MINISTRY OF LABELS |
| DIRECTOR Francisco Huron |
ABOUT
At a post-office, labels Id. and 2d. each; covers lid. and 2$d. each. Stamp distributors as above ; and half ream, or 240 penny covers, ll. 2*. 4d. ; penny envelopes, 1/. 1*. 9d. Quarter ream, or 120 twopenny covers, 11. 1*. id.; twopenny envelopes, 1/. 1*. Id. Covers could be had in sheets or ready cut; envelopes in sheets only. The Id. carried £ oz., the 2d. 1 oz.; for greater weights the proper number of labels, either alone or with the covers, could be used.
The paper used for the covers, &c, was manufactured by Mr. John Dickinson, having coloured lines inserted in the woof of the paper. The adhesive labels on water-marked paper, had each the water-mark of a crown, and certain letters of the alphabet were inserted in the two lower corners of the labels, the letters being varied in every 240 labels, to prevent forgery. The artists employed were Mulready, Wyon, Thompson, and Heath. Mr. Wyon's die, and Mr. Heath's plate was a head of the queen. Mr. Mulready's design for covers was Britannia despatching four winged messengers ; the figures on each side groups emblematical of British commerce, communicating with all parts of the world. On the right are East Indians directing the embarkation of merchandise; next, Arabs with camels laden, and Chinese; on the left, American-Indians concluding a treaty, and Negroes packing casks of sugar. The whole design occupies rather more than an inch in width on the face of the envelope. In the foreground: on one side, a young man is reading a letter to his mother, whose elapsed hands express her emotion. Orfthe other side is a group of three figures, each one striving to catching a sight of the welcome letter. The whole is forcibly told, and suggests gratitude for the blessings of a free correspondence, or speech by means of written characters.