Lot No. 1
1879 stampless cover to DETROIT USA (Apr 7 backstamp), ms. return of ”No. 1302 Lce. Corpl. A. Fleet 70th Regiment” [70th (Surrey) Regiment of Foot, Kandahar column], manuscript approval ”W. Barnaby Lieut & Act. Adjt./For Officer Cdg. 70th Regiment,” backstamps of Sukkur (Feb 7), Quetta (Feb 8), Bombay (Feb 21) and New York (Apr 4), on front red 22 MR 79 LONDON PAID (apparently applied as a courtesy by the British Post Office as normally the soldier’s privilege rate does not apply to non-British countries), front and back separated and rejoined, edge scuffs, very rare Second Afghan War usage to the United States, particularly interesting that the free franking privilege was extended to a non-British county, most likely unique, VG.
