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3474

New Orleans,LA - Orleans Parish County - May 22, 1849 - French Letter :

Currency:USD Category:Collectibles / Documents Start Price:75.00 USD Estimated At:150.00 - 300.00 USD
New Orleans,LA - Orleans Parish County - May 22, 1849 - French Letter :
The letter sheet measures 10 1/2" x 8 1/4”, in black ink. The body of the letter is in French and contains an imprint at the top left corner (unreadable). The reverse contains the address in Paris and four stamps: one “Mobile” one Boulogne, and “Colonies Sec. Art 13”. There are two tears and three holes in the thin paper. Needs translation from French. In 1845, the British and French agreed to additional changes to the Postal Convention of 1843, resulting in a restructuring of the letter bill accompanying the mail between the two countries. 1) Under the new changes, unpaid letters from the Unites States via United Kingdom to France were now exchanged under letter bill accounting article 13. Although the new changes took effect on 1 December 1845, the new article 13 markings used at London were not ready and had not been seen prior to 20 January 1846. 2) Unpaid overseas letters were still exchanged between the United Kingdom and France at the bulk rate of 3s4d per 30 grams, with the U.K. share equivalent to 10 decimes per simple letter of 7½ grams. The rates on mail from the US were identical to the 1843 convention, but the letter bill accounting article changed from article 12 to article 13, and with it the handstamp used in London. This letter was written May 22, 1849 by A. J. L. Cavelier to Monsieur Lavallir, Director of the Ecole Centrale in Paris. It was sent from New Orleans to Mobile and forwarded to Boston. There it was sent via steamer to Liverpool to be forwarded to France. It is marked Mobile PAID and manuscript 10 paying the double rate for letters over ½ oz. It arrived in Liverpool on June 19 and was stamped in the red “Colonies Sec. Art 13." It was then stamped at the French Exchange office of Angl in Red on June 20, 1849. This letter was sent in the first period under the new accounting article 13. The folded letter originated in New Orleans on 16 February 1846, and was addressed to Bordeaux, France. It was endorsed across the top, "By the steamer via Boston," a reference to the British mail steamer carrying the letter from Boston. The letter was prepaid 10¢ for the U.S. inland rate to Boston. This prepayment was struck with the accountancy marking. The letter was included in the mail of the British packet from Boston. A clerk also marked the 32 x 16 mm boxed orange handstamp, COLONIES/&C.ART.13., on the front in the upper right corner to indicate that the letter was accounted for under article 13 of the letter bill [Ref: www.philamercury.com/covers].
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