Royal Reels: Gambling

Postcards

MATTHEW BURNETT, TEMPERANCE EVANGELIST, GRAFTON N.S.W., 1889

The New South Wales postcard has a purple printed ‘ONE PENNY View of Sydney’ stamp cancelled with a duplex GRAFTON/ MY 29/ 89/ N.S.W witha barred numeral obliterator ‘90′ over the stamp, and it is addressed to Mr. G.A. Jordan, Queen St., Grafton (Figure 1). The reverse has a printed heading I.O.G.T. Nil Desperandum Lodge, No. 148, Dear Sir, with a well written message ‘Knowing the interest you take in

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KIMBERLEY, TASMANIA to ALEX NORTH F.R.V.I.A., ARCHITECT LAUNCESTON

This Tasmania Post Card with the red 1d King Edward VII head was the third Tasmanian type of official postcard issued with this sovereign’s head, the 2-line inscription having been removed from beneath the crest of the previous issue. It was issued on a buff colored card with an early date of 4 September 1906 and reissued on a white card, with an early date of 1 June 1912, the

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REVEREND CHARLES M. YELLAND, VICARAGE, FITZROY from TASMANIA

I am having trouble with the postal markings on this Tasmanian Post Card with the printed red 1d Tasmanian stamp which is uprated with the same red 1d Tasmanian stamp to pay the rate to Melbourne. I agree with the vendor that the barred numeral is the second allocation ‘109′, but disagree for it was not used at Little Swanport, but it was for Lisdillon, Tasmania. The circular cancel’s is

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REVEREND HERMANN HERLITZ, LUTHERAN PASTOR in MELBOURNE

This New South Wales postcard has the 1d ‘Shield’ impression cancelled with a faint barred numeral ‘1529′ of Pleasant Hills and an even fainter reception postmark of Melbourne. It is addressed to Rev. H. Herlitz, Gisborne Str, East Melbourne, Vic (Figure 1). The manuscript is written in German, it is dated Pleasant Hills, 12 Nov 05 and the greeting commences as Dear H Herlitz. The writer is identified as E.

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DEEBING CREEK ABORIGINAL MISSION, NEAR IPSWICH, QUEENSLAND

The Post Card has single copies of th green ½d QV and the orange ‘Four Corners’ Queensland stamps which are cancelled with a duplex Toowoomba and the numeral ‘626′ dated August 9, 1903. It is addressed to Herrn Adolphe Feige, Bethel bei Bielefeld, Westphalen, Germany. There is a reception postmark of BETHEL/ 14 14 9 03/ bei BIELEFELD (Figure 1). The reverse is dominated by a photo of standing, seated

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T.H. NICOLLE & J.H. SMYTH, STAMP DEALERS, 14 HUNTER STREET, SYDNEY

It should be stated at the beginning of this paper, that the name of this short lived firm of Sydney stamp dealers was registered as Smyth & Nicolle at 14 Hunter Street, Sydney. The only reason for my reversing their names is on account of the unavailability of a cover to or from Smyth. James H. Smyth and Thomas H. Nicolle had formed a stamp dealer partnership in 1893, but

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PROF. MORRIS LOEWY, HOBOKEN N.J., MAGICIAN & STAMP COLLECTOR

A colourful non-Australian-related cover introduced me to the Professor Loewy two years ago and almost simultaneously I found an Australian cover sent to the same man. The Hoboken N.J. cover sold for a cool USD 6,000, the price can be attributed to at least 3 factors: it is a first day cover for the 1901 2c Pan-American Exposition stamp with a May 1 1901 machine cancel; the black vignette of

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MAXIMILIAN TANNENBERG, STAMP DESIGNER of AUSTRALIAN STATES

Two postal items have appeared at two auction sites in the past year addressed to Max Tannenberg. The first is a cover described as follows: “use of the India 4a 6p envelope from Rangoon to Melbourne addressed to Maximillian (sic) Tannenberg”. It has a RANGOON/ AUG 19 cds with an 8 barred R duplex obliterator and it was sent to Tannenberg, at his home address 19 Canning Street, Carlton, Melbourne, Australia. There

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BRISBANE WINDMILL OBSERVATORY & Q’LAND STAMP ILLUSTRATIONS

The pictorial postcard has the green ½d QV and the orange QV ‘Four Corners’ 1d stamps of Queensland, canceled by an indistinct postmark in the late 1890s-early 1900s and it is addressed to a person living in Denver, Colorado U.S.A. (Figure 1). The reverse shows an illustration of a series of Queen Victoria Queensland stamps, ranging from the green ½d and orange 1d which were used as postage on this

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DAWSON CITY, YUKON, CANADA: TWO POSTCARDS from CONSUL to CONSUL

Two pictorial postcards from Australian States were addressed to the American Vice Consul in Dawson City, Yukon Territory, Canada.. The first was mailed from Melbourne in February 1906 with the blue 2½d Victoria stamp and was addressed Hon. J. Carlton Woodward, American Vice & Deputy Consul, Dawson City, Y.T. (Yukon Territory), Canada. On its reverse it showed a black & white General View of Collins Street, Melbourne, with a short

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