1860 (January 19), Bhamdun, Lebanon to Tolland, Connecticut, transatlantic forwarded letter, Benton correspondence cover, franked with 3c
1860 (January 19), Bhamdun, Lebanon to Tolland, Connecticut, transatlantic forwarded letter, Benton correspondence cover, franked with 3c Washington, tied by circular barred grid PAID cancellation, red BOSTON / MASS. transit datestamp on face, red oval FORWARDED BY / J.M. GORDON / TREASURER / A.B.C.F.M. / BOSTON handstamp on reverse, partial contents, minor edge wear, a fine and unusual usage. Written by missionary William A. Benton to his brother Azariah from Bhamdun, Lebanon, where Benton was stationed for much of his twenty-two-year tenure in Syria, the letter describes diplomatic tensions in the Ottoman Empire, noting a visit from a representative of the American Government who "must demand a full satisfaction for the outrage," likely referring to legal and religious persecutions faced by the mission, and observing that this intervention "prepared the way for a pleasanter solution of this difficulty than we had dared to anticipate." The ABCFM (American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions) was the first American Christian missionary organization, and utilised J.M. Gordon in Boston to manage mail from remote locations like Bhamdun.
