Today in Postal History

This registered cover was sent from Seremban about 55 km
southeast of Kuala Lumpur in the Malayasian state of Negri Sembilan.
Seremban is the capital of the Negri (now Negeri) Sembilan.

The cover was cancelled with two oval registration handstamps for Seremban.
I do not understand the meaning of the three letters after the SEREMBAN - ??.S.*
The cover also received a faint blue pencilled registry cross before the stamps were affixed.
There is also a prenumbered Seremban registry label.

The cover was bound for Natuvu in the Fiji Islands.
To get there it went through Singapore on July 28 (double circle registration CDS),
Sydney G.P.O., N.S.W., Australia on August 6,
and finally through Suva, Fiji registry on August 13.

Natuvu is onVanua Levu Island but is not shown on this map.
Natuvu is at the end of Tunuloa peninsula which is at the southeast corner of Vanua Levu.
It is the site of the Buca Bay ferry.

The cover is franked with 1c. black, 2c. green, 8c. gray, and 12c. bright ultramarine
Negri Sembilan arms issue of December, 1935 and January, 1936 (SG 21, 22, 29, and 31).
This was the first issue of stamps for Negri Sembilan after using
the stamps of the Federated Malay States from 1901 through 1935.
The rate was 8c. for postage (January 1, 1932 to April 7, 1942) and
15c. for registration (January 1, 1926 to August 14, 1947).*

One wonders what the South Sea Islands Correspondence Club was all about.
Could it have been a Pen Pals group?

*Thanks to Paul Barsdell for the rate information.
Jim Whitford-Stark has suggested that the initials after Seremban
are F.M.S. for Federated Malay States.
That sounds like a winner to me.
Any other suggestions?

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