BULLETIN 136  -  October 2005

1884 - History in the making  

‘LE STANLEY ’

by Walter Deynckens

 As reported in ‘The ( London ) Graphic’ – January 12th 1884

“Le Stanley,” A steam launch built for the use of Mr. Stanley on the Upper Congo

              MR. H. M. STANLEY’S CONGO LAUNCH

Messrs Yarrow and Co., of Poplar, who are well known for their novelties in river-going craft, made a trial last Saturday of a small steamer (christened Le Stanley) intended for the upper waters of the Congo . She has been built for the International Association of Brussels, under the patronage of the King of the Belgians, and will be placed under the orders of Mr. H.M.Stanley, the explorer.

The launch is of exceptionally shallow draft; and, on account of the numerous rapids and cataracts, she is designed with a view to overland transport. She has, therefore, been constructed of six square shaped pontoons of galvanised steel, watertight and buoyant, together with a bow-piece and stern-piece. These can be quickly joined together or disunited, and, when complete, make a hull 70 feet long by 18 feet beam. The engines drive a paddle situated aft, well clear of the stern. The boilers are made with capacious grates for burning wood. The vessel is completely covered as a protection against the burning sun of that climate.

It is intended to ship Le Stanley in sections to the mouth of the Congo . There she will be put together and steam up the river as far as is navigable; then she will be taken to pieces for up-country transport. For this work 500 natives have already been engaged, and the various boat-sections will be, for the time being, ingeniously converted into bodies of wagons for the conveyance of the lighter portions of machinery, stores etc. The trial trip was very satisfactory: with a steam pressure of 100lb. a speed of 10 miles an hour was obtained, and she steered with marvellous ease.

The Stern wheel ‘Delivrance’

Bateau Poste cancellation

Model of a s/s Delivrance as sold at Bernaerts

 On the 21^st June 2005, the auction house Bernaerts in Antwerp sold a model of a “Delivrance” stern wheel steamer for a price of 500 euro. It was previously owned by the Maritime Museum ‘Het Steen’ in Antwerp and had been made to scale in accordance with the original plans.

Manuscript ‘Sita, 1^st May 1903’

 ‘Parti de Bandundu, le 14 avril par S.S. Delivrance I, arrivé à Sita le 28 avril.’

Over a period of time, no fewer than six such steamers served on the upper Congo and lake Leopold II.Records show that these riverboats were launched as follows:

Each of the six steamers had an approximate gross weight of 20 tons.

In the Cockrill Series booklet No. 43, Abbé Gudenkauf refers to the use of a Bateau-Poste cancellation with number No. 4, presumably on the Delivrance 3 or 4.

After 1902 no Bateau-Post cancellations were used on any other of the steamers but it is known that a few years later, letterboxes were placed on both the Delivrance 5 and 6.

Burundi – African Animals and ‘WWF’ overprints

(COB 879-891 and COB 891-904)

By – Walter Deijnckens

The only Burundi issue during 1982 was a series of 13 stamps depicting African animals. The stamps were face valued at 2, 3, 5, 10, 20, 25, 30, 50, 60, 65, 70, 75 and 85 francs. In April 1983 the same series was overprinted with a W.W.F. (World Wild life Fund) emblem. The peculiar thing about these issues is that they are now so highly priced in the Official Catalogue at 1,250 euro for the mint set and 800 euros used. The second W.W.F. overprinted series is priced at 1000 euros mint and 800 euros used.

No other Burundi series are so highly priced - why is this so?

Figure 1

At the time they were issued, there was no ‘foreign stamp agency’ present in Burundi to promote or manage the sale of these two series. It was also said that the number of stamps issued was minimal and for local use, but the following year when the stamps were overprinted with the W.W.F. emblem, the demand was so great that prices went sky high.

It is also claimed that after 15 days the first series had already sold out, which just cannot be true as a large quantity were overprinted with the W.W.F. logo in April 1983. Whatever the facts, this W.W.F. issue is one of the most expensive of all such series.

 With this knowledge, the first thing a collector does is to look for these treasures in his own collection and this is what I found.

 1^st issue – COB 879-891

Figures 1. illustrates an example of the 5fr value and Figure 2. the 25fr. and two of the 85fr.  Each has been cancelled by the blue circular canceller of ‘Bujumbura Aeroport’.

Figure 2

Figure 3                                                    Figure 4

Figure 3, bears the 70fr. value and is cancelled by the  ‘ Bujumbura CT ’ wavy-line machine canceller, clearly dated 22 June 1982.

Figure 4, bearing the 75fr. stamp was cancelled by the steel ‘ Bujumbura 1’, dated 5 December 1985

Figure 5                                                                                            Figure 6

Figures 5 and 6 illustrate examples of the 20fr. and 60fr. stamps respectively, and both are cancelled by the ‘ Bujumbura 1 Guichets’ meter mark - 5 May and 6 December 1982.

Figure 7

Figure 7. Finally from this first series there is an example of the 65 fr. value cancelled by the circular Kayanza postmark, dated 2 May 1985.

