And lastly our third clue card brought you the other spur of the Grand Union Canal, which starts at Napton Junction, where it meets the Oxford Canal, and goes off to Birmingham.
The text on the front of this card tells us that Birmingham was the fourth largest city in England, with a population of 1000000. And that is precisely why the canal system went there, although, in fact, despite the Grand Union Canal having been more or less created on the 30th of April, 1793 (that being when the Grand Junction Canal Act was passed), it only acquired a Birmingham arm in 1928, with the purchase, by the Regent`s Canal and Dock Company, of the Warwick and Birmingham Canal, and the Birmingham and Warwick Junction Canal. And at that point it was realised that the canals in that area would not link up with the lower ones, as they were too small, in width and depth, and the locks could only just about manage one small narrowboat at a time. Therefore a new Act, the Grand Union Canal Act was passed in 1931, which allowed for the necessary dredging and widening of the canals, and lengthening of the bridges and locks.
The Birmingham canal is rather twisting, which can be imagined from the fact that there are 166 locks and it is only 137 miles long. However, some of these locks are together, in very close proximity - ten at Stockton, and twenty-one at Hatton. The Stockton Flight was constructed in 1800, and widened in 1930, whilst the Hatton Flight was built before the opening of the Warwickshire and Birmingham Canal in December 1799, but allowed to fall unto decay, so much so that the current flight was built alongside the remnants over the span of two years, 1932 and 1934.
Now we did have a reference book to Abdulla, in conjunction with Adkin and Anstie, but it only catalogued the English language issues.
That means this set`s first appearance comes in our original World Tobacco Issues Index, with the other German Language Issues as section one of the Abdulla listings. And the entry there reads :
ABDULLA & Co., London and Berlin
Founded 1902. Taken over by Godfrey Phillips, 1926. Trading 1956. German Branch liquidated, 1934.
1. GERMAN LANGUAGE ISSUES. About 1928-33. Special albums issued.
- LANDERWAPPEN-SAMMLUNG (Coat of Arms Series). Sm. 65 x 45. Nd. ... A5-3
1. "Die Wappen der Fuhrenden Staaten der Erde" (Arms of the Leading Countries of the World). Nd. 1/110.
2. "Serie II. Staaten u. Landerwappen Sammlung" (Arms of Provinces and Countries) Nd. 111-220 (110)
3. "Serie III. Wappen-Sammlung auslandischer Haupstadte" (Arms of Foreign Towns etc). Nd 1/150
This text is identical in our updated version, except for the code, which has been changed to A065-040