Royal Reels: Gambling

Armed Forces

ALBERT JACKA, AUSTRALIA’S FIRST VICTORIA CROSS WINNER, WW1

This slightly battered and indistinct postcard from Egypt was sent ‘On Active Service’ to Mrs Jacka (his mother) in North Fitzroy, Melbourne on 2/2/16 with a message: “A very pretty Landscape of the Pyramids of Giza Lovely in the evenings how is George & Mary and your Mother Hope all well Bert The vendor stated that the card was sent after Albert’s evacuation to Egypt (Figure 1). The front of

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ADMIRAL BERTIE CORNELIUS CATOR of BECKENHAM, LONDON (1787 – 1864)

This entire has a strip of three of the 1855 Perkins Bacon, London printing rose-carmine TWO PENCE (S.G. # 20) imperforate stamps of South Australia postmarked with 2 strikes of the ‘empty’ circle & bars cancel of Adelaide as well as alongside the PAID/ MR 24/ 1855/ ADELAIDE S A in red. It is rated with a manuscript ‘3′, and unusually it has no transit or arrival markings on the

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A. H. FREELING, SOUTH AUSTRALIAN SURVEYOR-GENERAL (1820-85) [CANADA]

A long cover with a manuscript “On Public Service” addressed “To Captain Freeling R.E., Surveyor General, Adelaide” has a fine black strike of an oval “POST OFFICE/ MT BARKER” with a manuscript March 1850 in its centre, plus a red “Crown over ‘FREE’ in a circle/1850” plus a black unframed arrival cds “G.P.O./ Crown/ MA (fleuron) 1/ 50/ SOUTH AUSTRALIA” postmark (Figure 1). Arthur Henry Freeling was born in London

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A TALE of TWO SUBMARINES in SYDNEY HARBOUR 1960 [U.S.A.]

As luck would have it, these 2 covers turned up on the same day from two different sources, and surprisingly the two submarines noted were related in time and place, even to the point that the two had been berthed together in Sydney Harbour, at one point in time. The first large cover was On Her Majesty’s Service, with a purple stamping and blue vignette showing it was sent by

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A LETTER to BOMBARDIER H. WELLS, NOWSHERA, N.W.F. PROVINCE 1909

This fairly unique destination cover to a long-time troublesome area, now in the Pakistan-Afghanistan region, is related to a series of conflicts starting with the Anglo-Afghan wars during the imperialist Great Game between the United Kingdom and Russia which led to the dismemberment of Afghanistan. The front which was not seen is a real photo, b/w postcard of ‘The Blow Hole, near Flinders’. The reverse shows it is an Australian

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SIL ROHU (SYLVESTER EDWIN ROHU) PRACTICAL GUNSMITH

This advert cover was for “Sil Rohu, (Late A.I.F), Successor to W. Graham & Son), Practical Gunsmith, and Importer of High-Grade Guns and, Rifles and Shooters’ Accessories, 110 Bathurst Street, Sydney (Aust.)”. The red 1½d KGV head stamp was cancelled with SYDNEY/ 10PM/ 22 JUN/ 1928/ N.S.W. roller postmark with a slogan COMMONWEALTH LOAN/ NOW OPEN/ APPLY AT ONCE. It was addressed to Mr.H. Woodd Adams, Cookamidgera, NR. PARKES (N.S.W.).

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AUSTRALIA’S YOUNGEST WORLD WAR II VICTORIA CROSS WINNER

I almost can’t believe that I am using this advertising cover to introduce this important man, but there is a definite, albeit tenuous connection, so please bear with me. It is addressed to my boyhood friend who may still be alive so that I am obscuring his name and address. The 5c blue QEII stamp is cancelled with a HURSTVILLE/ 445 PM/ 3 OCT/ 1968/ N.S.W AUST. roller cancel with the

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