Royal Reels: Gambling

Business

EDWARDS, DUNLOP & CO. LTD, SYDNEY & MELBOURNE

The cover has a ms. ‘Late fee added’ and a boxed PACKET-BOAT, with 2 copies of the green ‘THREE PENCE’ stamps of New South Wales, canceled with a multi-ringed N.Z. postmark of Dunedin, but the date is not legible.. The vendor describes the date as 188(?). The cover is addressed to The Proprietors, Bradshaw Publishing Co., Dunedin , New Zealand (Figure 1). The reverse clearly identifies the sender as EDWARDS

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EDWARD WILSON & LAUCHLAN MACKINNON, ARGUS OFFICE, MELBOURNE

The On Her Majesty’s Service postcard had a black POSTMASTER GENERAL, VICTORIA, FRANK STAMP with a superimposed MELBOURNE/ PM/ 4.30/ 6.6.00/ 20 postmark and was addressed to Messrs Wilson & MacKinnon, “Argus” Office, Melbourne (Figure 1). As there is an enormous amount of information available on the two men I will mostly restrict my discussion to their partnership in the Argus newspaper.  Edward Wilson was born in 1813 in London,

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EDWARD KEANE, RAILWAYS & HERITAGE BUILDINGS, MAYOR & POLITICIAN

This One Halfpenny Western Australia Post Card is addressed to a tailor at Perth and the printed stamp is cancelled by a duplex PERTH/ 7/ NO 14/ 1891/ WESTERN AUSTRALIA with a G.P.O obliterator (Figure 1). The printed message on the reverse is for a Municipal Election, and reads as follows: Ladies and Gentlemen, – I would take the liberty of reminding you, that on MONDAY next, the 16th instant,

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HANS W.H. IRVINE, GREAT WESTERN VINEYARDS & VICTORIAN POLITICIAN

The long cover has a corner advert ‘BY ROYAL WARRANT’ over the Royal Crest, with IRVINE’S/ AUSTRALIAN/ WINES and BRANDY/ HANS W.H. IRVINE/ GREAT WESTERN/ VICTORIA,/ AUSTRALIA. It is addressed to E. Ormerod, Esq., Finsbury Distillery, Moreland Street, Finsbury, London E.C. , England. The grey-blue 2d ‘Kangaroo on Map of Australia’ stamp is postmarked T.O. GREAT WESTERN/ -3 JL 13/ VIC, a Telegraph Office cancellation. The reverse has no postmarks,

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HADLEY. J.C. & FAMILY HOTEL: ANTARTIC EXPLORERS, RUSSIAN PRINCE & ERROL FLYNN

This purposely provocative title is an attention grabber, and yet another two names should be added to the title, but this would be cumbersome. The cover that prompted this paper had an unlikely history that follows. The cover was addressed to Mr. Hadley, Orient Hotel, Hobart, Tasmania and the two red ‘ONE PENNY SHIELD’ stamps of New South Wales were each cancelled with a copy of the ‘Rays 455′ of Murwillumbah

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GODFREY FISHER’s TATTERSALL’s COVER, “CHARGE AGAINST AGENTS”

The cover has a pair of the ‘ONE PENNY POSTAGE’ stamp of Victoria canceled with the third Bairnsdale double circle duplex BAIRNSDALE/ AM/ 1 30/ 9.9.07/ VIC with the barred numeral ‘174′. It is addressed to Mr. Godfrey Fisher, 260 Murray St., Hobart, Tasmania and the reverse was not seen (Figure 1). Once again I can recommend David McNamee’s book ‘Catalogue and Handbook of Tattersall’s Covers’ (2006) which recounts how

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GIUSEPPE BELLANCA, BELLANCA AIRCRAFT CORP, NEWCASTLE, DELAWARE

The Airmail cover has 9 definitive Australian stamps with a total postage of 1 shilling 7 pence which are postmarked 3-AIRMAIL 3/ 1 30P 17 JA 39/ SYDNEY N.S.W. It is addressed to Mr. G. Bellanca, Bellanca Aircraft Corp., Newcastle, Delaware, U.S.A. (Figure 1). The reverse has no postmarks but has a blue circled Map of Australia with a printed ‘The Australia Hotel’ on the flap (Figure 2). Giuseppe Mario

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GERMAIN NICHOLSON, GROCER, LAND SPECULATOR & PHILANTHROPIST (1814-1888)

Most of the mail involving Nicholson is incoming mail and the 2 covers shown are good examples of the world-wide breadth of his mail. The first is addressed to Monsieur Germain Nicholson, Négociant (merchant),69 Rue Collin Est, à Melbourne, Australie sent ‘Via Steamer’ from ‘Bordeaux/ 2/ OCT/ 67′ by ‘E. PURREY, BORDEAUX’ and there are 2 examples of the blue oval ‘MORE TO PAY’, one for ‘4d’ which is crossed

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GEORGE WILCOX & CO., SYDNEY to MESSRS. SCHOELLKOPF, BUFFALO

The unusual salmon pink cover is addressed to Messrs. Schoellkopf & Co., 91 Mississippi St., Buffalo, N. Y., U.S.A. and it has the dark blue 2½d QV stamp of New South Wales cancelled with the duplex postmark of THE EXCHANGE/ 2/ (MR 25)/ (00)/ N.S.W. together with the barred numeral ‘113(4)’ (Figure 1). The reverse clearly identifies that date of sending, for the transit postmark is a duplex SYDNEY/ MR

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GEORGE ROMETCH: WEBSTER, ROMETCH, ASTOR MOTOR Pty. Ltd., HOBART

The cover was addressed to G. Rometch, 86 Collins Street, Hobart Tasmania. The blue 2d Queensland ‘Four Corners’ stamp was cancelled with an illegible obliterator and alongside there was an unframed EMERALD/ AU 13/07/ QUEENSLAND postmark. The two puncture holes in the cover were very suggestive of a Tattersall’s cover. The reverse was not seen (Figure 1). Another example of a cover sent to G. Rometch was found in David

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