'I am sure amongst all British West Indies collectors there is one favourite colony. I have chosen Jamaica whose obliteration numbers have always held my interest. I first acquired the knowledge through books, magazines and articles and I feel this is the best procedure with any other colony. The obliteration is always found across the stamp: A. O1 then A. 27 to A. 78 can be found on all Great Britain stamps although these are scarce; A . 01 and A. 27 to a long list of numbers can be found on Jamaican stamps. I am sure if you look through the Jamaican section of your collection you will see many such numbers and to add a f ew more will create further interest. There are about 107 different numbers and types and some are naturally scarce. There were many changes in the postal history of Jamaica and one finds Mile Gully A.54 becoming A.55 but there appears to be no way of ascertaining when A.54 was replaced by A.55. Apart from the obliteration numbers one finds English cancellations on Jamaican stamps but these are always scarce items. There is also found the Letters A,B,C,D & E framed in a barred oval and these are the forerunners of temporary Post Marks. A. was used at Milk River - B. was used at Duncans. C. D. E . So far it has not been discovered where these were used. Only two copies of D have been found and it is ranked as one of the rarest Jamaican Post Marks These were discontinued on the 1st April 1877 when Jamaica joined the Postal Union and no new obliterations were issued after 1878. There is still some mystery concerning certain numbers; some had a short life owing to being broken and are, therefore scarce. In my few notes it is impossible to give a list but any query I will certainly do my best to deal with if you write through the Secretary."
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