Question On Revenue Stamp With USPS One Line Watermark

1914 RE30var $2.00 green Cordials,Wines,Etc.(series 1914)(wmk 190 USPS) ($3.75 cat value for wmk 191R USIR)
Is this normal or is this considered an error. I saw a note on watermarks that this watermark was used on reveues in 1914. This watermark is not listed for this stamp in the 2011 Scott US specialized catalog.



Can see P and S two times on watermark



Information, catalog, value or anything would be helpful
thanks

Hi

RE15 is watermarked "USPS" in sans serif single letters.

RE30 is watermarked "USIR" in outlined serif letters.

Your stamp is RE15, current catalog value of a quarter.

Jim

bwdavis - Your example has a fold and staple holes, not altogether uncommon with the cancellation as in your example. Your example was cancelled by the District Collector of Internal Revenue, from New York's Second District (seen at the bottom of the cancel) which was located in lower Manhattan. This was the district which handled a lot of imported wine from Europe and the way in which this was handled was to place the internal revenue stamp on the import documents (and in your case stapled to the document). Several years later these documents were sent to Washington for destruction. Fortunately for we revenue stamp collectors, C. E. Worden of 1920's first day cover fame was able to "rescue" a lot of wine stamps from the destruction. Most of the book wine stamps (RE56-9) have similar cancels and were from the same rescue operation by C.E. Worden. Many years ago I was able to find a glassine with the perfin initials CEW with a folded up sheet of 50 of RE55 with each having the very same cancel as you illustrate on your RE15.

Thanks
I guess I was reading the catalog wrong. I initially ruled out RE15 for some reason but you are correct.

Some questions I would like to add here:
- I know the RB 32-43 and the RE 1-14 with the 190 watermark. Are there other BOB stamps with the USPS watermark?
- Why was the 190 used in 1914?
- in Scott I find the name "191R" for the USIR watermark, but also "USIR", like at the beer stamps REA37 and following, is this the same watermark, and why is it named differently in Scott?

The 190 SL USPS watermark was what was available for postage stamps in 1914. Tthe tax act was passed in late October, 1914 and effective the next day for wine. The act was effective December 1, 1914 for documentary and proprietary items. The postal watermarked paper was used on R195-205 and RB32-43 (as you stated) and RE1-15.

I suspect that the USIR watermark on the beers and fermented fruit juice stamps matches what was being used on the documentary and proprietary stamps. But because of their late addition to the catalog it is just an editorial anomaly. In the case of the documentary, proprietary, and wine stamps it seems nice to add the R to emphasize the difference between the postal SL watermark and the revenue DL watermark.

thank you very much for answering my questions.