Lot
589 
(Retaliatory Rates) 1848 (July 30) Galveston, Tx. to Schwanden, Switzerland, folded cover with red "Galveston Tex Aug 2" cds with matching "10" prepaid rating, red "New-York Aug 11" exchange cds with large "24" debit h.s. to Bremen, carried by Ocean Line Hermann from New York Aug. 21st to Bremerhaven arriving Sep. 7th, various manuscript ratings; file fold, F.-V.F., a rare First Bremen Treaty cover to Switzerland. Estimate $200 - 300.
Bremen debited Hannover 9 gutegroschen (manuscript red crayon upper left). Hannover added 1 1/3 ggr. transit fee and debited Thurn & Taxis Post 10 1/3 ggr. Thurn and Taxis Post converted this to 46 kreuzer (blue pen in center) and added 18 kr. transit fee to Baden. Basel marked letter for 70 kr. total foreign postage (which included 6 kr. Baden transit fee) and 76 kr. debit to Canton of Glarus, adding 6 kr. for transit fee to Glarus. Total postage due included 4 kr. internal Canton of Glarus fee, or 80 kr., which was 1 gulden 20 kr. (red crayon lower right).
Realized: $800
Lot
590
1849 (Jun. 12) Cambridge, Mass. to Sornetau, Switzerland, folded letter with blue "Cambridge Ms. Jun 12" cds and matching "Paid" and "5" rating h.s., carried by Cunard Line Niagara from New York Jun. 13 to Liverpool arriving Jun. 25, London (6.25) backstamp and red "Colonies & Art. 13" framed h.s., Boulognes (7.26) entry cds, manuscript "40" kreuzer postage due, Very Fine. Estimate $150 - 200.
Letter prepayment covered transit charge to British steamship in New York harbor. From there, letter was unpaid. London debited France 3s4d per 30 grams bulk letter weight under accounting letter bill Article 13. Letter entered France at Boulogne-sur-Mer with the entry marking shown applied at Paris, showing the substitution of Boulogne for Calais when new railroad completed. Under French-Berne Treaty of 1845, France was entitled to 56 décimes per 30 grams bulk letter weight, or 14 décimes for this letter. Swiss marked letter for 40 kreuzer postage due.
Realized: $190
Lot
591
1850 (Mar. 28) Exter, Wis. to Schwändi, Switzerland, folded letter datelines New Glarus Mar. 25th, manuscript "Exter, W, March 28th" with unpaid "55" cent rating, "New York Apr 6" exchange backstamp with "34" debit to Bremen, carried by Ocean Line Hermann from New York Apr. 20th to Bremerhaven arriving May 10th, Zurich (5.16) backstamp with red manuscript "87" kr postage due rating, Fine, a scarce first Bremen postal agreement cover to Switzerland. Estimate $150 - 200.
Letter posted at Exter, Wisconsin (manuscript upper left corner), on 28 March 1850, where unpaid rate of 55¢ written in the upper right corner. A New York clerk marked 34¢ U.S. debit to Bremen. A clerk in the Hannover post office in Bremen showed 12¾ gutegroschen (ggr.) owed to Bremen with red handstamp. The Hannover clerk added 1 1/3 ggr. transit fee and debited the Thurn & Taxis Post 14 1/12 ggr. With another red handstamp, which was converted to 61 kreuzer (red ink on right). To this amount was added 20 kr. transit fee to Swiss border.
Realized: $240
Lot
592
1851 (Feb. 22) New York, N.Y. to Wohlen, Switzerland, folded letter with red "New York Feb 22" cds and pencil "21" cent prepaid rating for British open mail by American packet, carried by Ocean Line Washington from New York Feb. 22 to Southampton arriving Mar. 10, London (3.10) backstamp and red "Colonies &c. Art. 13" framed h.s., Calais (3.11) entry cds, Basel (3.13) backstamp with red "38" rayon due rating, Very Fine. Estimate $100 - 150.
Swiss postage due in German-speaking Canton of Argovie was 38 kreuzer (95 rappen), the postage to the second rayon for mails from England via France.
Realized: $170
Lot
593
1852 (Oct. 30) New York, N.Y. to Wohlen, Switzerland, blue folded letter with red "N.York Paid Oct 30" exchange cds and pencil "30" cent prepaid rating, carried by Collins Line Baltic from New York Oct. 30 to Liverpool arriving Nov. 10, red Aachen transit backstamp and matching "Franco" straightline, blue manuscript "fr. Ausg. Grenz" marking and large manuscript "3" kr. debit to Switzerland, Wohlen (11.15) arrival dcds and red crayon "10" rappen due rating, Very Fine, This letter was on the first voyage from the United States to carry Prussian Closed Mail. Estimate $1,000 - 1,500.
Letter paid single Prussian closed mail rate of 30¢ only to Prussia and not to Switzerland, which was allowed under the convention. Aachen exchange office marked "FRANCO" to show letter paid to Germany and "fr. Ausg. Grenz." in blue ink to indicate that it was paid only to the German border with Switzerland. Germans debited 3 kreuzer to Swiss for the transit to Switzerland, and the Swiss marked 10 rappen postage due. One of the 4,000 Prussian closed mail letters carried on this voyage.
