Arago: 10-cent Washington

used; position 59-60R. This is a double-weight letter that traveled over three hundred miles, prepaid with a horizontal pair of 10-cent stamps. It arrived at the Boston post office before the mails for New York were closed. It received the Boston townmark rather than the route agent's townmark, which was only used on mail delivered directly to the route agent after the mail was closed at the Boston post office but before the departure of the train for New York. The letter was placed in the New York locked mailbag without being handled by the route agent. It is addressed to Mess [?] Ludlow Beebee & Co.

The manuscript rate mark "20" was not an additional collect rate due from the addressee. It was a restatement of the rate paid by the stamps.