2nd issue W.W.F. – COB 892-904

I am able to illustrate four examples from the 1983 W.W.F.series, cancelled variously at Bujumbura and Muyinga

Figure 8

Figure 8. – This cover included a ‘medical sample’ and is duly endorsed ‘Échantillon medical’. It has a nice strip of three of the 50fr. value cancelled ‘ Bujumbura 1B’ as well as ‘Cachets Gommés’ labels ¹. These read ‘Regie des Postes / Regie der Posterijen’ and were applied and cancelled in Antwerp indicating that the letter was ‘damaged on arrival.’ – presumably the sample had gone!

Figure 9                                                             Figure 10

Figure 9 shows another example of the 50fr., this time cancelled with the ‘ Bujumbura 1 CT’ single circle, 30 July 1985.  

Figure 10 illustrates the 65fr. value and was cancelled with the circular ‘Bujumbura Aeroport’, 13 August 1982.  

Figure 11.

Figure 11 bears the 60fr. and was cancelled at Muyinga, 17 June 1989.

Conclusion: 

Without any special effort or particular reason to seek out these ‘Animal’ stamp covers, it was possible to find and buy them inexpensively. The reason why these two series have such a high value is because the subject matter is of particular interest to thematic collectors. It is a question of popularity, supply and demand.

  (1) For further information on ‘Labels’ – refer to Bulletins 94 and 95, Cachets Gommés. Lindekens

Foreign Censor Marks – continued

  Ruanda-Urundi  

By – Walter Deijnckens  

Preface

The present article is another in the continuing series and a summary of the findings made. This contribution covers correspondence originating from Ruanda-Urundi .

By virtue of the international movement of correspondence, it is not always possible to categorise mail simply under the heading of a single country. Typically mail to the U.S.A, or any other African continental or overseas territory, is likely to cross several borders and bear several nationally different censorship marks, labels etc. In reading this article and others that have preceded and will subsequently succeed it, an understanding of this fact is necessary.

French Equatorial Africa

Figure 1.

_{Covers examined: 2}

_{Mail originating from: Usumbura}

_{Addressed to: Fès ( Fez - Morocco ) and Pointe Noir}

_{Censored: Large 2 circle –}

_{‘CONTROL POSTAL Commission B’}

_{(Refer Bulletin 134 – Figure 4)}

_{Earliest recorded: 2 May 1944}

_{Latest recorded: 29 April 1945}

Bermuda

            ◄I.C./

Figure 2

Covers examined: 4

Mail originating from: Usumburu (3) and Kitenga (1)

Addressed to: New York , Chicago , Allendale  and Alpine ( California ).

Censored: (#6491) – CENSURE CONGO BELGE

Labels: OPENED BY EXAMINER – 2275, 1183 and 1655 (hand written), and 6491.

 Figure 2 - Examiner 2275; bears the Bermuda rubber handstamp I.C./

The other ‘Examiner Numbers’ are recorded as Bermudan

Egypt and Sudan

Figure 3

Mail originating: Kigali – 18 November 1941

Addressed to: Zurich

Transit marks: Usumbura (23 Nov. 1941)

                             Albertville (26 Nov. 1941)

                             Aba (10 Dec. 1941)

Label: Sudanese 2 line - OPENED BY / EXAMINER 18

 Figure 3:

Censorship: Two circle Egyptian canceller (20x10mm), reading ‘CENSORSHIP DEPT. M’ ( Cairo ) with Arabic translation.

Germany    (Refer also to U.K. )

Figure 4

Figure 4 - illustrates a letter from Kigali to Liege . It was posted 8 August 1940 and bears a typed inscription ‘jusqu’a Léopoldville par avion du 15 août 1940 – ensuite via le Portugal’.In addition to the ‘CENSURE CONGO BELGE’ and British ‘EXAMINER 4197’ labels, it was also directed via Munchen ( Munich Germany ) where the small circle A/d was applied.

Gold Coast

Figure 5

Covers examined: 2

 Mail originating from: Usumbura (30 June 1941) and Kigali (27 February 1941)

Addressed to: Bournemouth and Devon , U.K -respectively.

Censor marks: - PASSED BY CENSOR GOLD COAST, 7 and 8

(Refer Bulletin 134 for other numeric censor illustrations).

 Labels: ‘CENSURE CONGO BELGE’ and ‘GOLD COAST / OPENED BY CENSOR’

 Figure 5:

The censor mark  ‘PASSED BY CENSOR GOLD COAST 8’ was used at Accra .

Nigeria

Figure 6

Covers examined: 1.

 Mail originating from: Usumbura – 16 August 1944

Addressed to: London – received 15 Sept. 1944

Censor marks:

48 handstamp of Leopoldville

P.C.90 label and ‘Registered Accra Gold Coast’ – 8 Sept.

PP/27 – illustrated in Figure 6.

Northern Rhodesia

Figure 7

Covers examined: 1.

 Mail originating from: Usumbura – 28 Aug. 1942

Addressed to: Camden , New Jersey . U.S.A.

