The Early Postage Stamps of British Guiana. 393 
The F.)UR CENTS.—Next in the rarity comes the “four cents ” 
priuted on deep blue paper coloured throughout—another of the world’s 
great stamp rarities—-the value of which runs into several huudred 
Pounds Sterling. The “Four Cents” on surface blue coloured paper, 
though not by any means as rare, is at the present day valued at £150. 
The first recorded copy of the “ Four Cents ” on blue paper, was the 
specimen shown by Rev. F. J. Stainforth at a meeting of philatelists held 
in the old Mark Lane rectory in 1864. This specimen he purchased from 
the then leading dealer and cataloguer, Mr. Mount Brown, for £3. 
The FOUR CENTS on Magenta Surface Coloured paper, though 
not in the run with the above described varieties, is a scarce stamp which 
is priced at the present time at £25. 
The sequence of the issue of these varieties has only, so far, been 
settled hypothetically ; by a comparison of dated copies with the follow- 
ing result :-— 
4e, Magenta earliest date known 27 February, 1856 
le, do. do. do. 1 April, 185 (6 ?) 
4c. blue (blue throughout) do. 15 August, 1856 
4c, blue (surface coloured) do. November 1856. 
It is remarkable that although the colour scheme then, was red fer 
the le. value, and blue for the 4c. value, we find that in these provisionals 
the 4¢. is printed on both colours of paper and that the magenta coloured 
paper (forthe 1c. value) should have been more largely used. Possibly 
the stock of red paper became exhaust-d and recourse was made 
to a blue paper, but why the blue was not used at first is a mystery. 
The period during which these stamps were used was about ten 
months. It is not, however, to be supposed that there was a continuous 
deficiency during that period, but rather that the Post Office used up the 
stock of provisionals which were requisitioned by the deficiency early in 
1856, in conjunction with the fresh consignment of the normal issue of 
1853 which had been supplied by Waterlow & Sons in L856. 
The catalogues of the early seventies included a Le. and a 4c. on 
yellow paper, also a 4c. red brown ; the existence of which stamps are now 
acknowledged to be mythical. 
The Year 1860 saw the transfer of the control of the British Guiana 
Post Office from the Imperial Post Office of Great Britain to the British 
Guiana Government ; as the result of Mr. Anthony Trollope’s visit to this 
colony to report on the desirability of the change. With this alteration 
of control came a new issue of stamps of the values Ie¢., 2¢., 4¢, 8c., 
12e., and 24e, which were available for use not only in this colony but 
for England and other countries. Previous to 1860 all correspondence to 
England and abroad was prepaid by English stamps of the values of Is., 
