The times., 1901-06-16
THBPAN- AMERICAN STAMPS
Their Artistic Excellence and
Great Popularity.

nations Method of Manufacture
The phenomenal call for the new Pan
American stamps. which has taxed the
employees Of the Bureau of Engraving and
Printing. Is decreasing sufficiently to al
low the supply 10 equal or exceed the de
mand The first issue OF the new stamps
was made on April p. 1901. and for the
past month the average number requested
by all the seventy-siX thousand postofiiccs
in the country has been five million per
day, while, with the force employed, only
half that many could be produced.
THE Pan-American issue, said Nr.
Thomas Sullivan. Assistant Chief Of the
Bureau OF Engraving and Printing,
through whose courtesy The Times re-
porter was enabled TO witness all the OPP
erations incidental 10 the making Of the
stamps. lis the first of postage stamps
which has been made in two coIors since
the early sixties. Revenue stamps are
designed in two tiuts," and Mr.. Sullivan
took up carelessly a piece of pasteboard
on his desk which was covered with reve-
nue. stamps of denominations ranging
from 500 TO 81 geo. In the case OF these, 20
ne said. the employment of two tints.
black fer the picture centres and the
standard coIors prescribed by the Inter
national Postal Union. for the borders, is
a preventive against forgery, but in the
case of the Pan-American issue it is sim
ply 10 obtain an artistic effect and to
please the public. The subjects Of the
centres in the latter were sent US by the
Postofice Department and the ornamental
borders were designed and executed by
our chief enCTaver.
Notwithstanding the extent Of the gen
eral demand for the new stamps, It IS
probable that many persons do not know
all the denominations. The issue is Of !.
2. 4. 3. $. and 10 cents The stamps are
Of uniform dimensions, 0.76 by Lee
inches. the larger side being horizontal.
Below the central vignette in each are
the words commemorative series. 1891.
and United SJaG>~ Of America. All
the central Illustrations are from photo
graphs The picture on the ! cent repre-
sents a side-wheeI lake steamer. the
border in green consisting Of columns and
scroll work The vignette on the = cent
depicts train OF four cars. The border
is in red. and consists of two winged
female figures. one on either side, bearing
torches Beneath is the legend, Fast
express" the words of denomination be
ing located as on the l cent. The cent
Is somewhat surprisingly unique in de
sign The vignette represents al auto
mobile of the closed coach description.
with two men on the box and a part Of
the Capitol in this city as a background.
The border is reddish brown, and consists .
Of ornamental scroll work at the sides
and an architectural cornice design at
the top. The legend Automobile" ap-
pears on q panel.
The picture on the 3 cent presents the
largest single-span steel bridge in the
world. namely. that spanning the Niagara /
River just above the falls, which are
seen in the background. The highly orna- !
mental border is in the regulation blue. |
I he engraving of the vignette, as on all /
the stamps, IS wonderfully fine and /
minute. The accuracy with which two |
trolley cars on the bridge are depicted |
can only be fully appreciated under a /
glass.
The vignette on the cent represents /
the great ship canal locks at Sault Ste
Marie, Mich. including the immediate
The border is a very deli
ate piece of work in lilac The iliustra-
ion on the 10 cent is that Of an American
-ine ocean steamship with two smoke
stacks and masts- The border is in light
brown. and on either side OF the central /
opening is a dolphin head down. and out
ade Of this q trident pointing uD. the
middle prong catching and supporting the
-croI end Of a tablet.
Ii can hardly be expected that the un-
can appreciate the difficulty ex-
,erienced even by the experts Of the bu-
eau, in printing these stamps in two
oIors. At first this difficulty appeared so
-reat, in the case of a popular issue, that
r the occasion Of the Omaha Exposition
Re proposition Of employing two tints in
he stamps that were struck of to com
nemorate that event was rejected. 1t
vas urged that many obstacles lay in the
Wy Of such a process for a popular is
Ue. and. indeed, in the case Of the Pan
American stamps, while the result has
cen satisfactory TO a surprising degree,
his result has only been obtained at the
Expense Of much hardship and labor, and
ould only be rendered possible by the
Ugh order Of expertness Of the en-
loyes Of the bureau The fact that, with
o excellenty equipped force, the sup
~ OF the stamps has, hitherto, not been
quail to the demand. and that despite the
act that work has been conducted each
ay in two shifts from o'clock in the
lorEing until Z at night. may cause some
GrpTise. However, it should be remem-
cred, for one thing. that none but hand
reSscs are employed on the new issue, ,
Fhile ali other postage stamps are print
j on electric or steam presses In these {
liter, four stationary plates. each print
Il sheets containing 200 or 100 stamps, as + !
1e case may be, are Kept constantly re I
diving, the only manual labor perform I
] being the cleansing Of the plates. This .
done by a workman, who simply rubs !
1me composition rapidly over each plate I
hile Il is in motion. In the hand press =
the plates have 10 be linked, then placed Z
the press, and the requisite amount OF
verage employed X is the latter fea-
ire Of the work which involves consid-
-ablc judgment, and which has led 10 !
le employment Of the hand press. In
der to understand the superiority Of the
and press in delicate work over that
Eich Il run by power, il is necessary to &
vert TO the process through which the :
iper Is put in order that ii may have the |
.quisite amount Of dampuess before :, =
hitting. '
In certain kinds Of plate printing the $
iper Is required to be thoroughly moist ( :
fore an impression is made Herein lies %
e difficulty in using two colors in L
lstaEe stamp, for, IN the interval Of tima ii
tween the taking Of the two impress =
ons that of the certrc or picture OF the n
amp. which IS done on one plate, and q
at Of the COlOTed border, which is done /
another, the sheet mas become dry
ID has snrunk TO an extent ranging from ( :,
ie-eighth 10 one-ouarter Of an inch. The [:
ntre or vignette IS first printed and, u
hen the sheet reaches tho manipulation !,
the press which is to print tho border, :,
becomes q matter recurring some urac ! {.