Connecticut western news., 1894-09-06
POSTAGE STAMP FAD.
1T BEGAN AS A HARMLESS AMuSE-
 MENT AND BECAME A MANIA.

1T BEGAN AS A HARMLESS AMuSE-
 MENT AND BECAME A MANIA. Millions of Dollars Are Locked Up In Bits of Paper That Have No Real value-some
 of the Rare Specimens For Which Fabu- lous Prices Are Asked and Given.
 The postage stamp mania is one of the most curious of human fads, re- marks New York writer A collection of coins Is at the most worth the weight of the metal Not so collection of stamps The fashion may go out as it came in, and, then the stamps will be only so much waste paper.
 The fad broke out in 1861 in the form of few sporadic cases among school boys and maiden ladies. It was not only harmless fad, but in the case of the schoolboys it was even an educative one. It proved the easiest, the pleasant est and the most efficacious way of driving knowledge of geography into the adolescent mind
 But now that these first few sporadic attacks have developed into something alarmingly like all epidemic one begins to speculate whether the craze of the philatelist is not a distinct bar to hu- man progress, inasmuch as it consumes a large amount of brain force and vital energy that might better be turned into other and more useful channels of &C., tivity.
 In the United States alone there is an organization called the American Phila- telic association, which numbers 1 1000 members. But this represents only a small fraction of the philatelists actual ly in the country.
 The greatest and most famous of liv- ing philatelists - considered merely from the philatelist point of view-is NJ. Philippe de Ferrari, dignifed, courteous and white haired old gentle man who lives in Paris. He is son of the late Duchess de Galliera, who was also passionate lover of stamps
 His collection is valued at $500, 900. He has been known to pay $500 for an album which contained only single stamp that he coveted. For more valu- able collections he has never limited his expenditures.
 Next to the Ferrari collection comes that of Baron Arthur de Rothschild, which is so valuable that its owner, with the true jealousy of the collector, re- serves the pages containing his rarest treasures for the delectation only of himself and his most intimate friends
 Now, what constitutes the enormous value of these collections? It is not the number of the specimens. There are more than 6, ,000 different varieties of stamps now actually in existence. A certain number can be obtained at com paratively light expense. -.
 But the rarer ones command large prices. Never mind whether the rarity was created by age or accident.
 The MacMahon stamp in France is the blue rose, the unattainable ideal of the collector. When the marshal was president of France, his wife was anx. ious to see his image set in stamps.
 Designs were accordingly prepared, but the postal commissioner rejected them and adopted another design. Nev, ertheless there is legend that some ot these MacMahon stamps got into circu- lation. If single specimen ever turns up, it will be priceless
 Another lost pleiad is postage stamp issued by the government of British Guiana in 1856. It has disappeared from the market, and specimens held in the hands of private collectors are valued at $250.
 A set of four 1850 stamps also issued ,,, Dit ,.l, S400 to $500, and set of four 1852 Hawaiian stamps are valued at $1, 300.
 The 5 and 30 cent reunion stamps bring $50O The New Brunswick cent stamp, with the head of O'Connell, is rarely parted with under $150.
 Rare is also the black Canadian IF penny stamp, valued at $125.
 But the collector does not stop at le. gitimate issues of stamps. He gives fancy prices for varieties of shades, for perforations, errors and watermarks.
 At recent stamp exhibition in Wien. na an enthusiastic collector named Gi, welb displayed with pride the ''error' of France-n stamp of 25 centimes printed in blue instead of black, the 'error' of Afghanistan and stamp with missing ornament in a corner.
 Dr. Mallmann of Vienna had even more wondrous delights to unfold, foi he was the proud possessor of the two rare "errArs" of the Cape of Good Hope, stamps of 1 penny and 4 pence respectively, which are blue instead ot red and red instead of blue.
 Such "errors' fetch very high price, kept down only by the uneasiness of creating new 'values" by wanting misprinting. ..-...
 No article on philately could be com, plete without some notice of the l. .000, 900 postage stamps myth. This still survives in vague and uncertain forms in the rural districts, where it is believ- ed that some vast benefit, fpancial or other, will accrue to any one who col lects 1000, 900 stamps and forwards them to the proper address. But the proper address is never known. Ineongruous-
 clerical porreSpopdaut of opa of