Transit: Elisabethville – 7 September 1942

Censor stamp: – CENSURE CONGO BELGE  

Figure 7 - Labels

i) incomplete and torn – presumed

‘ OPENED BY EXAMINER O/’

South Africa

Figure 8

Covers examined: 2

 Mail originating from: Usumbura – 20 March and 16 December 1942

Addressed to: Williams Port and New York ( U.S.A. )

Transit: Elisabethville and South African censorship.

Receiving Offices: New York (Reg Div. 2, Times Square station & Foreign 2.)

Censor stamp:

CENSURE CONGO BELGE (on both)

 Labels

a) ‘EXAMINED by 5853’

Southern Rhodesia

Figure 9a                                                                                                            Figure 9b

Covers examined: 1  

Figure 9a and b

– Mail originating from: Usumbura – 31 October 1941

Addressed to: Salisbury

Censored:

a) Straight line – ‘CENSURE CONGO BELGE’

b) Triangular –‘PASSED BY CENSOR S.RHODESIA / 1’

 Label: ‘OPENED BY CENSOR’

Tanganyika

Figure 10

Covers examined: 8

 All mail originating from: Usumbura.

Earliest recorded:

 3 December 1939

Latest recorded: 9 March 1942

Addressed to: Bombay (1), Chicago (1) and Dar es Salaam (6).

Transit marks: Dar es Salaam (en route Bombay and Chicago )

Receiving Offices: only Dar es Salaam

 Labels: - various  

‘OPENED BY CENSOR’  

Figure 10 - illustrates one of several but is typical of all those seen.

‘OPENED BY CENSOR’ labels: Recorded in this study – P.C. 6, 8 and 15.

Figure 11

Figure 11

Censorship:

Hand stamps –

 Straight line  

a)  ‘CENSURE CONGOBELGE’

b) PASSED No. #

 Numbers recorded - #2, 5, 6, 8 (?), 9 and 10

Uganda

                                        Figure 12                                                                                                 Figure 13

Covers examined: 6

All mail originating from: Kigali .

Earliest recorded:

28 August 1939

Latest recorded:

20 August 1945

Addressed to: England (3), Kabale, Kampala , and Louvain ( Belgium ).

Censor marks:

a) Cover to Kampala ; Handstamp ‘185’.

b) Cover to Louvain ;  - 3 line ‘PASSED BY CENSOR KAMPALA B’

c) 2 covers to England ;    ‘۞ / PASSED / N/25’

 Labels:

a) Figure 12 - ‘OPENED BY EXAMINER N/  ’

Numbers recorded - N/212, N/221, N/244

b)  Figure 13 -‘OPENED BY CENSOR’

United Kingdom

                    figure 14                                                    Figure 15                                                                    figure 16

Covers examined: 8

(Refer also under Germany )

All mail originating from: Usumbura, Kigali , Kitenga.

Earliest recorded:

12 February 1940

Latest recorded:

6 September 1944

Addressed to: Liege (Refer Germany ), Chicago (1), California (2), London (2) Brussels (2) – Figure 15

Censor stamps:

a) CENSURE CONGO BELGE ( Elisabethville )

b) ‘۞ / PASSED / P 143’ ( London )

c)  (Fig. 14)

43mm circular ‘London Air Ministry mark, inscribed ‘DDMO’

Labels:

‘OPENED BY EXAMINER’

Numbers recorded – Manuscript and printed:

United States of America

Figures 17 to 20

Censor marks:

 a) Figure 17

Circular hand stamp - ‘U.S.CENSORSHIP ’EXAMINED By’ 9837

 b)  ‘CENSURE CONGO BELGE’ ( Elisabethville )

 c)  Figure 18

Oval 3 bar canceller - N°1

 Labels:-  Figures 19 & 20

 a)  ‘CENSURE / CONGO BELGE’

 b) (Transparent) ‘EXAMINED BY’

 Numbers recorded - 5057, 5524, 5752, 5853, 6915, 30323, 30544, 30621, 30639, 30718, 30752, 30796.

Conclusions and inferences 

French Equatorial Africa – ‘Controle Postale Commission B’ was used in Pointe Noir.

Germany – The small circular ‘A/d’ was applied in Munchen ( Munich )

Bermuda - Manuscript or printed ‘IC’ confirms local censorship.

Gold Coast – Censorship numbers ‘7’ and ‘8’ were used in Accra .

Nigeria – Censorship mark ‘PP/27’ (42x18mm) was in use during the period 25.8.1944 to 11.7.45.

Northern Rhodesia – used a censor mark ‘O/’.

Southern Rhodesia – used ‘white’ censor labels.

Tanganyika - used boxed ‘PASSED BY CENSOR Nos.’ 2, 5, 8 and 10

Uganda – used a label with ‘N/’ and the three lined ‘PASSED BY CENSOR / KAMPALA / B’

U.K. – used censor marks prefixed by the letter ‘N and P’ and the special censor mark of the ‘Air Ministry’.

U.S.A. – ‘Transparent’ censor labels with numbers 5001-10,000 used in New York It has not been established where numbers in excess of 30000 were used.