1933 to 1935 Signature Facimiles
Signatures
Covers
Stamps
In the initial few months of the Carías presidency action was taken to address the problem of easy access to stamps sold below face value and no cash available to pay civil servants. Particularly in Tegucigalpa there were long lines of civil servants collecting their salaries in postage stamps and liquor (a state monopoly). This resulted in a drastic reduction in governmental income from stamp sales as stamps were easily available to the public at a discount from government employees and governmental creditors. Few bought stamps at full price from the post office.
The solution was a decree in the spring of 1933 requiring all citizens to exchange their stamps at departmental governmental offices along with proof of their legitimate purchase. In exchange citizens were given stamps that had been countermarked with the signatures of local departmental administrators. After June 10, 1933 stamps that were not countermarked were declared of no value but enforcement was largely lacking.
Thus stamps can be found bearing both forms of control markings, the TS de C applied at the national level and the signature applied at the departmental level. The control signatures are seen on the 1931 definitive issue both with and without the T S de C and extend through the early 1935 airmail issue.
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Anderson Collection
"Firmas facimiles de control los sellos aereos de Honduras." Honduras Filatelica October 1978 26-28.
"Firmas "Facsimiles" de Control de 1933" for E. Alegria in Honduras Filatelica December 1985 581-593.
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