Page 34 - LP1478

The London Philatelist

A third similar cover to the same addressee is known, postmarked at St. Pierre on 24 August
1865, and franked with a single 10c 1860 Nova Scotia vermillion, addressed to the United States
(illustrated in D’Alessandris, 2012). The 25 centimes charge, for the mail boat to Sydney, was
probably collected at St. Pierre in cash, but not noted on the cover. The stamp is tied with a
strike of the Halifax barred oval.
Postage stamps of Nova Scotia were available for sale at the St. Pierre Post Office counter for the
convenience of patrons. On letters originating from St. Pierre and Miquelon, the circular dated of
St. Pierre postmark was applied away from the Nova Scotia stamp(s) that had been affixed to the
envelope at the time of posting. The Nova Scotia stamps were cancelled in Halifax with an oval
mute barred killer. There are no notations or marks on the covers that indicate that an extra fee was
prepaid at St. Pierre in addition to the Nova Scotia franking. Additional postal charges for the
subsidised St. Pierre postal boat to Halifax or Sydney on Cape Breton Island may have been collected
in cash, and therefore payment was not indicated on the mail item (D’Alessandris, 2012 and 2016).
Any additional postal accounting notations that could be placed on the cover, were probably left
off the envelope to avoid confusion in the receiving United States post office and to prevent any
additional postage due being demanded from the recipient.

The use of Canada stamps from 1 July 1867 until 1879.
Cross-border agreements for the exchange of mail with St. Pierre continued under the auspices
of the Canadian Post Office after 1 July 1867, when the Nova Scotia colony joined the Canadian
Confederation. The Nova Scotia Colonial Post Office was absorbed into the Canadian Post Office.
Existing cross-border mail agreements between Canada, Nova Scotia, and the United States
continued. From 1 October 1875, prepayment between Canada and the United States and the United
Kingdom was compulsory, but underpaid letters were forwarded and charged the deficiency. Under
these agreements, the prepaid postal rate from Canada to the USA was 10 cents per ½ ounce, from
1 July 1859 and decreased, in the period from 1 April 1868, to 31 January 1875, to 6 cents per ½
oz, if prepaid, irrespective of distance (Lowe, p107).
The convention of 1 February 1875, between Canada and the United States, agreed that the domestic
rate of each country should apply to letters of the respective parties. From 1 February 1875, to 30
September 1883 (Lowe, p107), the rate was 3 cents. In the brief period from 1875 until 1879 covers with
Canadian stamps prepaying the 3 cent rate to the United States from St. Pierre should exist.
Many Canada single, lower values (1c to 6c) of the period are known with legible St. Pierre
cancels (Millet). These result from uncancelled stamps on arriving mail in St. Pierre from Canada,
which were subsequently cancelled on arrival by the St. Pierre Post Office. The St. Pierre Post Office
was very careful that pre-1879, outbound letters for foreign destinations via Canada, bearing
Canadian stamps, were left uncancelled when entering the Canadian mails, in order to avoid delays
or additional charges.

Large Queen stamps on covers to the United Kingdom.
Figure 3 illustrates a 22 June 1871 Canada Large Queen 6c brown on a cover front (back removed)
mailed from St. Pierre to Jean Campbell King, Edinburgh, Scotland (Brigham). A hastily written ‘0.25’
for 25 centimes (or 0.25 Franc) notation, in black ink alongside the stamp, acknowledges receipt of
the payment collected from the sender, to prepay the letter rate for the St. Pierre-North Sydney
subsidised mail boat service. During the summer, mail was usually sent to the Nova Scotia port of
North Sydney to be placed into the Canadian postal system. In the winter months, the harbour of
North Sydney was usually frozen over, and the mail boat from St. Pierre was diverted to ice-free
Halifax. In bad weather, mail was sometimes landed at smaller Nova Scotia coastal villages.
The 25 centimes French colonial St. Pierre postage paid is indicated in manuscript, rather than
with a French Colonies general issue 25 centimes stamp, which was current at St. Pierre in 1871
(Stone). This manuscript notation avoided placing a general issue 25 centimes value on the cover,

129 – 346 September 2020