A Mogilev Curiousity
by David Jay
Mogilev Gubernia "N" registration label, with 25/7/14 date mark (also serial "N"). Note that the 3x7k
Romanov stamps were cancelled the next day (Mogilev Gub "d"?), 26/7/14. The letter was sent to Suvalki,
were it was received 28/7/14. The major curiosity here is the 25/7/14 mark, which says "Sklade S.
Morshchiner'" at the bottom, as closely as I can decipher it. What kind of mark is this, with its
matching registration label - perhaps a city post, or a contract post office (like those sometimes
found in apothecaries)? My dictionary suggests that "Sklade" may mean warehouse of depot - don't know if
this correct. There is also some sort of symbol at the bottom of the 26/7/14 cancels on the reverse. It
could be "N", or "4" to match the "d", or just about anything.
It would be helpful if I could spell "curiosity" correctly. Anyway, I'll add the rest
of the images.
09.11.02 00:14Added by Philip Robinson
09.11.02 04:17Added by Gary
I think the sklad is E.S. Morshiner. The letter is from a doctor ... to a "Suval'sk. doctor inspector."
Anatoly could help here.
Nice cover!!
09.11.02 04:42Added by David Jay
I'm pleased to have this confirmed as one of the elusive private post agency
office types. That's exciting!
One further point -- The "N" on the registration label matches the "N" on the
ciruclar cancel -- its a little hard to see on the cancel, but its at 9PM.
This may mean that these offices were number "A" to at least "N", so that there
should be a few other examples out there...
09.11.02 14:56Added by Philip Robinson
09.11.02 16:40Added by Anatoly
I don't think that I can add too much to the said above apart from confirming that correct spelling is
"Sklad E. S. Morshchiner" and a very important remark made by Philip: "It seems clear that the Mogilev
main post office had assigned the serial ‘N’ to this private agency. ... It depends on whether the
sequence of serials relates only to agency offices, or to all the postmarks used at the Mogilev main
office." I think that the last is correct as a PO in town of Mogilev size had about 20 postmarks.
In fact I was not able to understand the real status of the private agencies but this postmark is the first sample which may help to solve the problem, - as it's most likely that "N" relates to all postmarks at the Mogilev main office it means that the private agencies acted as remote counters of the the main PO than branch offices. If it's really so, that's the reason why official sources (as Post and Telegraph journal) never mentioned any information about private agencies as it looks that they were not separate offices but divisions of the main PO in a town or an area.
10.11.02 02:01Added by David Jay
Some further thoughts -
1. Remarks by Philip and Anatoly that the serial "N" is in sequence with the rest of the Mogilev marks is interesting, especially the point that they would be viewed as desks of the main post office, not separate offices. This is a really significant idea about the status of such offices (or desks, as the case may be).
2. This leads to the second point, inferred by Philip. These marks are very difficult to find, because these offices or desks often left stamps uncancelled. Thus, most post cards and regular letters sent via these offices would not bear any evidence of their origin, because a cancel would have been applied elsewhere. Only registered letters provide the requisite information. So why didn't they cancel stamps? And why does one occasionally find loose stamps and covers with stamps cancelled by these offices? For example, I have Apt. Mag. I 2/4/12 mark from Kazan on a pair of 7k -- this was discussed a while back on the visitors board in a response to Mirom Lam. The Hotel Bristol also cancelled the stamps on the back of the letter posted separately I also have Vilna Ap II (no datemark at all, only a label), and Lida Ap I, label and mark, where cancels were NOT applied to stamps. I believe these were posted on the visitors board some while ago. Does this diverse behavior reflect a substantive difference in status, or merely diversity between cities in handling offices that were not creatures of the imperial post (at least not directly), so not very clearly regulated?
3. There is a minor quibble to make (I think) about the offices that describe themselves as "Chastnoe Pocht Agentsvo". In addition to Rengu and Vendau, there is Tabbifer, Lifland, and probably others. Despite the wording on the cancel, these are all listed in the PO list compiled by Anatoly as having "Operatsia" status. Thus, these offices are presumably equivalent to a offices bearing a wide variety of other names like "Pocht Operatsia". Some Pocht Operatsia in Lifland, like Imenie Seswegen (posted here a couple of years ago) and Ney Shwanenburg give no hint of their status, except that the canceller is a little eccentric, saying "Lifl. Gub." at the bottom. My tentative interpretation of this diversity of nomenclature is that it has to do with what company made the marks, and when - different batches were worded differently. There could, however, be more to it than this.
