The daily star-mirror. (Moscow, Idaho) 1911-1939, 1922-01-23
Stamp Enthusiasts Do Not Un-
derstand New Venture of
Post Office Department.
HANDLES ONLY RECENT ISSUES
Victory Stamps, Pilgrim Tercentenary
Issues and Airplane Stamps
Among Varieties That
Are for Sale.


| promptness to Postmaster Genera
Hays announcement that the Post o.
fee department has established
stamp agency and has certain stamp
for sale.
Nearly 100 letters day are bein
received from collectors who wish
buy stamps, but a surprising humble
indicate that the governments ne,
venture is not altogether understood.
Some think that the government
selling obsolete and rare stamps. The
ask casually for such valuable old is
sues as those of the 1905. AS mat
ter of fact, the government agency i
selling at present only the following
Three-cent Victory stamps, all demon
nations of the Pilgrim tercentenary Is
sues, airplane stamps, small Quantit.
of special delivery stamps with pinl
back and the ordinary current issues
The only place from which the gov
eminent stamp agency can get it,
stock to sell to collectors is from the
post Offices of the country. In the pas
any one who wrote to the Post Office
department to buy stamps for col
lection was referred to his post office
and told that if bis local postmaster
did not have the particular kind de.
sired perhaps some other postmaster
would.
Now the Post Office department is
getting stamps, such rs the Pilgrim
tercentenary issues, from the post Of
fees, and will sell them direct to
stamp collectors.
Another point of misunderstanding
is that the Post Office department is
setting up a commercial stamp agency.
One man wrote to know if he could
represent the department in Philadel-
phia to buy and sell stamps for it
there.
Does Not Buy Stamps.
The fact is the department is not
buying stamps at all, and it is selling
them only at their face value. 1t is
written into the postal regulations
that no employee in the postal service
may buy or sell stamps at more than
their original sale price.
Other people have thought that the
government philatelic agency would be
disposing of freak issues, such as the
airplane sheet that was printed with
the design upside down or the famous
issue of 2-cent stamps with several
fves on the sheet
These are great rarities, and bring
prices which only stamp collector
can understand. The 24-cent airplanes
have a border of red and the airplane
in the center of blue. BY mistake,
which will probably always remain
mystery. on one single sheet Of stamps
down.
The bureau of engraving was itself
turned upside down in vain attempts
to find out how this catastrophe oc-
Cured. Philatelists, however, re-
joiced. One congressman who has
three of these stamps recently refused
800 apiece for them.
1t is because such accidents are rare
almost unheard of-that the mis-
printed stamps are so highly valued by
collectors. The Post Office department
says emphatically that it has none Of
.hese rarities for sale.
One collector suggested that the de-
)artment might render q service II it
would get some of the Shanghai over
printed stamps. The conference on |
imitation Of ornaments plans to abol-
sh the post offices which the United
states and some other countries have
n China. The stamps of our Office at
shanghai will probably rise in value
n the collectors estimation through
his move, since no more will be print
d when the post office is closed.
The Chinese Stamps.
These Shanghai stamps are ordinary
United States stamps, except that over
ach one is printed Shanghai, China"
nd the price in local currency, which
4 each case is double the face value.
The Post ONCE department has been
Erecting collectors who desired to buy
aese stamps to send Z domestic money
RIDER to the United States postal
er into local currency and makes the
urchaSe. 10 sell these stamps In the
nited States would need a special or
or of some sort, and none is contem-
ated at present
Considering all the things It il not
'ta1lished to do, people who have
sver collected stamps might not see
~ the government stamp agency 10
,ing the collectors 4 special service
T selling them ordinary current
amps and a very few recent issues.
The important point Is that not Al
cent stamps look alike to the expert.
he stamp with psrforatlons running
to the pink design may be all right
put on 4 letter, but it isn't 4 col
ctor's ideal stamp beauty.
He wants 4 stamp that has a neat
argin of white around 1t when 1t II
m On the sheet