Realized: $1,900
Lot
594
1852 (Nov. 20) Meredusa, Ill. to Stanz, Switzerland, folded letter with "Meredusa Ill. Nov 20" cds sent unpaid, "N. York Br. Pkt. '23' Dec 1" exchange debit cds, carried by Cunard Line Asia from New York Dec. 1st to Liverpool arriving Dec. 12th, various backstamp transits including Stanz (12.17) arrival, red crayon "190" rappen due rating, Very Fine, this is the only recorded example of the Prussian 48kr rate to Switzerland. Estimate $200 - 300.
Prussian exchange office at Aachen marked 48 kreuzer (kr.) debit to Swiss (39 kr. foreign postage plus 9 kr. German transit fee of GAPU. Baden was one of the southern German states that did not benefit from the 6 kr. transit under the U.S.-Prussian convention of 1852 until 1 January 1853. Letter processed on Baden railroad (datestamp on reverse) travelling south from Aachen to Basel. Swiss marked 6 kreuzer (restated as 20 centimes) as internal postage to Stanz from Basel. Early Prussian closed mail cover to Switzerland and only cover seen that shows 48 kr. instead of 45 kr, Prussian debit on a letter to Switzerland (two month period rate).
Realized: $475
Lot
595
1853 (Sep. 9) New York, N.Y. to Wohlen, Switzerland, blue folded letter with red "New-York Am. Packet Sep 10" exchange cds and pencil "21" prepaid rating for British open mail, carried by Ocean Line Hermann from New York Sep. 10 to Southampton arriving Sep. 23, Le Havre (9.24) entry cds, Basel (9.26) backstamp, Wohlen (9.27) arrival cds, red crayon "130" rappen due rating, Very Fine. Estimate $150 - 200.
Prepayment written in pencil lower left by New York post office. Once mails put off in the Solent near Southampton, an auxiliary steamer carried them to Havre and the letter never went ashore in England. French entry marking "ETATS-UNIS PAQ.AM.A. LE HAVRE" was used on letters carried by Ocean Line steamers to Southampton and then conveyed by auxiliary steamer to Havre. While not a rare marking, it is also not common. Basel marked letter for 130 rappen, the postage due for letters arriving from steamers to England going to the first Swiss rayon. Since Wohlen was in the second rayon, letter properly was due 130 rappen.
Realized: $350
Lot
596
1854 (Apr. 3) Highland, Ill. to Lausanne, Switzerland, folded letter with bright blue "Highland Ill. Apr 3" cds and matching "Paid 5" handstamp, red "New-York Br Pkt Apr 11" exchange cds, carried by Cunard Line Canada from Boston Apr. 12 to Liverpool arriving Apr. 24, London backstamp, Calais (4.26) entry cds, Lausanne (4.28) arrival backstamp and red manuscript "130" rappen postage due rating, Very Fine and attractive. Estimate $200 - 300.
Letter endorsed "by Havre packet ship" but sent in the British Open Mails because it was properly paid for that service. Postage due was for a letter via England by contract mail packet to the first Swiss rayon.
Realized: $260
Lot
597
1857 (Mar. 23) New York, N.Y. to Zurich, Switzerland, folded letter with pencil "5" prepaid rating for British open mail rate, partial strike of red New York "Br. Pkt" exchange cds, London (4.7) backstamp with "GB/1f60c" accountancy h.s., Calais (4.7) entry cds, Zurich (4.8) arrival backstamp and orange "95" rappen due rating, Very Fine, scarce three month period cover to Switzerland. Estimate $100 - 150.
London marked GB 1F60c accountancy marking to show France was being debited 1 Franc 60 centimes per 30 grams of bulk letter weight for unpaid letters such as this one. Starting 1 January 1857, the Swiss eliminated different rates based on rayons. The 95 rappen postage due was for any letter via England.
Realized: $85
Lot
598
1857 (Sep. 1) Newark Valley, N.Y. to Lausanne, Switzerland, folded cover with red "Newark Valley N.Y. Sep 1"cds with matching large "5 Paid" rating handstamp, red "New York 'Br. Pkt' Sep 2" exchange cds, carried by Cunard Line Arabia from New York Sep. 2 to Liverpool arriving Sep. 13, London (9.14) backstamp and black "GB / 1f60c" accountancy handstamp, Calais (9.14) entry cds, Lausanne (9.16) arrival backstamp and red crayon "95" rappen postage due, Very Fine. Estimate $200 - 300.
After the U.S.-French Treaty of 1857 went into effect (1 April 1857), most mails to Switzerland were sent at the 21¢ French Treaty rate. The 5¢ British and 21¢ American packet open mail rates were still allowed but not encouraged. In this case, only the 5¢ British packet open mail rate had been prepaid and 95 rappen was due at destination. Examples of open mail rates after April 1, 1857 are uncommon.
Realized: $400