::: BOSTON ENGRAVED :::
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Hawaii's second issue was produced by intaglio printing in Boston, thus the name "Boston Engraved." They are
assigned Hawaii Nos. 5-9 in Scott Catalogue.
Only two denominations were printed, 5¢ and 13¢. The 5¢ value paid the Hawaiian domestic foreign mail charge
to handle a letter and deliver it to a ship bound for San Francisco. The 13¢ value paid both the Hawaiian 5¢
rate and the United States 6¢ rate from San Francisco to the Eastern States plus the 2¢ ship fee paid to the
captain of the vessel carrying the mail to San Francisco. For more detail on the rates, see
Foreign Mail.
For Reprints and Official Reproductions, click
Here.
For a Forgery Study of the Boston Engraved Issue, click
Here.
1853 ISSUE
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Scott No. 5
Blue 5¢ on thick white paper.
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Scott No. 6
Red 13¢ on thick white paper.
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Scott Nos. 5 and 6, the first two stamps of this
issue were released by the post office in 1853. They were printed on a thick paper,
varying from thick to very thick. The printer used a plate layout of
twenty subjects (4 x 5). This layout was used throughout all subsequent printings
re-issues and official reproductions of these stamps.
SHADES OF THE 1853 ISSUE
Two shades are noted for the 5¢ stamp. Most often seen is the medium blue shade. A rare, "Prussian blue"
shade exists, noted in the 1949 Gibbons Hawaii price list.
Medium blue
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Prussian blue
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For the 13¢ value, shades of medium red and deep red exist.
Medium red
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Deep red
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PLATING
Each subject on the plate has unique features, allowing any stamp of this Issue to be plated. Plating the 5¢
value is easier because the unique marks are more noticeable. The most dramatic plate mark occurs in position
2 of the 5¢ plate where a strong re-entry line is seen through the word "Honolulu" giving us the major
"Line Through Honolulu" variety on each of the 5¢ stamps made from position 2.
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Scott No. 5
Line Through Honolulu
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Click Here for details on how to Plate the 5¢ Value.
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Click Here for details on how to Plate the 13¢ Value.
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DOUBLE ENTRY
A double entry has been detected on the 13¢ stamp in plate position three. It appears as a small dot to the
right of the figure "8" in the right panel where the number "8" was re-entered.
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SLIPPED PRINT
A "slipped print" anomaly exists in Scott No. 6.
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Scott No. 6
Slipped Print
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LATER USES & PRINTINGS
During the rate period in effect from July 1, 1851 to April 1, 1855, a letter pre-paying Hawaiian and United
States postage cost thirteen cents. Hawaii's 13¢ stamp paid that combined rate, as mentioned above. Hawaii's
5¢ stamp paid the Hawaiian postage on letters sent with United States postage collect.
United States postage on prepaid letters increased on April 1, 1855. Hawaiian postage remained the same. After
the rate change a letter with United States and Hawaiian postage prepaid thus cost seventeen cents.
Although demand for Hawaii's 5¢ stamp continued, Hawaii's 13¢ stamp found itself with no rate to pay. Hawaii
was thus left with a useless supply of 13¢ stamps. People with personal supplies of the 13¢ stamp used them to
overpay the United States rate by a penny and either paid the Hawaiian postage in coin or with a 5¢ stamp. To
avoid confusion in the United States, either the Honolulu or San Francisco Post Office often placed a United
States 12¢ stamp over the Hawaiian stamps.
Despite becoming useless, mismanagement of the supply of Hawaiian 5¢ stamps and also of United States 12¢
stamps created new uses for the 13¢ stamp. Also, continuing demand for Hawaii's 5¢ value created need for
additional printings.
- In late 1856 Hawaii's supply of 5¢ stamps was exhausted and 13¢ stamps were pressed into service as 5¢
stamps to bridge the temporary shortage. Some 13¢ were surcharged with a manuscript "5".
- To resupply Hawaii with 5¢ stamps, a fresh printing was ordered from Boston and it arrived in mid-1857.
In 1861, another printing was ordered. Stamps of these two printings were done on very thin, translucent
paper and the paper color for each differed from one another and from the 1853 printing.
- Supplies of United States stamps were kept at the Honolulu Post Office and were also distributed to
major outer island post offices. In early 1861, the supply of United States 12¢ stamps ran low so orders
from the outer islands for the 12¢ stamp were filled with the Hawaiian 13¢ stamp along with instructions to
sell them at twelve cents.
