r opponents. At the beginning of August the Germans
invaded France and Belgium, accompanied, or followed shortly, by field
postal organisations, of which few particulars are yet available.
By the middle of August the French had entered Alsace and German
Lorraine, and the Russians having invaded East Prussia set up posts
there in which they used the current Russian stamps. The British
Expeditionary Force, with its well-equipped Army Postal Service, was
in France by the 16th. About this period the Germans invaded Cape
Colony. The Tsar's promise of autonomy to Poland may ultimately
demonstrate its fulfilment in the issue of new stamps for Poland.
France issued its first Red Cross stamp, and similar war charity
stamps have since appeared in Monaco, French Morocco, Russia, Austria,
Hungary, and Bosnia. Japan's declaration of war, and successful attack
on Kiaochow, probably led to the use of Japanese soldiers' stamps
(_Figs._ 201, 202) by the forces engaged, possibly along with Indian
stamps overprinted C.E.F. (China Expeditionary Force, _Fig._ 61),
for the use of the co-operating British land forces. On the 26th the
British along with the French took Togoland, and have already issued
stamps of the Anglo-French occupation of that former German colony
(_Figs._ 384-386). Prior to their issue the British Gold Coast stamps
were used in Togo for a time (_Fig._ 370). Towards the end of the
month the bombardment of Malines destroyed the Belgian State
Stamp-printing works, rendering it necessary to create an entirely
new series of Belgian stamps when the Government finds itself in a
position to do so. On the 29th Samoa was taken by the New Zealand
forces, and English stamps have been used there (_Fig._ 371), and
already a provisional and a definitive set of British Samoa stamps
have appeared (_Figs._ 382, 383).

[Illustration: 370 370A. 370B. 371 372 373]

German attacks in September on various British and French colonial
possessions may in some cases leave philatelic records, chiefly in
the way of war postmarks which may be looked for from the affairs in
Nyasaland, British East Africa, Zanzibar, German South-West Africa,
etc. Postmarks, too, record the withdrawal of the French Government
to Bordeaux (_Figs._ 155, 156), and the sending of great loyal
contingents from Canada (_Fig._ 372) Australia, and New Zealand
(_Fig._ 373). The effect on stamp issues caused by Turkey's abolition
of the capitulations has already been referred to