The morning call., 1894-02-11
REVENUE STAMPS.

While taxation for the purpose of rails
ing revenue for Government expenses is
as old as organized society, the use of adj
hesive revenue stamps to Indicate the
payment Of taxes on certain classes of
articles is OF even more recent date thaa
the adoption of adhesive postage stamps,
which occurred in 1910.
Previous 10 the utilization of stamps to
show that the Government duty had been
paid on taxable documents or merchan-
disc it was necessary to employ large
force of collectors whose duty it was to
receive the Government dues and o i'm
press some kind of lettering on the goods
or papers on which the requisite tax had
been paid. All goods not SO marked were
liable to confscatien and their possesSor
to fine or IMPRISONMENT or both.
With use of revenue StamUS the work of
the Government was largely diminished
and simpl fed. Labels were printed in
large quantities and issued to all who had
internal taxes to pay. These had to be
affixed TO the taxable matter, and thus the
evidence Of taxes having been paid was
equally clear as under the old method, and
the cost OF collection involved only the
trifline cost of printing the stamps.
In effect, therefore. revenue and postage
stamps are used tor the same purpose-to
indicate that certain sums due the Govern
ment have been paid. Bu there is this
distinction; one gives an indirect return
in the shape OF the protection given by
Government, while the other pays for
immediate service in the delivery of mail
matter. Though there is but this slight
difference in their re- pective functions,
collectors until very recently paid little or
no attention TO revenue stamps, despite
the fact that the latter have equal claims
to beauty and variety.
With the advent of specialism came in
creased interest in revenue stamps, as COL
lectors found more time and inclination for
accommodating them, when they confined
their efforts to collecting only the stamps
of Ger ain countries. In this way the
specialists of the United States have been
induced to include the revenues of this
country in their collections. and the same
holds good of the specialists of other coun-
tries.
The revenue stamps of this country COM
prise quite number of classes. but the
ones mostly collected are those that were
used for documents and for manufactured
articles. Liquor, beer, tobacco, cigar and
cigarette stamps are, as rule, entirely
ignored. Their issue became most prolific
during and Immediately succeeding The
Civil War, but since then all except the
i've last specified have become obsolete
owing 10 the gradual abolition of internal
taxation, as the obligations of the Govern
ment incurred during the war were can
celed
The revenue stamps first issued by this
Government were used on many articles
and legal aud other written papers.
Among the distinct issues were those used
Oh express receipts. playing cards, what
were known as proprietary articles, tele-
grams, bank checks, foreign and domestic
drafts, agreements, certificates, bills of
lading, contracts, powers of attorney,
hnp dc pf ~ 0f Ing
policies Qife and fire), protests. warehouse
receipts. conveyances, leases, mortgages.
original processes, passage tickets, dOcu-
ments for probate of wills. surety bonds,
manifests and charters. The highest
value was OF he ''Dternal revenue" issue.
with a denomination of $500. Specimens
of this stamp are to-day worth from $500
to 1925 each. and are the rarest of the
United States revenues. The next in
variety is the $500 internal revenue" of
the second issue, which is worth between
SO and 500.
Later special stamps were Issued for the
manufacturers OF matches, canned fruits,
medicines, perlumeries and playing cards.
These bear the names OF the respective
manufacturers and include several hun
bred varieties. but comparatively few of
which are easily obtainable. The highest
face value of these proprietary stamps was
IL cents, yet many of them are now cata-
logued from 81 to SIS each. The most val
liable of them are the following: One
cent, black, match, Brown 81 Darling, $50;
1 cent. red, match, Jock q Wildaer, $50; l
cent. black, match, j. j. Mackln & Co.,
$50; cent. black. match. V. r. Powell,
$50; 2-cent. violet, medicine, T. j. Hus-
band. S35: Accent, black, medicine, More
heads Neurodyne, $50; 6-rent. orange,
medicine, James Swain, SIS.
European collectors are far in advance
of those of this country in the matter OF
revenues, and the best collections are
owned there. France leads in this branch,
with England a good second. American
collectors at one time entirely ignored rev.
enues, for what reason has never been
made clear. Those who left the beaten
path and preserved revenues with their
postage stamps have now good cause to
congratulate themselves. as many stamps.
which cost them nothing, or perhaps a
few cents, when there was very little de-
mand for them, are now worth dollars,
and, IN some cases, tens of dollars. Ap-
probation OF revenues in this country came
apparently only after they had become 3D.
solete and when the greater portion of
them had been destroyed. Each year now
witnesses an increasing demand for them,
and there is every indication that the near
future will see boom in the revenues of
this country that may surpass that which
was created In the department stamps SUBJ
seouen to their withdrawal.
AS yet the literature on this class of
stamps is very restricted. Only two cata-
logues of them are published, one by j. b.
Moons OF Brussels. one of the oldest stamp
dealers, and another by London firm,
which began to deal exclusively IN reve-
nues within the past two years. There are
also two regular journals devoted en-
tirely to this branch of pnilately; Moons
publishes one and the other is London