I. Use of 13¢ Stamps to pay Hawaii's 5¢ rate – 1856-1857
Accounting rules assigned a zero value to stamps until they were placed in use, at which time the Postmaster
General could assign any value to them. Normally, a stamp was assigned its face value but in the case of
Hawaii's 13¢ stamp, the face value was useless after the United States rate change of 1855. When a shortage of
5¢ stamps occurred in late 1856, the 13¢ stamp was placed in use at five cents. By early 1857, someone
conceived the idea of placing a manuscript "5" on the face of the 13¢ stamps to avoid confusion. However, it
is suspected some were sold without a surcharge before the idea was born.
- Mute 5¢ "Surcharge" on the 13¢ Stamps, Scott No. 6 - 1856:
An example of Scott No. 6 used without surcharge on a collect letter in
September, 1856, may represent a use of the 13¢ stamps for 5¢ before the idea to surcharge them was
conceived. No covers showing a mute 5¢ surcharge are recorded.
Scott No. 6
Used as 5¢
Without Surcharge
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The image to the left is an example used in September, 1856 and canceled with the Honolulu postmark type 236.11
(III) used for mail sent with United States postage unpaid. The date and postmark type suggest the stamp was
treated as a 5¢ to pay only the Hawaiian 5¢ rate on foreign letters.
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- Manuscript 5 surcharged stamps, Scott No. 7:
In January, 1857, Honolulu Postmaster Joseph Jackson decided to have a manuscript "5" written on the face of
some 13¢ stamps and sold them for five cents. Jackson made a few surcharges but left most of the work to his
clerk, future Postmaster General Alvah Clark. Many letters written by both Jackson and Clark are in the
Hawaii State Archives collection. In dates and other references in the contents of those letters, Jackson and
Clark frequently wrote the number "5". Clark's neater, tighter "5" is easily distinguishable from Jackson's
scrawled, open "5". Only four examples are recorded of Jackson's handwritten "5" on Scott No. 7. In the
literature, the Jackson scrawl is what has been called the Type II surcharge, with varying attempts
to describe a surcharge most writers never saw. For a census of the nineteen covers bearing the 5 surcharge,
see Scott No. 7 Covers.
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Scott No. 7
Clark Manuscript (Type I)
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Scott No. 7
Jackson Manuscript (Type II)
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II. New printings of the 5¢ stamp on Thin Paper
Responding to the continuing need for five cents stamps, Postmaster Jackson ordered a fresh supply made from
the same plates used for the 1853 printing. When the stamps arrived they were printed on a thin chalky white
paper. These stamps are designated Scott No. 8. By 1860, the five cents
stamps again were running low and a fresh printing was ordered made from the same plate. These stamps were
printed on a thin bluish paper and are designated Scott No. 9. Being from
the same plate as Scott No. 5, stamps of Scott Nos. 8 and 9 show all of the plate characteristics of Scott No.
5, including the variety "Line Through Honolulu". Use of the 1861 printing began in September of that
year, but covers with the 1857 printing are more common until mid-1862, suggesting there was a delay in
distributing the newer stamps while the older ones were still in stock.
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Scott No. 8
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Scott No. 8a
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Double 1
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Double 2
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Double 1 detail
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Double 2 detail
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Scott No. 8, issued in 1857, on thin, chalky white paper. The "line through
Honolulu" variety is catalogued as Scott No. 8a. Two sheets of this stamp
were double printed (Scott No. 8b). On one sheet (left image), the doubling is
most noticeable on the left of the stamp. On the other sheet (right image) the doubling is seen throughout.
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Scott No. 9
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Scott No. 9, issued in 1861 on thin bluish
paper. Other than the Line Through Honolulu variety, present on all stamps of the
5¢ value from plate position 2, there are no reported varieties of the 1861
printing.
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Scott No. 9 is seen in three shades of dark, medium and light blue.
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Scott No. 9a
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Scott No. 9a, line through Honolulu
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Backs of Scott Nos. 8 and 9 showing transparency of paper
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Scott Nos. 8 and 9 are printed on such thin paper it is nearly transparent.