10.11.02 04:29Added by Anatoly
2. as the postmarks were used by remote desks or counters the regulations were issues by the particular
PO which arranged the service. I think in most cases their functions were to service registered mail only
as for collecting common mail letter boxes were used (so for collecting common mail there was no need to
arrange a special desk). Also it's not clear if the registered mail was collected by a proper postal
employee who worked at a rented desk at the agency or the mail was collected by someone from the agency
staff, - I think both could be possible depending the possible amount of mail per day. So a postal
emloyee could be responsible for checking the postage paid and cancelling stamps. In case of a freelancer
arranged I don't think that the PO could allow anything more than record the registered mail and pass it
to the PO.
3. it's a very interesting question and it was very copmlicated for me while I was working with the PO list.
Actually anything apart from the state PO, PK, PTO, PTK was mentioned in the official sources as "operations" but defining "common mail only", "common and registetred mail" and " all sorts of mail". The biggest problem was "common mail only" - it took a couple of years before I have found that all information which I collected about this type of offices was useless, - they had no postmarks and acted just as remote letter boxes and postmen for delivery common mail (NO postmarks from the offices have been seen as they doesn't exist). Two other types also partically the same from postmarks point of view - always manned with one person with one postmark, set of registration lables (the only difference that "all sort of mail" had labels for insured mail too)
Although im most cases it was stated where the operations were opened/closed - volostnoe pravlenie, railway station and similar ones but in some cases it was not clear what could be stated at actual postmarks. Say original recording on Rengu, Lifl. stated "operations with all sort of mail in imenie Rengu" which could write anything at their postmarks (the 1903 rules on postmarks design stated only stations and VP but nothing was said about numerous bodies which arranged postal service using the same rules as those for stations and VP). From the General post point of view it was no difference with whom to make the arrangement with a VP or a private person as in both cases they were semi-postal offices. So in those cases when I was not sure what it could be stated at the postmarks I left "operatrions" - in some cases it was indeed, - say "Bulun, Yakutsk" postmark.
10.11.02 21:14Added by algor
I can suggest, that russian letter "H" means "narochnyi" (courier), who applied this marks by cansel and
label and next day delivered to post offie.
11.11.02 01:54Added by Anatoly
Courier post was introduced in 1920's and used before WWII. As far as I know this type of delivery was
not available publicly in Russian Empire. As for "Feldeger post" it was available before the revolution
and exists untill nowadays but it has nothing with the general postal service. Also for this type of post
it's impossible to delay a pack during ONE DAY!!! (according my own experience - a pack sent within
European part of Russia is in hands of the addresse during 3 or 4 hours after posting) Moreover they
don't use postmarks at all, - just a label stating day, hour and minute of collecting and the same for
delivery.
11.11.02 21:12Added by Philip Robinson
It is clear that this subject is no simpler than any other aspect of Imperial Russian postal history and
it will be a long time before we have all the answers - but of course, this is all part of its appeal.
Having sorted out my data on the subject I can offer these three drawings for what they are worth. They
came originally from Harry von Hofmann, and form part of his Latvia study.
16.11.02 00:36Added by Vladimir
To add to this very interesting discussion, I'm showing some postmarks of this type. I have postcard and registered cover with hotel Bristol postmarks and regisration label. But both postmarks have serial "B" and doesn't help unfortunatelly.
17.11.02 02:59Added by Anatoly
Ragardiding the Selsko-Khozyaystvennoe Uchilishche Kazan postmark - it's listed at our site under Kazan.
This is town post branch office in Kazan (recorded in official sources) but using a strage way of spelling instead of Kazan - Selsko-Khozyaystvennoe Uchilishche (i.e using the same way as another Kazan branch office Kazan - Admiralteyskaya Slododa)