1914 pc (un)censored with postage due

[Jim Mackay]

Submitted on behalf of a friend is this PC sent by "Molly" in mid August 1914 who appears to be located in France. The place name has been blue penciled out but there is no censor mark present. It seems that Molly may have arranged for the card to be taken back to Blighty and posted there. It also seems that he has anticipated the introduction of free OAS postage on 31 August but Foreign Branch has picked it up and given an unpaid penalty (1/2d postcard rate + 1/2d penalty).

Are our assumptions correct, and any ideas where the photo location is?

Jim

[Peter Harvey]

Hi Jim,

Interesting card. My first thoughts were who was Molly and what was she doing in France at this time, especially as the card is headed 'ON ACTIVE SERVICE' indeed we do not know it is from France, just as you say a French card. The writer states 'we are a few hundred miles away - sleeping in mud etc' so maybe early days with the troops.....August 14. It is not unusual to see cards from this period without FPO/APO marks and then due applied, I would assume the postal arrangements took some weeks to be established and many of the cards I have seen are posted in port on arrival in France, but not yours.

So I think it was more than likely posted as is, with no stamps rather than being carried by hand back to the UK.

Peter