The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1893-06-20
POSTAGE STAMP LORE.
Some Facts OF Interest to the Curious
Among Our Young People.

| age STAMPS, Lne new IOiu11 Dla IL StaHl pS
! for instance, are really miniature steel
engravings? The average person who
! sticks one of these works of art on the
! corner of an envelope does not think of
! this; but if you viii look closely at the
| two-cent stamp you will see that it has
all the delicacy and detail of a steel
portrait. If you prefer the blue variety
you can purchase genuine steel en-
craving without frame) for cent.
And if you chance to have money in
your purse you can secure the entire
historical series at moderate cost
The Column bian stamps, as stamps,
are great improvement over their
predecessors. They are gems of art,
and the fact that they are to be issued
only during 1893 will make them valu-
able as curiosities Historically the
kind critic will overlook such little in
accuracies as the representation of CO.
lum bus as a beardless youth when
sighting land and as wearing
full beard when landing the next
day. Evidently the skill of the en-
graver did not extend to the tonsorial
art; or else beards grew fast in those
days. But, fortunately, trifles like this
will not prevent the government from
making profit of a quarter of million
dollars or more from stamp collectors.
The centennial of 1876 also was COM
memorated by the post Office depart
ment, but in a different manner A
souvenir envelope was issued, with
shield-shaped stamp in the corner. 1t
represented mail-carrier of the olden
time, riding on horseback at full speed.
Below was a modern railway train.
The stamp was of the denomination of
three cents. At the top were the fig
r:res ''l776," and at the bottom s'1S76''
AS q work of art it was inferior to the
new Columbian issue. It was the only
special issue of United States stamps
up to that time. except fifteen-cent
stamp representing the landing of Co.
lumbus which was issued in 1869.
Do not suppose that stamp making is
an easy nor even rapid process Every
part of the work is performed by hand.
The designs are first engraved on steel
and two hundred stamps are engraved
ona single plate. The work of linking
these plates is done by two men, and
they then go to man and girl who
print them on a large hand press. Three
sats Of these workers are kept con-
SANITY employed in this manner. AS
fast as the stamps are printed they are
dried and then gummed with starch
paste made from potatoes. The paste
is dried by placing the sheets of stamps
in steam tanning machine, and then
the stamps are put into hydraulic
presses and subjected to pressure
of two thousand tons. A girl
with large pair of shears next cuts
the sheets in two. each sheet when cut
containing one hundred stamps. The
paper between the stamps is then per-
forated, and after again being sub
Jected to hydraulic pressure they are
filed away ready to be sent out when
ordered. If single stamp is injured
in any way the entire sheet is burned
The sheets are counted eleven times
during the process of manufacture to
prevent pilfering by employees.
The history of postage stamps in this
country is so inseparably connected
with the history of the postal system
that it is necessary to review the latter
in order to understand how stamps first
came to be used. 1t is almost incredi-
BILE that less than fifty years ago the
United States really had no postal svs-
TEN as we understand it. Previous to
1S47 the mails were carried largely by
private firms. and rates of postage
varied according to the distance trav-
ersed. To send letter across the con-
tinent cost nearly as much as tele-
graph message at the present day.
And. though costly. the service was by
no means satisfactory. Much of the
mail matter was of necessity entrusted
to carriers on foot or horse back. and
their progress was of.course very slow
Prior to the introduction of the adj
hesive stamp, letters We're sent either
paid or collect, at the option
of the sender. Under this sys-
tenn stamps were in little demand.
1t was the custom to mark prepaid
letters with paid mark" and each
Office was allowed to adopt design of
its own. The usual device was the
word paid, with the amount and the
addition of one or more stars, the
whole surrounded by = circle During
the first years of the late civil war this |
Old system was revived by the confed- !
crate states, which were without |
stamps. In some instances the or
binary date mark was altered. and /
thus the name OF the town appeared I
with the word paid" and the amount !
five or ten cents as the case might /.
be. This system was in vogue in the /
confederate states until about January
/. 1862, at which time they issued their /
own stamps.
The inconveniences Of this local" /
system, as it was called, were so many I
that. before the new issue of adhesive /
stamps came out, q plan was devised 20
furnish marked envelopes. The chief .
objection to the ''paid" stamp was that
all mail had to be brought to the post
Office 10 be marked. This was obviated I
by the envelope systematic govern
ment marking the envelopes in advance
and selling them 10 consumers
Returning 70 our narrative, we find
that in 1876 many OF the post offices had .
issued paid stamps OF their own. These
were called provisional issues" and
the most valua BILE OF these local stamp,
are those OF Millbury. Mass. now worth
fifteen hundred dollars. of which only
SIX examples are known to exist. and of .
krattlehoro, Vt, now valued at SIX
hundred dollars.
n ls47 the adhesive stamp appeared
IN this country. following close on its !.
adoption in England. and in 1856 law
was passed ma XIV, d, tr, 4,y.,,,., x-,.,-,- 90