Train letters and railway stamps
Once the last bus collection by the PTT had taken place, anyone wishing to quickly send a letter could hand it in at the (baggage) counter of a station. Handing letters onto trains became possible from May 15, 1927. To this end, the PTT had concluded an agreement with the Dutch Railways.
In addition to standard postage with a stamp, payment was also required for the service provided by the NS. This was done using a luggage or train stamp from the Dutch Railways. This stamp had to be affixed to the back of the envelope. Both the postage stamps and the train stamp had to be cancelled using the block stamp with the date of the NS station.
The letter pictured is dated April 1, 1941, and was presented at the ticket counter of the NS station in Bilthoven. The letter was transported by train to The Hague and handed over to the PTT by railway personnel. The PTT ordered the letter on April 3, 1941, judging by the note on the letter, as a postmark is missing. The name of the addressee is striking: HA ridder van Rappard. A very well-known name in Dutch politics. However, this HA is not the one who was a member of the House of Representatives, among others, for he lived from March 7, 1824, to October 4, 1877. Or could it have been his son? But his name was AGÆ. ridder van Rappard, and he was also a member of the House of Representatives and the Senate. He was born on August 30, 1871, and died on May 25, 1946.
The sender provides absolutely no clue. Or does a reader know who HA Knight van Rappard was and the sender? The street name, Daendelsstraat in The Hague, still exists. But here, only a parking lot with new buildings can be found, which has been extended by a footpath along the tunnel section of the Utrechtsebaan. In 1943, the temporary end of the possibility to send train letters via an NS station was announced. For on January 13, 1943, the announcement appeared: The NV Nederlandsche Spoorwegen has found it necessary to discontinue the opportunity to hand over items to the baggage desks of its stations and of the stations of the tramways operated by it under the present circumstances, effective January 15th.
And the stamp on the letter? This 7½ cent stamp was issued on October 1, 1940. The background of the stamp is the 3 cent 'Flying Dove' from 1926, which was executed in yellow-green at the time. Designer Jan van Krimpen designed the denomination and decorated it with curved lines. It is therefore not an overprint on an existing stamp. The stamp was given the symbolic name 'barred stamp'. The Netherlands behind bars... 
'@Cees, I think it says Jonkheer A., not AH, so that is the figure you have already mentioned.
Cees, there is another Knight Van Rappard (there may be or were even more), namely: Louis Rudolph Jules (Rolly) Knight van Rappard, among other things mayor of Gorinchem from 1939 to 1971.
Regards: Jan.
Therefore, it is not an overprint on an existing stamp.
But even if the 3c background had been green, it still wouldn't have been a print…
Dear Cees
I thought there were other train stamps in use as well, for example, one of 25, 45, and 50 cents featuring the NS logo and the front of a diesel train. Later, also a slightly larger 15-cent stamp with the text: NS and the front of a train. Or will those be discussed later?
Dear Cees, I think there have been more train stamps, very small ones (of 25, 45 and 50 cents) and a slightly larger one of 15 cents, all with the front of a diesel train on them.
Hi Henk, in total there are more than 200 different railway stamps of the Dutch Railways, not including varieties and types. In addition, there are also railway stamps from, for example, the Ooster Stoomtram Mij (35 different ones) and the Nederlandsche Buurtspoorweg Mij (21 pieces). If you would like an overview, I can recommend the booklet 'Spoor en Post in Nederland', published in 1979 by the Railway Museum in Utrecht.
Railway stamps from the period 1914-1979 are featured on Leo Bakx's web pages. With images, and in table form, by issuing railway company and period, sorted by color and perforation.
See http://members.casema.nl/leobakx/Spoorwegzegels.htm
The NVPH, which claims that the train stamps are not included in the catalog because they are not postage stamps, contradicts itself by including the Safe Stamps, the Internment Stamps, and the Postal Receipt Stamps, as these are not real POSTAGE STAMPS either. Safe Stamps were insurance stamps. The Internment Stamps were a stamp that imposed a restriction on the sending of letters abroad by internees. The Postal Receipt Stamp was for making payments. Therefore, these stamps should also be excluded from the NVPH catalog. It would be a good thing to include the railway stamps after all, but that is likely an illusion.
Dear Cees,
I have an envelope addressed to the same person, but sent in 1930 from Berlin to Valeriusstraat 148 in Amsterdam. If you are interested, I can send you a scan.
You're welcome, Hans! Please check the website of the Dutch Academy of Philately for my email address. Thanks in advance!!