CHAPTER XIX INDIAN POSTAGE STAMPS

The first issue of postage stamps in India was made by Sir Bartle Frere in the Province of Scinde (now spelt Sind) in 1852. At that time the post offices of Scinde were administered by the Local Government, and it was not until 1855 that they were placed under the control of the Postmaster-General of Bombay. The Scinde District dawk stamps are very rare. There were three kinds: (1) the design embossed on white paper without colour; (2) blue embossed on white paper; (3) the design embossed on vermilion wafers. The design is shown in the accompanying illustration (Fig. 1), and the central portion consists of a modification of the broad arrow used by the East India Company. The issue was a comparatively small one, and the stamps were withdrawn from use in September, 1854.

The early postal system of India was solely used for official purposes, and it was not until 1837 that a public post was established. Postage rates varied with distance, and the charge was levied in cash, the lowest rate being two annas for every hundred miles. For this purpose copper tokens of the value of two annas were struck which were available for the prepayment of postage.

In 1850 a Commission was appointed to inquire into the working of the Post Office, and among its recommendations were the formation of an Imperial Post Office of India under a Director-General, the abolition of franking and the employment of stamps in prepayment of postage.

EARLY STAMPS

SHEET OF FOUR ANNA STAMPS, 1854. PRINTED IN CALCUTTA

There was a great deal of discussion between the Indian Government and the Court of Directors in London as to where the stamps should be manufactured; the former desired to procure them from England, but the latter, on the ground of economy, decided that sufficiently good stamps could be made in India. The first effort was a design of the "Lion and Palm tree" made by Colonel Forbes of the Calcutta Mint. This essay (Fig. 2), however, was never used, as the Mint could not promise a sufficient supply. Subsequently the manufacture of stamps was entrusted to the Survey Office, and after many failures Captain Thuillier, Deputy Surveyor-General, succeeded in producing nine hundred sheets of red half-anna stamps by means of lithography. These stamps are known as the red ½ anna stamps "with 9½ arches" and were printed in sheets of one hundred and twenty, consisting of twelve rows of ten labels. They were sent to Bombay on the 5th April, 1854, but after despatch it was found that the stock of vermilion was exhausted, and as the same quality of ink could not be procured in India a new ink was prepared and at the same time a fresh design was made. Owing to the fresh design, it was decided not to issue the "9½ arches" stamps. It is disappointing to think that this first and historic set of Indian stamps was never used postally; but the omission does not seem to have detracted from their philatelic value. Good specimens are very rare, and command a high price in the market.

The design for the ½ anna stamp that was finally accepted was one of eight arches, and it was printed in blue. There are three distinct shades of blue in the 1854 issues, varying from deep to pale. These stamps were prepared by engraving on copper plate and transferring to stones. The sheets consisted of twelve horizontal rows of eight stamps on paper watermarked with the arms of the East India Company. The sheets, dated May and July, 1854, were evidently made up of blocks of twenty-four stamps, repeated four times on each sheet. This is apparent from the fact that the fifth stamp in each of the third, sixth, ninth and twelfth rows is slightly out of alignment, and the sixth stamp in each of the first, fourth, seventh and ninth rows has had the chignon redrawn (Plate facing p. 180). The sheets are not perforated, and are without gum: 333,399 sheets were printed in 1854 and 48,831 in 1855.

The 1 anna stamp was printed in vermilion-red, and 26,897 sheets were ready by August, 1854; there were further supplies of 54,961 sheets in November, 1854, and 15,834 sheets by November, 1855.

The colour selected for the 2 annas stamp was green, and the printing was completed in October, 1854. There is no record of the number printed.

The need for a 4 annas stamp was badly felt for postage to the United Kingdom, which cost 1 rupee 4 annas an ounce in 1854. A design was prepared in two colours, blue and red, and the first sheets contained only twelve stamps (Plate facing p. 178), and the first supply consisted of 17,170 sheets delivered on 14th October, 1854; in all 61,580 sheets were printed. In April, 1855, a new setting was adopted with twenty-four stamps on a sheet, and two arrangements of this setting were made, one with the stamps much closer together than the other.

BLOCK SHOWING ONE THIRD OF A SHEET OF BLUE HALF ANNA STAMPS OF 1854. PRINTED IN CALCUTTA

All the stamps referred to above were prepared by Captain Thuillier, who subsequently became General Sir Henry Thuillier, C.S.I., Surveyor-General of India.

In November, 1855, stamps of the value of ½, 1, 2, 4 and 8 annas were received from Messrs. De La Rue & Co. The designs were engraved on steel and the stamps were printed on white wove unwatermarked paper with white gum. The 4 and 8 annas are also found printed on a highly glazed thick bluish paper without watermark. These stamps supplanted the old issues manufactured in India, but the stocks of the latter were not finally called in and destroyed until 1858.

In 1860 8 pies[7] stamps were on sale in India. These were required for prepayment of soldiers' letters to the United Kingdom. Up to August, 1855, British soldiers' correspondence was carried free of charge, but when this privilege was withdrawn they had the option of prepaying the postage in cash at 9 pies a tola (2/5 of an ounce) or else affixing a stamp for 8 pies. Up to 1864 certain changes were made in the colours of some of these stamps; the 2 annas green was altered to brown-pink early in 1856, subsequently to buff, and then to yellow. At the end of 1864 the colour of the 4 annas was changed from black to green, as the stamp had been forged.

The 8 annas and 4 annas stamps on bluish glazed paper, and the 4 annas, 1 anna and 8 pies on white paper, have been found cut in halves upon postal articles in order to pay half their face value postage. All covers found with these bisected stamps were posted in Singapore, which had an Indian post office at the time.

