FILIPINO REVOLUTIONARY GOVERNMENT - SCARCE "COMUNICACIONES FILIPINAS ADMON. CENTRAL" CANCEL

FILIPINO REVOLUTIONARY GOVERNMENT

OF GENERAL EMILIO AGUINALDO (1898-1901)

2-CENTS POSTAGE STAMP (SCOTT Y2)

BLOCK OF 4, USED

WITH SCARCE "COMUNICACIONES FILIPINAS ADMON. CENTRAL" CANCEL

(DETAIL OF "COMUNICACIONES FILIPINAS ADMON. CENTRAL" CANCEL)

On November 2, 1898, a decree was issued formalizing the Revolutionary postal and telegraph service.  A set of three stamps was prepared: two for postal use (Scott Y1 and Y2), and a third to be used for telegraph service (Scott Y3).  These were closely followed by specific stamps for specific services: newspapers (Scott YP1), registered letters (Certificado) (Scott YF1), and telegraph services (Scott YT1 and YT2).  [Aguinaldo's tax stamps will be discussed in a later post.]  All were used interchangeably for postage, special services, tax payments, and other service fees.

The design for the 2-Cents postage stamp above (Scott Y2) is credited to Marcelino Gomez and printed by his company, Lithografica de Gomez, Sta. Cruz, Manila.  The printing quantity of Scott Y2 is said to be 50,000.

FILIPINO REVOLUTIONARY GOVERNMENT

OF GENERAL EMILIO AGUINALDO (1898-1901)

2-CENTS TELEGRAPH STAMP (SCOTT YT1)

BLOCK OF 4, USED

WITH SCARCE "COMUNICACIONES FILIPINAS ADMON. CENTRAL" CANCEL

(DETAIL OF "COMUNICACIONES FILIPINAS ADMON. CENTRAL" CANCEL)

Article 1 from the decree establishing the postal and telegraph system lists the rate for telegraphs:

"Article 1: There is opened to the public from this date the telegraph service, and from the tenth inst. the postal service, both for the territory of Luzon which is embraced in the jurisdiction of the Revolutionary Gevernment, and whose tariffs are:

Telegraph:

Rate for the first series of 15 words...$0.50

For each word in excess...$0.02

Telegrams of correspondents of periodicals, half rate

Telegram with acknowledgement of receipt will pay the surtax of a plain telegram.

The dispatcher of telegrams may demand the corresponding receipt upon payment...$0.06

It is apparent that Scott YT1 (2-cents telegraph) and Scott YT2 (50-cents telegraph) had clear purposes.  The printing quantity of Scott YT1 and YT2 is believed to be 19,000 of each.

(This post is based on "The Aguinaldo Revolutionary Government in Luzon", by Bob Yacano, and published in the Philippine Philatelic Journal of the International Philippine Philatelic Society (IPPS))