Page 126 - The Postal Agencies in Eastern Arabia

was back-stamped at Basra on the 30th; although not opened it bears a
Government of Iraq circular Censor mark. The old cancellers are not
known used after April 28th.
The bi-weekly land mail service between Kuwait and Basra
ceased to function in May and the telegraph line was interrupted. With
the war apparently spreading to its doorstep, Kuwait was left without a
postal service at a very awkward time; and the Political Agent called on
the Indian Postal Dept, to take over again. Meanwhile, the Political
Agency took over the distribution of mails; and letters to the U.K. from
the handful of European residents were sent in the Diplomatic bag to
London where the Foreign Office franked them with G.B. stamps and
posted them.
An Indian Post Office official arrived in Kuwait, probably from
Bahrain, by mid-May; and, as a temporary measure, opened a Post Office
in the house of the Jashanmal family, prominent and long-established
Indian merchants. This house was situated immediately behind their
shop on the North side of the Main Square (Safat) in Kuwait Town.
From May 26th. Cable and Wireless Ltd., under precautionary
arrangements made 3 or 4 years previously, took over the operation of
the Post Office as Agents for the Indian Posts and Telegraphs Dept. The
Post Office then moved to their Compound on the West side of the Main
Square, a little to the North of where the National Assembly and
Municipality buildings now stand.
The Indian Post Office official had probably brought with him a
small supply of Indian stamps without overprint, including the recently
re-issued KG V 114a. (Die II) which is known used from Kuwait on
June 6th.

The unoverprinted Indian stamps were introduced until the Indian
Postal Service could acquire stocks of the overprinted stamps held by
the Post Office in Basra. There was no intention to disguise the origin
of Kuwait mail; and, in any case, a named Kuwait date-stamp (Type 11)
was introduced in early October. Items of Indian postal stationery
including 114 and 114 anna stamped envelopes were also taken into use.

Pending the arrival of a new canceller from Karachi a rubber office
hand-stamp was used to cancel stamps on outgoing mail to India.

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