The first issue of Indian postage stamps with the elephant's head watermarked was made in 1866. The values bearing this watermark are ½ anna, 8 pies, 1 anna, 2 annas 9 pies, 4 annas, 6 annas, 6 annas 8 pies, 12 annas, 1 rupee.

The 6 annas 8 pies stamps were printed as this was the rate per ounce for letters to the United Kingdom via Marseilles between 1863 and 1874. The stamps, however, were not actually issued until 1867, and their sale was discontinued in 1874, when the Marseilles route was abandoned.

Up to 1882 all the Indian stamps printed in London were of smaller size than English stamps, and they bore the inscription "EAST INDIA POSTAGE." In 1882 new dies on a larger scale were prepared by Messrs. De La Rue, and the inscription was changed to "INDIA POSTAGE." The values issued were ½ anna 9 pies, 1 anna, 1 anna 6 pies, 2 annas, 3 annas, 4 annas, 4 annas 6 pies, 8 annas, 12 annas, 1 rupee. The stamps were printed on medium white wove paper watermarked with a five-pointed star.

On 1st January, 1891, the postage to the United Kingdom was reduced to 2 annas and 6 pies, and a new stamp was prepared. Until the new issue was ready the 4 annas 6 pies stamps were surcharged with "2½ As." Bi-coloured stamps of 1 rupee, 2 rupees, 3 rupees and 5 rupees were also printed and a provisional 3 pies stamp was issued, made by surcharging the ½ anna stamp with "¼" in black. The stamps of 2, 3 and 5 rupees were of specially large size and bore a later portrait of the Queen (Fig. 3). This portrait was also adopted for the 3 pies carmine stamp which was issued in 1899. Owing to the decision of the Postal Union to have uniform colours for stamps representing the initial rates of international postages the colours of the ½ anna, 1 anna and 2 annas 6 pies stamps were changed to yellow-green, carmine and ultramarine. This necessitated a change in the 3 pies from carmine to grey and in the 2 annas from ultramarine to mauve.

SPECIMEN VICTORIAN ISSUES

The King Edward VII issues of 1902-3 were of the same corresponding values as those of the Queen Victoria stamps 1882-1900. The colours are 3 pies, grey; ½ anna, yellow-green; 1 anna, carmine; 2 annas, mauve; 2 annas 6 pies, ultramarine; 3 annas, orange-brown; 4 annas, olive-green; 6 annas, bistre; 8 annas, purple; 12 annas, purple on red paper; 1 rupee, green and carmine; 2 rupees, carmine and yellow-brown; 3 rupees brown and green; 5 rupees, ultramarine and violet.

In 1906 it was decided to abolish the special receipt stamp and to use the ½ anna and 1 anna postage stamp for both postage and revenue purposes. A new design was therefore prepared for these values with the inscription "INDIA POSTAGE AND REVENUE."

In 1909 the double-headed telegraph stamps were abolished and it was decided to employ postage stamps in payment of telegrams. The value of telegraph stamps extended to fifty rupees, but it was considered sufficient to add three new values to the postage stamps for use upon the more expensive telegrams, namely 10, 15 and 25 rupees. These stamps are of the same size and design as the 2, 3 and 5 rupees issues, and the colours are 10 rupees, pink and green; 15 rupees, olive-brown and blue; 25 rupees, orange and blue.

The stamps of George V issued in 1911 were completely re-designed. The higher values with the elephants as supporters are very artistic. In 1913 the 2 annas 6 pies stamp was re-designed and the colour changed from ultramarine to bright blue.

In 1918 the United Kingdom raised the postage rate to India from 1d. to 1½d., and, to correspond with the increase, the Government of India raised the postage to the United Kingdom to 1½ annas. The new stamp was intended to be a dark chocolate-brown, but was printed by Messrs. De La Rue & Co. in a light chocolate.

In 1866 service postage stamps first came into use for employment on official correspondence. The ½ anna, 1 anna, 2 annas and 4 annas were overprinted with the word "Service." The first supply was overprinted in India pending the arrival of the stamps ordered from England. A consignment of 8 annas overprinted was also received from England. In 1874 the overprint was altered to "On H. M. S.," as shown in Fig. 4, and in 1883 the rupee stamp was also overprinted in this way.

Various other overprints were used by local bodies in India, but after a time the practice was forbidden. In 1911 the overprint was again altered to "Service."

The following overprints were also used for Indian postage in other countries:

Straits Settlements	1867-1868,	Queen's Head.
Zanzibar	1895-1896	"
British East Africa	"	"
C.E.F. (China Expeditionary Force)	1900 to present date.
British Somaliland	1903-1904,	Queen's and King's Head.
I.E.F. (Indian Expeditionary Force)	1914 to present date.

SPECIMEN EDWARDIAN AND GEORGIAN ISSUES

Overprints (Indian Convention States)

Patiala

1884

to present date.

Gwalior

1885

"

Jhind

"

"

Nabha

"

"

Faridkot

1886-1901.

Chamba

1896

to present date.

There are many varieties of the overprints in the Indian Convention States stamps and many errors, which have led to numerous forgeries of the different overprints.

A very exhaustive history of the postage stamps of India with detailed accounts of errors and provisional issues will be found in The Postage and Telegraph Stamps of British India, by L. L. R. Hausburg, C. Stewart Wilson and C. S. F. Crofton, published by Messrs. Stanley Gibbons. This is the standard work on the subject, and it contains many fine plates and illustrations. Part I, on postage stamps, is written by Mr. Hausburg, and no article on Indian stamps can pretend to be anything more than a résumé of his detailed researches.

One merit the Postal Administration of India can justly claim and that is the purity of its stamp issues. The simple design of the Sovereign's head has always been maintained and the temptation to issue fancy pictures for commemoration purposes has always been steadily avoided.