Red Cross overprint stamps 1915
While browsing through the bins of mail at fairs and stamp exhibitions, one often comes across nice envelopes or postcards. Even though the experience after returning home from the Letter Fair in Gouda at the end of March 2015 was unpleasant: an unknown person had severely damaged the front right side of my car, resulting in a repair bill of 550 euros landing on my plate. I could have bought some nice things with that money.
Along with a number of other postal items from the Netherlands and former colonies, I was able to purchase the envelope shown above, even though it was clearly a fake, containing a complete series of Red Cross stamps. The series of three was issued on June 10, 1915, together with an existing postcard that also featured an overprint.
The issuance of the series and the postcard was announced in a communication from the Governor of the Netherlands East Indies on April 1, 1915. It read as follows: 'By Government Decree, authorization has been granted to have 100.000 single postcards, 200.000 1-cent postage stamps, 200.000 10-cent postage stamps, and 600.000 10-cent postage stamps printed in red, in the manner and in the presence of the officials as indicated by the Director of Government Enterprises, with the identifying mark of the Association 'Het Roode Kruis' and the designation '5 cts'.' The distribution of the surcharge on the stamps and the postcard was as follows: – Half to the Central Committee in the Netherlands East Indies of the Association 'Het Roode Kruis'; – One quarter to the Central Committee established in Batavia for the Relief of Emergency in the Netherlands; – One quarter to the Dutch East Indies Commission to be established for Support to Curaçao. Furthermore, it was stipulated that the series of 3 stamps could be used exclusively for domestic mail; the postcard also for mail abroad.
The Red Cross overprint was applied to the 5-cent postcard issued in 1913. The card pictured above was used locally, that is, within the country. It bore a note stating that the postcard was to be kept for the collection…. I do not know how many postcards were sold. As early as August 1915, questions were raised about what was meant by 'domestic postal traffic'. Did the Netherlands itself also belong to the 'domestic'? This turned out not to be the case; the domestic really consisted only of the territory of the then Dutch East Indies. That is why I bought the envelope, as it was addressed to an address in Paris. So, in effect, the letter was franked with stamps invalid for foreign destinations. The letter was sent on June 21, 1916, well over a year after the issue date. And perhaps the regulations were no longer known to the official who stamped the stamps. A regulation was even introduced which was published on May 11, 1915, in an internal communication: 'If items of mail destined for abroad are found franked with these Red Cross postage stamps, those stamps must not be cancelled. They are then outlined with a blue pencil and marked as invalid by placing the number zero (0) next to the stamps. The exchange offices ensure that the letter T is printed on the relevant items.'
The printing forms were carelessly composed, and consequently, many damages and variations can be found, as the two 1-cent stamps above show.
This naturally also applies to the 5-cent overprint stamp. Furthermore, it is known that the distance between the plus sign and the number 5 is normally 2 mm, but in some overprint forms it is only 1 mm.
On the overprint of the 10 cent, the distance between the plus sign and the number 5 is always 1 mm. And were many stamps sold? I think the revenue was quite disappointing: 5 cents on 1 cent, print run 200.000, number sold 80.005, surcharge revenue ƒ 4.000,25; 5 cents on 5 cent, print run 200.000, number sold 74.646, surcharge revenue ƒ 3.732,30; 5 cents on 10 cent, print run 600.000, number sold 78.170, surcharge revenue ƒ 3.908,50. The sale of the 10 cent, in particular, was a huge disappointment. More than 500.000 stamps of that value had to be destroyed. A miscalculation regarding the print run? That so few Red Cross stamps and postcards were sold was evident from a newspaper report in the 'Bataviaasch Nieuwsblad' of August 19, 1915: 'The sale of the so-called Red Cross stamps has so far remained far below expectations. Since such a noble goal is pursued through the sale, we do not hesitate to draw our readers' attention once again to these postcards and postage stamps. They are available at the post offices.' It did not help much.
Cees,
It may have turned out to be an expensive piece of mail, but console yourself with the thought of how many readers you have given pleasure with this article!
And hopefully, the person who caused the damage realizes the damage he has caused. Writing articles on all kinds of subjects and themes continues as usual, as do visits to philatelic events, exhibitions, and fairs. With that enjoyment, you quickly forget the unpleasant incident.