[Illustration:  Stamp, “Seychelles”, surcharged 8 cents]

[Illustration:  Stamp, “St. Helena”, surcharged 1 penny]

The first stamp made in St. Helena was a six pence.  For a long time no other value was engraved but the six pence stamps were printed in a variety of colors and surcharged with the desired values.  The Ceylon stamp has been made available for revenue purposes, as well as postal.  The last stamp shown is from Shanghai.  Its original value was 100 cash.  This was overprinted “20 cash” and the equivalent Chinese characters in a double-lined frame, and again surcharged “100 cash.”

[Illustration:  Stamp, “Ceylon”, 15 cents, surcharged 5 cents, Postage, Revenue]

[Illustration:  Stamp, “Shanghai LPO”, 100 cash, surcharged 20 cash, surcharged again 100 cash]

There is an interesting bit of history connected with these surcharges.  The supply of 20 cash stamps was exhausted and the postmaster surcharged that value on eight hundred of the 100 cash stamps.  A tourist, learning this and knowing that the regular 20 cash stamps were expected to arrive at any moment, bought the entire lot.  But the expected stamps failed to arrive and the postmaster made a second lot of surcharges but on the 80 cash this time.  When the tourist learned this he wished to return the stamps he had bought.  The postmaster refused to take them back but, pressure being brought through the Municipal Council, finally consented.  In the mean time the 20 cash stamps had arrived and, not needing provisionals of that value, he restored them to their original value by the second surcharge, “100 cash.”

[Illustration:  Stamp, 1 penny, surcharged “Cyprus”, 30 paras]

[Illustration:  Stamp, “Antigua”, surcharged “Montserrat”]

[Illustration:  Stamp, “Bermuda”, surcharged “Gilbraltar”]

[Illustration:  Stamp, “Straits Settlement”, surcharged “Perak”]

This group illustrates stamps of one country or state surcharged for use in another.  For a long time Cyprus was supplied by overprinting the stamps of Great Britain.  In like manner Montserrat was surcharged on Antigua stamps, Gibraltar on Bermuda and Perak on the Straits Settlements.  In the case of Gibraltar some of the stamps were printed in other colors than were used in Bermuda.  The colony of Eritrea has always been supplied by overprinting the Italian stamps.

[Illustration:  Fives]

In 1883 a large quantity of stamps were stolen in Cuba and to prevent their being used the remaining stock were overprinted with the devices shown here.  These were the cliches used to print the control numbers on the tickets of the Havana lottery.

[Illustration:  Stamp, “Z.  Afr.  Republiek”, 1 penny, surcharged “Transvaal”]

[Illustration:  Stamp, “Transvaal Postage”, 6 pence, surcharged “Z.A.R”, 2 pence]