Charles found that he must be away on his wife’s birthday, so he selected for her a postcard of exceptional quality.

The face of the postcard is a padded cushion of purple cloth on which lilies of the valley and forget-me-nots are impressed.

Beneath the flowery tribute is a printed message, “Birthday Greeting”.

The face is framed by an elegant border of leaves.

The reverse has a blank cover, so that a message can be inscribed neatly – without the distortions that embossed paper usually causes.

Charles addresses his message to “My Dearest Wife”.

He adds, “Many happy returns of the day”.

And then, Charles refers to his absence – “How I wish I could be with you tomorrow”.

The message concludes, “Your ever-loving husband, Chas.”

Charles, like all good letter-writers, inscribed the date of February 13, 1914.

One hopes that the birthday was very happy for Charles’ wife, and that she appreciated the thoughtfulness of her husband.

The lovely postcard was preserved in excellent condition for more than a century.