Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1910-01-20
new STYLES IN STAMPS
Will Be Furnished in Coils for
Sale in Slot Machines.
Rig Waste in PrintlnE.-Effort to
Prevent Shrinking of the Paper
Ola special Delivery stamps
10 ne Used

stamps are being considered by Post |
master General Hitchcock. says the
Washington correspondent Of the Brook |
Ign Eagle. Hereafter stamps will be
furnished In coils for sale In slot ma |
chimes; there will be unperforated |
stamps and rags will be used as a part !
substitute for beached chemical wood
In the manufacture OF paper for stamp
purposes.
Recognizing that a field exists for |
stamp affixng and vending machines.
and that coiled stamps are needed for
tho successful operation OF many of these
devices. the department. mas undertaken
To- supply stamps In coils. in limited
quantities The coils contain 800 and
100 stamps. arranged endwse and side
wise, and issued with or without
pcrforations between the stamps, as
preferred by purchasers. Tho rolls ere
made by cutting sheets OF stamps into
strins. passing the strips together and
coilng them upon pesteboard cores one
hall inch "A diameter This method IA
laborlous and expensive. but II is tho
| best that can be done with present ia
| cites.
| The demand for stamps in coils will
| Increase. say the officials Usefulness
Of the coils IS not confined to vending
and affixinR machines. II would he
| great convenience IL they could be pro-
duced in sufficient quantities to supply
| postofices for retail sale at the stamp
| window The coils also would be n con-
vcnient form for sale OF stamps for bust
| ness houses for general purposes. Ger
tain types OF vending ana affixing ma
! chimes cut the stamps apart instead OF
| tea ring them. Perforated stsmps are
| not suited q such machines Solid sheets
| and coils of stamps will be perforated
| for these devices.
A remedy is being sought for the large
amount of waste now involved in tho
| printing Of stamps due to shrinking Of
| the paper In the preliminary wettng-
| down process. The shrinkage Is never
uniform ana, AS a result, perforatons
frequently run into the stamp design
'nd cause the destruction OF n vast
amount of otherwise perfectly good
.tamps. 1t is stated that the loss from
the source amounts to 9 per cent. At
tie stamp factory experiments are being
made with part-rag paper instead Of the
bleached chemical wood stock. The
trials thus far have not been success
full. as the shrinking continues. Other
compositions are being tried in an effort
10 obtain IA paper which will he non
shrinkable.
There Is no abatement IN the stamp
collecting craze. according to postal Of
ficials. They declare that II is on the
increase. Judging from the constantly
growing number Of inquiries and orders
for special issues received from col
lectors and dealers. The government
earns a nent sum OF money every year
from the sale Of postage stamps TO col
lectors Few stamps bought for this pur-
pose arc redeemed by the department N
service" The recent special issues Of
Lincoln, Alaska Y ukon-P Pacific and Ilud-
son-Fulton commemorative stamps slim
ulatcd the collecting business.
The stamp designers preparing a
special l2-cent stamp. to cover the reg
istry stamp fee. The recent increase of
the registry charge from to 10 cents
uecessltateg the production of a stamp Of
IT," l2-cent denomination.
| Tho d.yartment has determined to 20
, hack TO the special delivery stamp OF
the series Of 1916. The new special de-
livery stamp OF 1905 has given rise to y
great amUUnt of confusion and trouble
because of It's close resemblance TO other
issues. Mail handlers had become thor
oLghlY familiar with tho old dark blue
special delivery stamp and experienced
|
with its altered shape. design and color
Consequently many letters bearing the
sprcia delivery stamp have not been
handled by special delivery boys Til,
government Will go back to the old
stamp and stick TO 1t in tho future.
Officials at the post office department
assert that the postal deficit could he
cut down 100000 q year hy tho simple
| correction OF what is known as the un-
deliverable periodical -vI'. A. NJ
Travers acting third assistant postnas
ter general. in his annual report. made
public recently, calls special attention "
this matter. He says;
: "Onc of the great burdens now I'M
. posed upon the posta, service Is the un
deliverable second-class matter accumu
latinx At all our postoffices. This &C
cumuiation is due to many causes, such
as unavoidable mistakes by publishers
lew of which are bound to occur il
. every line of business; to carelessnes'
and Indifference on the part OF other
without heed of tho resulting cost anC
. tho impairment OF the efficiency OF thu
= postal service, but mainly to the pub
t Usher who deliberately malls copies o
9 his paper 10 persons regardless OF Whe
u Their they are subscribers or residents o.
o the place addressed: for the primar,
! purpose OF maintaining guaranteed
circuia ton FOR advertising purposes.
n "Of the first class of publishers m
q crit csm Is made OF the second powc