Pierre weekly free press. (Pierre, S.D.) 1889-19??, 1905-03-30
SOME FREAK STAMPS
ERRORS THAT CAUSE PAlLATELlSTs
TO JUMP FOR JOY.

Possession OF Samples of BIundcrs
alnde by Uncle Sans Bureau OF En-
craving and Printing.
About the only freaks of great value
manufactured by the government are
misprinted postage stamps, the value
of one Of these sometimes running up
into the thousands. There is nothing
more dear to the collector than these
errors in printing, and, too, there is
nothing which causes a tornado of
| trouble quicker in the bureau of en-
| craving and printing An error is gen
orally costly thing i'll this depart
ment 1t means that whoever is re-
sponsble for the mistake must get out
and hunt another job. The work is too
| important to permit Of carelessness
! Al error produces freak stamp, but
! it also produces vacancy, often more,
in the ranks Of the employees of the de-
partment But the collector, the phi
| latelist, is happy, for he gets Il prize Of
the first water.
Any and every thing in the way Of a
stamp which varies a hairs breadth
from the correct design is Il freak, and
! there is always heated race by the
! stamp tiendS to secure one of these.
Usually these errors, and they are not
made often, are detected before many
| Of the stamps are put in circulation, and
when only few get out the collectors
are ready TO pay fancy prices for one
; of the prizes. Some few collectors la
| Dor under the impression that every
man has his price, and the sum of
| $4,000 was offered the head OF the bu-
reau few years ago if he would have
issued half dozen sheets of two cent
| errors. OF course no consideration
whatever was given to the proposition,
and the get rich quick philatelist saw
his plans miscarry.
Some very valuable freak stamps
We're ISSUED in 1869, when a series Of
stamps was issued in colors. The
series comprised denominations from
! cent to 30 cents. The 10, n, 30 and
90 cents We're printed in two colOrS.
On these the central picture was print
ed inverted, and the error was detect
ed. Today any of these freaks will
bring from $500 10 $500 each.
The freak two cent pan-American
series Of stamps which turned UP in
| Buffalo. n Y. in the Year Of the Rain
bow City exposition, 1901. are now rat
ed Il So each. Only Il few OF these gHt
in circulation before it was discovered
that the railroad train in the center of
the stamp was upside down. 1t is like
ly that thousands would have been sold
had not u gentleman who had purchas-
ed ten stamps discovered the error
and forthwith wrote the bureau of en-
craving ana printing notifying the of
ficerS. He doubtless thought he was
doing Il good service for the govern
nent, and doubtless he was, but the
| stamp collectors denOunce him as /,
chump of the rankest type. The gen
tleman gave away several of the
stamps he had bought. While a large
number Of the stamps with the invert
ell train Of cars were sold before the
error was detected, there are only six
of these freaks which can be account
ed for the other stamps having per
haps served their purpose without be
ing discovered as belonging to the val
liable freak family. 1t is altogether
reasonable to suppose that the stamps
We're affixed to letters and the en-
velopes destroyed. If any sheet of err
TOR stamps other than that sent to the
Buffalo office was ever sent out, the
fact has never been known at the bu
reau. and it is not likely that the mar
ket viii ever be glutted with this freak
stamp.
During the winter Of 1890 sheet OF
the ordinary one cent stamps, with tho
word Guam printed across the face
slipped through with Guam upside
down. These stamps were printed FOL
the use Of the island, and collectors
have searched far and near for them
DULY few have been secured by the
collectors, and they bring stiff prices
The people Of Guam know but little
about the value set on such freaks by
the stamp collectors.
Back in the seventies when the gov
eminent used its own distinctive Sc
of stamps for the several departments
an error was made by the bank not,
company which then held the contrac
for making the stamps The regula
color adopted by the navy department
was blue. A sheet of the two cent de
nomination was printed in green, ant
the freak has now market value o
about $45 each. The genuine, in blue
is worth twenty times its face value
One collector was fortunate enough
to corner the market by getting pos
, session Of a sheet of four cent stamp
, of the Columbian series which wa
| printed by mistake in steel blue whel
its right color should have been ultra
marine blue. He got it at it's fac
. value, and when he wants to dispos
of one he can readily get $50.
There are number of other valu
able freak stamps. but the errors o
the bureau of engraving and printin
4 have been remarkably few. consider
ing the immense number of sheets 0
i stamps turned out every year Fac