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III. Mute 12¢ Surcharge on the 13¢ stamp
In 1861, supplies of the United States 12¢ stamp were running low at the Honolulu Post Office and were
exhausted at outlying post offices. The United States 12¢ stamps was used as a convenience to avoid confusion
over whether the United States postage was prepaid and also simplified the quarterly account reconciliation
with the San Francisco Post Office. Proof of the mute 12¢ surcharge on the 13¢ stamp is contained in
correspondence between the Postmaster General and the Postmaster at Lahaina who ordered a supply of 200 United
States 12¢ stamps from Honolulu. Instead of sending United States 12¢ stamps and risk exhausting the supply at
Honolulu, the Postmaster General requisitioned more of the useless 13¢ stamps from the vault, put them into
service at twelve cents and instructed the Lahaina Postmaster to sell them at twelve cents. Upon receiving the
instruction to sell the 13¢ stamps for 12¢, the Lahaina Postmaster wrote a letter expressing his surprise.
Whether other post offices used the mute 12¢ surcharge and whether they were used at the Honolulu Postoffice,
is uncertain. One recorded cover showing this usage is recorded bearing a 5¢ (Scott No. 8) and a 13¢ (Scott No.
6) Hawaiian stamp with a United States 12¢ (Scott No. 36b) stamp. Three other covers from 1861-1863 possibly
show the same usage but one of these covers received a negative opinion from Dr. Munk and the two other covers
inspection because of potential problems. Covers with a 13¢ stamp and a United States 12¢ stamp, sometimes in
combination with a Hawaiian 5¢ stamp, are known from July, 1855 to August, 1857. The surprise expressed by the
Lahaina Postmaster in 1861 suggests those earlier combination covers represent overpayment of the twelve cent
rate by people who had old 13¢ stamps in their desk drawer. An 1860 cover bears a 13¢ stamp with a United
States 12¢ stamp but its genuiness has been questioned.
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Mute 12¢ Surcharge on 13¢ stamp: The cover to the left is one of four
recorded examples showing the 1861 mute surcharge on the 13¢ stamp. This cover was prepaid 17¢ (five cents for the
Hawaiian postage and twelve cents for United States postage) with Hawaii Scott No. 8 plus a 13¢ stamp sold at 12¢.
A United States 12¢ stamp, Scott No. 36b, was pasted over these stamps at the Honolulu or San Francisco Post
Office.
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RE-ISSUES OF 1868
Re-issues of the Boston Engraved Issue were ordered by the Post Office to provide examples to the many stamp
dealers and collectors who sought examples of obsolete Hawaiian stamps. The re-issues were not sold for use
as postage, although technically, they were valid for postage. Used examples are all thought to be philatelic
favors. These re-issues were ordered in 1868 from the same Boston printer who made the original issues and
are listed as Hawaii No. 10 and 11 in
Scott Catalogue. The original plates were used for the re-issues and they
were printed on medium wove paper.
Some of the re-issues were invalidated by overprinting them with the word "Specimen". The overprint was
applied in Honolulu by the Pacific Commercial Advertiser under contract with the post office. A quantity of
No. 11 was overprinted with black ink in 1869. Another quantity was overprinted in 1874 using a different
style, also with black ink and, at the same time, a quantity of No. 10 was overprinted with red ink using the
1874 style used on No. 11. Thus there are two styles of overprint on No. 11. As overprinted the stamps are
assigned Hawaii Nos. 10s, 11sa and
11sb. Please see Reprints and Official Reproductions.
REPRINTS OF 1889
Reprints of the Boston Engraved Issue were made by the American Bank Note Company in New York in 1889. The
original 5¢ and 13¢ dies were reworked to repair substantial damage and new plates were made. Again, as with
the re-issue of 1868, the purpose for these 1889 reprints was to supply old style stamps to collectors.
Because the reprints were made from new plates, they do not share the plate characteristics of the original
issues. In 1892, a quantity of the reprints was overprinted in Honolulu with the word "Reprint" by the Robert
Grieve Company under contract with the post office. The reprints without overprint are assigned
Hawaii Nos. 10r and 11r and the
overprinted kind are assigned Hawaii Nos. 10rs and
11rs in Scott Catalogue. There are no
reported varieties either in the reprints or in the overprints. Please see
Reprints and Official Reproductions.
