Editing Postage stamp (section)

=== James Chalmers ===
In the 1881 book ''The Penny Postage Scheme of 1837'', Scotsman Patrick Chalmers claimed that his father, [[James Chalmers (inventor)|James Chalmers]], published an essay in August 1834 describing and advocating a postage stamp, but submitted no evidence of the essay's existence. Nevertheless, until he died in 1891, Patrick Chalmers campaigned to have his father recognized as the inventor of the postage stamp.<ref>Chalmers, Patrick, ''The Penny Postage Scheme of 1837'', Effingham Wilson, 1881</ref>

The first independent evidence for Chalmers' claim is an essay, dated 8 February 1838 and received by the Post Office on 17 February 1838, in which he proposed adhesive postage stamps to the [[General Post Office]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://postalheritage.org.uk/collections/archive/stamps/phillips/VolI/Vol_I_pg_005/Vol_I_pg_005/image|title=James Chalmers essay of 1837|access-date=11 November 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110513064406/http://postalheritage.org.uk/collections/archive/stamps/phillips/VolI/Vol_I_pg_005/Vol_I_pg_005/image|archive-date=13 May 2011|url-status=dead}}</ref> In this approximately 800-word document concerning methods of indicating that postage had been paid on mail he states:

{{quote|Therefore, of Mr Hill's plan of a uniform rate of postage... I conceive that the most simple and economical mode... would be by Slips... in the hope that Mr Hill's plan may soon be carried into operation I would suggest that sheets of Stamped Slips should be prepared... then be rubbed over on the back with a strong solution of gum...}}

Chalmers' original document is now in the United Kingdom's National Postal Museum.

Since Chalmers used the same postage denominations that Hill had proposed in February 1837, it is clear that he was aware of Hill's proposals, but whether he obtained a copy of Hill's booklet or simply read about it in one or both of the two detailed accounts (25 March 1837<ref>''The Times'', 25 March 1837</ref> and 20 December 1837<ref>''The Times'', 20 December 1837</ref>) published in ''[[The Times]]'' is unknown. Neither article mentioned "a bit of paper just large enough to bear the stamp", so Chalmers could not have known that Hill had made such a proposal. This suggests that either Chalmers had previously read Hill's booklet and was merely elaborating Hill's idea, or he had independently developed the idea of the modern postage stamp.

James Chalmers organized petitions "for a low and uniform rate of postage". The first such petition was presented in the House of Commons on 4 December 1837 (from Montrose).<ref>{{cite web| url = https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/commons/1837/dec/04/minutes#S3V0039P0_18371204_HOC_2| title = Hansard 4 Dec 1837| access-date = 11 November 2009| archive-date = 2 July 2009| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20090702154935/http://hansard.millbanksystems.com/commons/1837/dec/04/minutes#S3V0039P0_18371204_HOC_2| work = [[Hansard|Parliamentary Debates (Hansard)]]| date = 4 December 1837| url-status = live}}</ref> Further petitions which he organized were presented on 1 May 1838 (from Dunbar and Cupar), 14 May 1838 (from the county of Forfar), and 12 June 1839. At this same time, other groups organized petitions and presented them to Parliament. All petitions for consumer-oriented, low-cost, volume-based postal rates followed publication of Hill's proposals.