Page 14 - Prepaid Reply Cards

2.3 HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENT: FIRST MISUNDERSTANDINGS AND MISUSES

2 ND HALF OF THE 1870S: PREPAID REPLY CARDS NOT VALID IN INTERNATIONAL MAIL
With the increasing usage of reply cards on the domestic level and within the countries of the «The German
Agreement» and the introduction of a harmonized rate system for postcards in international mail, more and more
double cards with paid reply were used to countries not part of one of the agreements. These cards sometimes
were handled without any complaint, sometime they were taxed or received additional franking.

German reply card franked at 10 Pfennige returned from The Netherland from the very small town of
Vollenhove (auxillary marking) and canceled with CDS Zwartluis 06.07.1876 and Transit Groningen 06.07.1876
nach Ovelgönne/German Reichspost. Even though there was no mutual agreement between Germany and The
Netherlands at that time and therefore the stamps were not valid, the card passed without taxation.

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