They are commonly known as H804-7 Merchant's Gargling Oil, have 5 cards to the set, were made in the 1880's and are known to have been produced by up to 4 different printers. It comes in many different shades, colors and variations. Your cards are trimmed all the way around. As you said, the bottom portion with the Merchant's advertising is gone and the borders along the top and sides is noticeably smaller than cards I've seen.
I briefly wrote about my set on my blog, here:
http://www.dodgersblueheaven.com/200...ade-cards.html