Checking a paper

A paper agrees with the facts of its day, or it does not. None of the checks below needs a laboratory: a calendar, the law, and a careful look. Each rests on a document or a law Bearer has read, named at the foot of the page.

In Bearer, a patron can have any paper forged: the forgery carries the mistakes the checks below find, and the Keeper's sheet lists them for the table.

Bearer makes an investigator's papers for Call of Cthulhu and any 1920s or 1930s tabletop campaign: the passport a consul would have filled in, with the visas and frontier stamps a campaign leaves in it, and the permits, certificates and tickets of the period, to print or to share.

The form and its day

Every form was printed for a stretch of years, and a paper dated outside them is on the wrong form. The German Waffenschein of the Reich's model exists from 1 October 1928, when the law of 1928 came into force, to 31 March 1938. The Australian certificate of registration of aliens exists from 20 January 1921, when its Regulations came into operation, until the Act was suspended on 4 June 1926. The British National Registration identity card exists from 29 September 1939, the night the Act of that September was carried out.

The term the law allowed

A paper that runs longer than its law allowed was not issued by that office. The terms read:

Visas and stamps in their order

A visa is dated after the passport it is written in, and a frontier stamp of entry after the visa that allowed it. A stamp struck after the passport's expiry is a passport used when it was no longer good. A booklet renewed more times than its form has lines for was replaced, not renewed again.

Reckonings of their own

Some offices dated in years of their own, and a year one off is a slip no clerk made. Italian officials added the year of the Fascist era after the date, in Roman numerals, counted from 29 October 1922: Anno VI in May 1928, VIII in April 1930, XVI in November 1937. The Chinese passport of 1934 is dated in the years of the Republic, the twenty-third year for 1934. Japanese consuls dated their visas in the years of the Shōwa era.

Titles and names of the day

A paper names the sovereign and the places as they were styled that day. The Italian booklet issued in the King's name prints IMPERATORE D'ETIOPIA among his titles on a booklet of 1942: a booklet dated before the Empire was proclaimed, on 9 May 1936, cannot. The municipality that endorsed passes for the interior of China in 1931 was that of Peiping, as Peking was then called.

The photograph and its seal

On the German, Swiss and Polish booklets read, the office struck its stamp across a corner of the photograph, half on the picture and half on the page, so that it could not be changed. A photograph with no mark across it, on those forms, was put there by someone else.