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Scott No. |
Value |
Issue Date |
EKU |
Notes |
#5 |
5¢ |
March, 1853 |
June 6, 1853 |
Postmark on off cover stamp; the
earliest dated cover is postmarked July 3, 1853. |
#6 |
13¢ |
March, 1853 |
Sep. 10, 1853 |
Postmarked on cover. |
#7 |
5¢ |
January, 1857 |
Jan. 21, 1857 |
Postmarked on cover. |
#8 |
5¢ |
June, 1857 |
June 27, 1857 |
Postmarked on cover. |
#9 |
5¢ |
1861 |
Sep. 9, 1861 |
Partial postmark with incomplete date on cover; carried to
SF on the Comet, leaving Honolulu September 9 and postmarked at SF on September 30,
1861. |
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BOSTON ENGRAVED COVER CENSUS:
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Scott No. |
Value |
Covers |
Time Span |
Notes |
5 |
5¢ |
38 |
June 6, 1853 to October 27, 1860 |
The total includes two cover "fronts", but not cover "pieces".
The EKU is on an off cover stamp (see table above). The earliest recorded use on cover is dated July 3, 1853. Four
covers have received "no opinion" certificates from an expertising service. One controversial cover received an
opinion stating it is forged but later received a certificate from the same expertising service stating it is
genuine. |
6 |
13¢ |
30 |
March, 1853 to November 7, 1863 |
Uses after mid-1855 appear to be paying either a 5¢ rate or a
12¢ rate as the 13¢ rate was eliminated at that time. Four covers included in the total received "no opinion" or
"negative" certificates from an expertising service, or otherwise require further inspection. |
7 |
5¢ on 13¢ |
19 |
January 21, 1857 to July 13, 1858 |
This stamp always appears in combination with U. S. stamps. |
8 |
5¢ |
82 |
June 27, 1857 to April 18, 1863 |
The census assumes auction lot descriptions are accurate but a
No. 9 could be mis-described as a No. 8 after mid-1861. Ten No. 8 covers listed were used after No. 9 was issued.
In addition to the covers, one piece is recorded with Scott No. 8 and a US 12¢ Scott No. 17. |
9 |
5¢ |
50 |
September 9, 1861 to May 23, 1867 |
See note regarding No. 8, above. The first usage date is
uncertain, as explained in the EKU listing. One piece showing collect mail with a single Scott No. 9 is also
recorded. |
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Scott No. |
Notes |
5 |
For a census and detail description of Scott No. 5 covers,
see Early Treaty Period – Scott No. 5
17 covers bear only the 5¢ Scott No. 5, of which three received certificates from an expertising
service stating the service had "no opinion" on whether the stamp originated on the cover. Two cover "fronts" are
included in the total, one of which received a "no opinion" certificate from an expertising service.
Combination covers of Scott No. 5 with another stamp are recorded as follows:
2 covers with a Hawaii 13¢ No. 6 and no US stamp;
4 covers with a Hawaii 13¢ No. 6 and a US 12¢ No. 17;
1 cover with a controversial double bisect US 12¢ No. 17 (diagonal halves of two bisected stamps fit
together to appear as one); this same combination is also known on an undated cover piece;
1 cover with a US 3¢ No. 26;
9 covers with a US 12¢ Scott No. 17 (one of which has a pair of each); also, one cover piece exists
with this combination;
1 cover with four of US 3¢ Scott No. 11;
1 cover with Hawaii 5¢ No. 5 on a US 10¢ postal envelope, Scott U18a;
1 cover with a US 12¢ No. 17 and 10¢ No. 15;
1 cover with a pair of US 1¢ No. 7 and a US 10¢ No. 15
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6 |
For a census and detail description of Scott No. 6 covers,
see Early Treaty Period – Scott No. 6
6 covers bear only the 13¢ Scott No. 6.
