Evening star., 1935-09-22

line with the new French policy of
honoring heroes in portrait stamp
designs.
Effective October l or soon there
after Bethlehem. Pa. will be included
in AMI, Newark to Oakland route.
A special cachet will be furnished to
the postmaster for the usual treatment
of philatelic mail.
The adhesive postage stamp as we
know it," says Douglas Armstrong in
the Connoisseur, London, did not
spring full-ledged from the fertile
brain of Rowland Hill, but was more
an adaptation of the most practical
features evolved from some thousands
of proposals submitted by inventors
in the public competition opened by
the lords of the Treasury 95 years
ago. OF the many put forward, no
more than $50 remain on record, in
cluding those to each Of which the
four prizes of sl00 were awarded.
The majority of these were repre-
sented in the remarkable collection
of British postage stamp essays formed
by Col. A. S. Bates, D. S. o., and
lately dispersed at auction, which
ranked second in Importance only
to that of his majesty the King. To
the philatelist these tentative sug-
gestions, out of which the postage
stamp grew, are of the highest inter-
est, while from the public point Of
view it seems unfortunate that this
collection could not have been secured
for the nation.
The rival claims of Rowland Hill
and James Chalmers. the Dundee
bookseller, as the father of the post
age stamp have been strongly con-
tested. There is a certain affinity
between the circular postpaid labels
prepared by Chalmers in 1887, and
submitted to the treasury two years
later, and the general principle Of
the adhesive stamp subsequently Gre
ated, except that the labels were nom
adhesive and attached to letters by
means of seals. One of these essays,
in the form of circular type-set
design printed in brick red on buff
paper and inscribed General Postage
Two-pence' affixed to a small letter
sheet, fetched f18 at the Bates sale,
and another inscribed One penny
on envelope, cit.
Charles Whiting of Beaufort House,
London. is credited with having put
forward more than 100 proposals for
postage labels in various forms. A
particularly elaborate example, printed
in bi-color in strip form and resem-
bling the duty stamps now used on
certain patent medicines. sold for 10
guineas. Among the best prices OBJ
tained for single item were f32, paid
for highly ornate and multi-colored
circular essay by William Oldham
with the royal arms of the United
Kingdom above a shell-like device
surrounded by the words. General
Post Office and inscription, One
ounce round the outer
circumference. and $50 for one of the
several projects submitted by Benja-
min Cheverton embossed in circular
form with the royal cypher of Queen
Victoria in the center and Post Of
flce' in Semi-circle below. This was
originally part of strip of five sim
liar essays of which the remaining
four are in the royal collection.
Two very rough sketches of the
design ultimately adopted for the
flrst penny stamp and signed by Row.
land Hill, together with a number
OF letters relating to the BENJAMIN
Cheverton Plan for Penny Postage
from the Earl of Crawford's collec-
tion) realized f35, and like amount
was paid for two water-color draw
ings, showing the Queens head in
outline. one in black and the other
IN blue, as submitted by Rowland
Hill to the chancellor of the ex-
chequer, Lord Barring.
"One of the most interesting lots
from the historical and philatelic
standpoint was a volume containing
collection of photographs and de-
scriptions Of essays and proposals sub
mitted by various authors to the
treasury in the competition of 1889,
with a partly completed record and
rights of publication therein which
fetched f73. Essays by William Wyon
of the royal mint for the embossed
10d and 1sh stamps of 1847 realized
f45 each an a set of unadopted de-
signs for the Edwardian stamps of
Great Britain, showing the head of
King Edward VII adapted to the
frame designs of the former Vic
torian series, Ell"
Special delivery service for United
States mail" says H. M. Konwiser,
was instituted BY the act of March