Sources

• Reichsgesetzblatt; ALEX, Österreichische Nationalbibliothek, Ausführungsverordnung zu dem Gesetz über Schußwaffen und Munition, 13 July 1928 (RGBl. 1928 I S. 198-204), with Anlage III, the model of the Waffenschein, § 17: the Waffenschein issued by the police office of the applicant’s residence, in urgent cases by that of his stay or place of entry, then for three months at most; § 18: issued on the model of Anlage III; § 14: a seller writes on it the weapons he sold; Anlage III, front: Waffenschein Nr. …, Gültig auf 1 Jahr, Zum Führen von Schußwaffen in öffentlichen Versammlungen und Umzügen berechtigt dieser Waffenschein nicht, [name], wohnhaft in, geboren am … in, Reichsangehöriger / Nichtreichsangehöriger (Nichtzutreffendes ist zu durchstreichen), wird hierdurch die Erlaubnis zum Führen … innerhalb des Deutschen Reichs … erteilt. Gleichzeitig wird der Erwerb von … genehmigt, (Ort), den, (Dienststelle), (Stempel); back: Es wurde überlassen (Lfd. Nr., Datum, Zahl, Art, Aufgedruckte Firma oder Warenzeichen, Herstellungsnummer, Name, Wohnort und Wohnung des Überlassers), Platz für Lichtbild, Eigenhändige Unterschrift des Inhabers (read directly)
• Governor-General of the Commonwealth of Australia; Home and Territories, Aliens Registration Regulations, Statutory Rules 1921 No. 17, in operation 20 January 1921; the Schedule: Forms A1, A2 (applications), B1 (Certificate of Registration of Alien, with the Notice to Aliens and, on the back, Registered Changes of Abode), B2 (alien seaman), C, D, E (read directly)
• Parliament of the Commonwealth of Australia, Aliens Registration Act Suspension Act 1926, No. 17 of 1926, s. 2: the operation of the Aliens Registration Act 1920 suspended until a date to be fixed by Proclamation; assented 4 June 1926 (read directly)
• Parliament of the United Kingdom; the King's Printer's copy at legislation.gov.uk, National Registration Act, 1939 (2 & 3 Geo. 6 c. 91), as enacted, 5 September 1939, s. 1: a register of all persons in the United Kingdom at the appointed time, and of all persons entering or born after it; s. 6(1): the Registrar-General to issue a card containing the prescribed particulars (an identity card) for every registered person; s. 6(2): the form of the card prescribed by regulations; a constable in uniform, or any person authorised, may require the person responsible for its custody to produce it (read directly)
• League of Nations, Advisory and Technical Committee for Communications and Transit, Resolution adopted by the Conference on Passports, Customs Formalities and Through Tickets in Paris on October 21st, 1920 (Passport Conference, Preparatory Documents II), C.641.M.230.1925.VIII (read directly)
• Ministry of Home Affairs for Northern Ireland; Statutory Rules and Orders issued in 1922, pp. 2-6, on the Internet Archive, Rules of the Minister for Home Affairs, dated 12th February, 1922, for carrying into effect the Firearms Act, 1920 (S.R. & O. of Northern Ireland, 1922, No. 19), rule 1: the form of a firearm certificate ("This Certificate is granted to … of … and relates to the firearms and ammunition specified hereunder: 1. In possession at date of grant. (a) Firearms. (b) Ammunition. 2. To be acquired. (a) Firearms. (b) Ammunition. 3. The amount of ammunition authorised to be held at any one time is … This Certificate will continue in force for one year from the date hereof. Signature. Rank. Police Force. Date."), the maker's name and numbers to be stated, the three instructions to a seller, the forms attached at the back for every transfer, a notice of sections 1(6), (8), (9), 2(3), (5), (7), 10, 12(2) and 13(3), and spaces for variations and renewals. (read directly)
• Wikimedia Commons (public domain), Permis de chasse valable pour un an, département du Gers, 11 août 1866 (Empire français), left column: MINISTÈRE DE L'INTÉRIEUR / PERMIS DE CHASSE, valable pour un an / DÉPARTEMENT / Registre de … N° / SIGNALEMENT: Âgé de, taille d'un mètre … centimètres, cheveux, front, sourcils, yeux, nez, bouche, barbe, menton, visage, teint, SIGNES PARTICULIERS, Signature du Porteur; body: Permis de Chasse, valable pour un an. Au Nom de l'Empereur, Nous, Préfet du département d…, autorisons le Sieur … natif d… demeurant à … à chasser dans les temps et lieux où il en a le droit, conformément à la Loi du 3 mai 1844. Le Porteur devra justifier du présent Permis de Chasse à toute réquisition des Autorités et Agents désignés par la Loi. Fait à …, le … Le Préfet; seal PRÉFECTURE DU GERS; Prix du Permis de Chasse: vingt-cinq francs, dont quinze pour l'État et dix pour la commune (read directly)
• Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Tercentenary Edition of the General Laws of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts (the General Laws as amended before 1 January 1932), vol. II, chapter 140, sections 129A, 130, 131, 131A, s. 131: a license to carry a pistol or revolver in the commonwealth or to possess therein a machine gun, to an applicant residing or having a place of business within the jurisdiction, except an unnaturalized person, a felon or one convicted of the unlawful use or sale of drugs; issued by the justice of a court, the board of police or mayor of a city, the selectmen of a town or the commissioner of public safety; for a term not to exceed one year, revocable at will; issued on forms furnished by the commissioner, a copy sent to him within one week (1922, 485; 1926, 395; 1927, 326); s. 131A: a permit to purchase, rent or lease a pistol or revolver, on the commissioner's forms, valid for not more than ten days (1926, 395); s. 129A: no unnaturalized foreign-born person may own or possess a firearm without a permit to carry (1922, 485) (read directly)
• State of New York; in The Consolidated Laws of the State of New York, amendments of 1909, archive.org, New York General Business Law, Article 7, Private detectives (§§ 70-76), as amended by L. 1909 ch. 529, no one conducts the business of private detective without a licence from the state comptroller; the application states age, residence, occupations and United States citizenship, approved by five reputable freeholders of the county who have known the applicant five years; fee of one hundred dollars for a person, bond of two thousand dollars; the licence lasts five years, revocable for cause; the certificate specifies the business address and the names and residences of the persons who filed the statement; a metal shield or badge issued to each, evidence of due authorisation (read directly)
• The Institute of Australian Culture, ephemera collection (EC150), Miner's Right No. 120213, Western Australia, issued at Cue, 28 September 1908, WESTERN [Royal Arms] AUSTRALIA.; the number; MINER'S RIGHT.; the fee, five shillings;; Issued to …; under the provisions of "The Mining Act, 1904"; to be in force until the … day of …, 190…; Place of issue; Date of issue; …, Warden (or Officer authorised to issue).; [Not Transferable.]; on the back, Notice: sections 10 and 11 of the Land Act, 1899 (read directly)
• Wikimedia Commons (public domain, self-scanned), Passport of the Republic of China No. 200384, issued by the Legation in Berlin, 23 August 1934 (Minguo 23), pages 2 and 3, p. 2: the photographs, two revenue stamps of one dollar, 姓名 年歲 職業 籍貫 身量 相貌 in columns; p. 3: the number, 外交部為發給護照事茲有 … 前往 … 取道 … 應請 友邦地方文武官員妥為照料遇事襄助 須至護照者 中華民國 … 年 … 月 … 日; 此照限用叁年全冊共拾陸頁; 照費國幣貳元 留學工人減半; 發照機關長官簽印, the legation's seal (LEGATION DE LA RÉPUBLIQUE DE CHINE, BERLIN) and signature (read directly)
• Republik Österreich, Bezirkshauptmannschaft Hietzing-Umgebung; Freies Deutsches Hochstift, Frankfurter Goethe-Museum (Hs-Foto-1497), through museum-digital:hessen and Europeana (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0), Reisepass of the Republic of Austria no. 1197 (booklet no. 199,830), issued at Vienna on 8 July 1927 to Hugo von Hofmannsthal, valid until 7 July 1929, read page by page, cover (orange card, the printed number, R.Ö. perforated through every leaf), page 1 (Dieser Reisepaß enthält 32 Seiten / Ce passeport contient 32 pages, the eagle, REISEPASS / PASSEPORT, REPUBLIK ÖSTERREICH / REPUBLIQUE D'AUTRICHE, number, name, wife, children, nationality, the revenue stamps, a rubber stamp "Zuständig"), page 2 (Personsbeschreibung / Signalement, a column for the wife, Kinder / Enfants), page 3 (the photographs, Trockenstempel / Timbre sec, the signatures, Für die Paßbehörde), page 4 (the countries it is valid for, struck with a rubber stamp; the expiry; place and date of issue; three renewals), pages 5 to 32 (visas, no heading); an Italian consular visa of 15 July 1927 dated in the Fascist era, stamps of the Italian posts at the Brenner, Coccau and Passo Drava, a Hungarian visa and a stamp of Hegyeshalom, a Swiss stamp of Buchs (read directly)
• Wikimedia Commons (public domain and CC BY 2.0), American passport of Isabel Ingram (Mayer), 1927, pages 6 to 21: Japanese visas of the legation at Peking and the consulate at Vancouver (1929), the Peiping Municipality's endorsement for travel in the provinces (1931), the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs' pass for the interior (1931), an American ADMITTED stamp, Vancouver: TRANSIT VISA / GOOD FOR ONE TRANSIT ONLY / The Validity of This Visa Shall Expire 12 Months From This Date. / The Consulate of Japan / Vancouver, B.C. JUN 13 1929, and in columns 通過查證 / 昭和四年六月拾參日 / 在晚香坡領事 and the consul's name over his red seal; Peking: NOTE: Date of Visa … ENTRANCE VISA is valid for one year after date. TRANSIT VISA is valid for one year and only for one transit., 查證 and the date of Shōwa, the chargé d'affaires' name, a round seal IMPERIAL JAPANESE LEGATION PEKING; United States: ADMITTED, a second line illegible (read directly)