Combination covers of Scott No. 6 with another stamp are recorded as follows:
1 cover with a 13c Missionary No. 3;
3 covers with a Hawaii 5¢ No. 5 and no US stamp; one cover received a "no opinion" certificate from an expertising service;
4 covers with a Hawaii 5¢ No. 5 and a US 12¢ No. 17;
1 cover with a Hawaii 5¢ No. 8 and a US 12¢ No. 36b;
2 covers with two Hawaii 5¢ No. 8, a 10¢ No. 35 and a US 12¢ No. 36b (Dr. Munk believed the 13¢ stamp
on one of these covers was added by a collector );
7 covers with a pair of US 3¢ No. 11 pasted over the Hawaii Scott No. 6; one cover received a
certificate from an expertising service stating the cover originated at San Francisco rather than Honolulu;
3 covers with a US 12¢ No. 17;
1 cover with a US 12¢ No. 36b (this cover may be missing a stamp);
1 cover with a US 5¢ No. 76 (this cover requires inspection);
1 cover with missing US stamps
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7 |
For a census and detail description of Scott No. 7 covers,
see Scott No. 7 Covers
0 covers bear only the manuscript 5¢ on 13¢ Scott No. 7, all
recorded covers being combination covers, as follows:
11 covers with a US 12¢ No. 17;
1 cover with five of Hawaii Scott No. 7 and a US 12¢ No. 17, three US 10¢ No. 15 , a single US 10¢ No. 15 and one US 10¢ No. 14;
2 covers with a US 10¢ No. 14;
2 covers with a pair of US 1¢ No. 7 and a US 10¢ No. 15;
1 cover with a US 3¢ No. 11 and 10¢ No. 14, type II;
1 cover with a pair of US 1¢ No. 20 and a US 10¢ No. 14;
1 cover is missing a US stamp
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8 |
17 covers bear only the 5¢ No. 8, two of which bear a pair and another of which bears four of Scott No. 8.
Combination covers of Scott No. 8 with another stamp are recorded as follows:
1 cover with a Hawaii 13¢ No. 6 and a US 12¢ No. 36b;
2 covers with two Hawaii 5¢ No. 8, a Hawaii 13¢ No. 6, a US 10¢ No. 35 and a US 12¢ No. 36b (Dr. Munk
believed the 13¢ stamp on one of these covers was added by a collector );
2 covers with two Hawaii No. 8, a US 12¢ No. 17 and a 10¢ No. 33;
46 covers with a US 12¢ No. 17 (one of which also bears a US 3¢ stamp applied in the US to pay a forwarding fee);
3 covers with a Hawaii 5¢ No. 8a (position 2) and a US 12¢ No. 17;
3 covers with a US 12¢ No. 36;
2 covers with a US 12¢ No. 69;
1 cover with two US 1¢ No. 7 and a US 10¢ No. 15;
1 cover with four US 3¢ No. 26;
1 cover with two US 1¢ No. 24 and a 10¢ No. 35;
1 cover with a US 10¢ No. 35;
1 cover with a US 12¢ No. 36 and 10¢ No. 68
1 cover with missing US stamps
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9 |
For a census of Scott No. 9 covers,
see Scott No. 9 Covers
15 covers bear only the 5¢ No. 9, one of which bears a pair.
Combination covers of Scott No. 9 with another stamp are recorded as follows:
1 cover with a Hawaii 5¢ No. 9a and a US 12¢ No. 69;
1 cover with a Hawaii 2¢ No. 31 and a pair of No. 9;
1 cover with three US 1¢ No. 24;
2 covers with a US 12¢ No. 36b;
1 cover with a US 10¢ No. 68;
4 covers with a US 12¢ No. 69;
6 covers with a US 3¢ No. 65 and 2¢ No. 73;
1 cover with a US 3¢ No. 65 and a missing US stamp;
2 covers with two US 3¢ No. 65;
16 covers with a US 5¢ No. 76, one of which bears a pair of No. 9
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BOSTON ENGRAVED BIBLIOGRAPHY
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For a complete study of plate position marks, see "Hawaii, The Boston Engraved Issue" by Dr. Robert C. H. Lee at
The American Philatelist, Vol. 66, No. 8 [627], p. 601-607, May, 1953 and No. 10 [629], p. 759-764, July, 1953.
Dr. Lee illustrates each plate position for both the 5¢ and 13¢ values to show plate marks unique to each position.
An invaluable reference for anyone attempting to plate this issue.
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Bruce Cartwright. Jr., "The '5' Mss. Hawaii," Mekeel's Weekly Stamp News, Vol. XXXV, No. 30 [1594], p. 433-434,
July 23, 1921; reprinted at Stamp Collectors' Fortnightly, Vol. XXVII, [691], p. 288-289, Sept. 3, 1921.
Cartwright presents a study of the Jackson and Clark mss "5" based on letters in the Archives of Hawaii. On
independent review of the letters, it is clear Cartwright confused the two by attributing the Clark "5" to Jackson
and the Jackson "5" to Clark. With that clarification, the article is quite useful.
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Copyright © 1999 - 2006 POST OFFICE IN PARADISE. All rights reserved.
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