal Orders, i.e. 'Money Order Office and Savings Bank Department'.

References
Drysdall, A.R., (1995), Transvaal; Revenue and Telegraph Stamps, Limassol, pp.35-40.

Drysdall, A.R., (1997), ‘MaGilvray …..', The Transvaal Philatelist, February 1997, p.10.

Raymond, J.H., (October, 1893), International Dealers Directory, Chicago, [The British Library shelfmark: Crawford 780(13)].

Van der Vliet, O., (2011),‘Queen's Head" Revenue on Cover’, The Transvaal Philatelist, August 2011, 179/64.