Armed Forces

SIR MATTHEW NATHAN G.C.M.G., DIPLOMAT, GOVERNOR OF QUEENSLAND

This unusually addressed O.H.M.S. cover to Captain Nathan R.E., Secretary Colonial Defence Committee, Horse Guards, Whitehall, London, England does little justice to a man who gave three decades of service to many countries in the British Empire. It is postmarked with the Victorian ENGLISH MAIL T.P.O./ JA 25/ 98, which is partly obscuring the black MINISTER OF DEFENCE, FRANK STAMP introduced probably in 1884 (Figure 1). There is a printed

SANDY ROBERTSON, AUSTRALIAN P.O.W., ZENTSUJI CAMP, JAPAN, SHIKOKU

This Prisoner of War Post (Service des Prisonniers de Guerre) cover was addressed to NXE5101, Captain Sandy E.J. Robertson, Australian P.O.W., Zentsuji War Prison Camp, Shikoku Island, Japan. Ir had the usual Australian red Opened by Censor and the purple boxed Passed by Censor hand stamp, as well as a purple Japanese censor ‘chop’. The cover was posted from Melbourne on 10 March and it incorrectly appears to be dated

S.E.E. NAVAL YARD, H. K.: W.H. ORGAN, P.OW. JAPAN: LETTER from HIS WIFE

This PRISONER OF WAR POST, SERVICE DES PRISONNIERS DE GUERRE cover was addressed to W.H. Organ, S.E.E. Naval Yard, Civilian Internee, Hong Kong. It had the AUSTRALIAN RED CROSS insignia on it as well as C/O JAPANESE RED CROSS SOCIETY, TOKYO, JAPAN and a purple diamond ‘3/ PASSED/ BY / CENSOR/ 329′ handstamp and a red hand stamp of an oblong with Japanese print. The date of 30/ 3/ 43

RUPERT MAJOR DOWNES, SOLDIER, SURGEON & THE ST. JOHN AMBULANCE ASSOCIATION

This item appeared on eBay with an enclosed letter from W.J. Blackburn, Ambulance Officer, Administrative Offices, Victorian Railways, Spencer Street, Melbourne on 23 August, 1939. It was a form letter congratulating Lawrence W. Tyler on his success in the First Aid Examination. It explained the various levels of the award and wished that the recipient continues his studies to achieve the Gold Life Membership Medal in his 8th year. (Figure

RUPERT FORBES-BENTLEY, DECORATED WWI ENGLISH AIRMAN, in MALTA

Covers addressed to Forbes-Bentley have been seen on several websites and he was found to be an early English flier, a decorated airman in World War I, as well as a stamp collector, who made a new life in Malta. The first seen was a 1930 airmail cover from Victoria with the green 3d airmail stamp and the red 1½d Centenary of Western Australia swan stamp. It was addressed to

ROYAL AUSTRALIAN NAVAL VOLUNTEER RESERVE & TRAWLER BASE, GIBRALTAR

This registered airmail cover appeared on an Australian Philatelic auction site and it has an uniquely uncommon destination. The cover has a pair and a block of four of the one shilling Lyre Bird stamp, plus a single copy of the 1d green QE stamp, with multiple GUNDAROO/ 1 NO 41/ N.S.W-AUST postmarks. There is a Gundaroo New South Wales registration label, a red OPENED BY CENSOR label and a

ROBERT ROBERTSON’S LETTERS to his FATHER & BROTHER in SCOTLAND

Within one week I found three stampless entires from three different sources sent by the same soldier in two different Australian colonies to his family in Scotland, spanning the years 1845 to 1856. The covers will be described in order of the dates, from earliest to latest, rather than in the order of their researching. The earliest dated entire was found when I contacted a Robertson family member in Australia,

RAILHEAD P.O/ R.M.1., REGISTRATION LABEL: ‘TRAV P O/ AIF’ in PALESTINE

I need help with this cover as I don’t have access to the book which may give me more information about this interesting postmark and registration label. The blue Australian 3d KGVI head stamp is postmarked RAILHEAD P.O/ -1 AU 40/ R.M.1. The blue registration label R/50 has a typed Trav P. O/ A I F / 780, and the other significant postal marking is a red boxed PASSED BY CENSOR/

RABBI ISRAEL BRODIE, MELBOURNE RABBI & CHIEF RABBI of the BRITISH COMMONWEALTH

This printed to private order mint 1d green sideface KGV postcard cannot be strictly called postal history, and the front gives no hint as to the contents of its other side (Figure 1). PALESTINE WELFARE LEAGUE OF VICTORIA 118 Walsh Street,South Yarra6/3/30 The above message is printed on the reverse (Figure 2). I have not been able to identify Nahum Slutzkin, but do have a few clues as to the

THEODORE FAWCETT, SOLDIER, MAGISTRATE & W.A. M.L.C.

This English cover bearing the 1867 straw-coloured 9d stamp of QV (S.G. 110) had a Winchester / D/ JA 23/ 73 duplex with the ‘888′ numeral obliterator and was addressed to Theodore Fawcett Esqr, Pinjarah (sic) Park, Perth, Western Australia, plus 3 black manuscripts in the same hand: ‘Via Brindisi Jan 23′ and ‘Paid’ at the top of the cover, as well as the name of the sender ‘Mrs Fawcett’