• Regno d'Italia, Ministero degli Affari Esteri; photograph on Wikimedia Commons (public domain), Passaporto of the Kingdom of Italy no. 738226, the inside of the cover and page 1, stamped REGIO SERVIZIO by a consulate in 1942, inside of the cover: the windows of the cover seen from inside, "Non si passa la frontiera senza aver redatto completamente e consegnata la cedola statistica"; page 1: "Il presente passaporto consta di ventiquattro pagine", N.° del Passaporto, N.° del Registro, the arms, IN NOME DI SUA MAESTÀ Vittorio Emanuele III PER GRAZIA DI DIO E PER VOLONTÀ DELLA NAZIONE RE D'ITALIA IMPERATORE D'ETIOPIA, Il Ministro degli Affari Esteri rilascia il presente PASSAPORTO al Signor … accompagnat… da (1), "(1) Possono iscriversi sul passaporto la moglie ed i figli" (read directly)
• Wikipedia, Victor Emmanuel III of Italy: his titles, King of Italy from 29 July 1900; proclaimed Emperor of Ethiopia on 9 May 1936; King of the Albanians from 16 April 1939. A plain record of the titles, not the words a passport printed. (secondary source)
• Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0), Pass for travel in the interior of China given to Isabel Ingram by the American Minister and numbered by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (25 June 1931), sewn into her passport, and the Peiping Municipal Government's endorsement (26 June 1931), pass, in columns: 大美國特命駐華全權公使詹 為填給護照事茲有本國女士梅愛德由外部請領護照擬往內地遊歷呈請將所欲遊者填註照內在案茲已照填所欲遊各省合請大中華民國文武官員見此護照務須放行俾該女士梅愛德聽便遊歷不得留難攔阻遇有事故並望隨時保護幫助須至護照者 / 右 行 護 照 / 給女士梅愛德持往遊歷河北遼寧吉林黑龍江等省 / 一千九百三十一年六月二十五日發 / 中華民國二十年 / 計開年貌: 年二十九歲, 身高英五尺三寸二分之一, 髮棕, 目棕 / 外部第貳萬壹仟零肆拾肆號, a large red square seal; endorsement, in a blue frame: 加簽第伍壹肆號 / 姓名 / 國籍 / 護照 字第 號 / 前往 / 道經 / 北平市政府 / 中華民國二十年六月二十六日 / 限用十二月, an oval seal PEIPING MUNICIPALITY, 此項簽證收費壹圓 (read directly)
• Deutsches Reich; photographs of the Georg Bredig papers, Science History Institute, through the Digital Public Library of America, on Wikimedia Commons, Reisepass of the German Reich no. 4480, issued by the police president of Karlsruhe on 10 August 1939, read page by page, page 1 (identity, the Weimar eagle, the notice of 32 pages), page 2 (photographs, signatures and the office's certificate), page 3 (Personenbeschreibung and the children), page 4 (Geltungsbereich, expiry, issuing authority), page 5 (Verlängerungen, three blocks), pages 6 to 32 (visas, with no printed heading) (read directly)
• Confédération suisse, Légation de Suisse à Berlin; photograph on Wikimedia Commons, Swiss passport issued by the Swiss legation in Berlin, 1923, pages 4 and 5, page 4 (one heading, "Signalement." then "Connotati.": Age: Né le / Alter: geb. den / Età: nato il; Stature / Gestalt / Corporatura; Taille / Höhe / Statura, in centimetres; Cheveux, Front, Sourcils, Yeux, Nez, Bouche, Menton, Visage, Signes particuliers, each in French, German and Italian; Signature du porteur / Unterschrift des Inhabers / Firma del titolare), page 5 (the photograph, the legation's seal, its certificate struck in German with a rubber stamp); every page headed and footed "Ce livret est de 32 pages / Dieses Büchlein umfasst 32 Seiten / Questo libretto consta di 32 pagine" and numbered in the three languages (Page quatrième / Vierte Seite / Pagina quarta) (read directly)
• Rzeczpospolita Polska, Ministerstwo Spraw Wewnętrznych; photograph on Wikimedia Commons ('PaszportRzeczpospolitaPolska.1931.jpg', CC BY-SA 2.5), Paszport / Passeport of the Republic of Poland, Ser. I. No. 115509, issued by the county office (Starostwo Powiatowe) of Chrzanów on 8 April 1931, read page by page, cover (dark blue cloth, PASZPORT, the eagle in a ring, RZECZPOSPOLITA POLSKA, in gold), page 1 (series and number, the office's register number, the red stamp of the fee paid, the eagle, RZECZPOSPOLITA POLSKA / M.S.W. / RÉPUBLIQUE POLONAISE / M.I., PASZPORT-PASSEPORT, Obywatel polski / Citoyen polonais, zamieszkały w / domicilié à, w towarzystwie żony / accompagné de sa femme, i … dzieci / et de … enfants, Paszport ten zawiera 40 stronic / Ce passeport contient 40 pages), page 2 (Rysopis - Signalement, a column Żona - Femme, Dzieci - Enfants), page 3 (Fotografje - Photographies, four round seals of the county office over the corners, Podpis posiadacza / Signature du porteur), page 4 (the countries, the request to foreign and Polish authorities, the expiry, the red stamp Za Starostę powiatowego, Pieczęć / Sceau, Podpis / Signature, Data / Date, Chrzanów, dnia …), pages 5 and 6 (Wznowienia - Renouvellements, two blocks a page), page 7 (Uwagi - Observations, a red stamp: PASZPORT WAŻNY NA JEDNORAZOWY WYJAZD ZA GRANICĘ), page 8 (the booklet's rules), page 9 (Stemple polskiej kontroli granicznej, Wyjazd - Sortie, Wjazd - Entrée), page 16 (Meldunki), page 17 onwards (Wizy - Visas); Swiss, Italian, Austrian and Czechoslovak visas of 1931 (read directly)

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