Evening star., 1940-06-16
AMONG THE STAMP COLLECTORS
News of the Platec World Its Interests Peope-Revie of
The Stamp Press-List of Local Meetings
By James Waldo Fawceff.

closes that the philatelic library of
the late Fred Melville, which is to
come to the Library of Congress,
had a narrow escape from being
wicked by "the most experienced
s/d astute dealer in philatelic
Terature in the world who pro-
Iosed to purchase it to resell.
The scheme to scatter Mr.. Mel
ville's treasures and to destroy the
value of the index which he had
developed through many years of
scholarly labor was defeated, Mr..
Kimble admits, because the price
was too high" for the book broker,
whose needs are simple and strictly
sensible" i.e., commercial.
A committee of collectors is being
organized to receive subscriptions
but final arrangements to complete
the required fund and to bring the
library to Washington will be de-
1ayed pending the outcome of the
war.
The KENMORE Kollector for June
says: With regard to handling
flrst-day or other covers for phi
latelists, the British post Office
makes the following announcement
and the same ruling is in effect at
all the Crown Colonies The
British post office does not find it
practicable to make special ar
rangements to assist in the manu-
facture of philatelic curiosities.
There is, therefore, no office to
which first-day envelopes already
stamped can be sent and the post
master can offer no advice on the
question of having covers stamped ""
Nothing is said about the British
post Office being unwilling to accept
the patronage of collectors who are
desirous of exchanging their money
for postal adhesives. like those of
the Cayman Islands, which never
will be required to perform postal
service. The sale of these pretty
pictures" has been a profitable busi-
ness for many years, but the British
post Office always has pretended to
be unconcerned about it.
Linn's Weekly Stamp News says
editorially: THE Postage Stamp
Centenary, May 6, was thoroughly
celebrated, and philately owes graft
tude to the powerful aid of the lay
press and radio. There must be
thousands of our countrymen who
as result are acquainted with our
hobby
THE outstanding exhibition and
celebration was unquestionably that
at Washington, while the outstand-
ing newspaper attention was the eX-
cellent eight-page spread of the New
York Sun. Lack of a commemora-
tive stamp resulted in ill feeling
and the insistence of officials and
a few others in terming it the CEN
tenary of the first British postage
stamp, accounts for caustic COM
ment noted in letters coming to
our office and the bitter retort it
warranted in the philatelic press.
In addition to this friction was the
saddening realization that the war
IN all its destructive fury is CEN
tered in those countries where
stamp collecting had its birth and
where it has since been more widely
practlced than elsewhere on the
globe. A few governments unaffect-
ed by the war prepared stamps for
the occasion, but we can chalk up the
lack OF extensive worldwide obsery-
ance to the second World War. It
may be a major loss to philately,
but a petty one compared to the
loss OF life, liberty and property
now reaching astronomical figures.
There remain some seven months
more OF the centennial year and we
hope American collectors will make
the most of it. This country. more
now than any other, is in posi-
tion to appreciate the benefits the
adhesive postage stamp brought to
the world"
Frank Stultz, stamp editor of the
Wheeling News Register, has been
elected president of the Ohio Valley
Stamp Club, meeting at the Wind
sor Hotel, Wheeling.
Non-philatelic residents of Indi-
ana are campaigning for a stamp to
commemorate the 125th anniversary
of the admission of their State to
the Union.
A stamp to mark the 18th anniver-
sary of the end of the Civil War has
been requested of Postmaster Gen
eral James A. Farley.
Mr. and Mrs Hugh M. Clark have
been quietly visiting Washington at
frequent intervals recently. The
explanation is that they are help
ing Secretary of the Interior
Harold L. Ickes to remount a portion
Of his collection.
Post Office Department archives
one day will be searched for the
solution of such mysteries as: Why
was the Susan B. Anthony stamp
issued? Who wanted the baseball
stamp? And who was the sponsor
of the Pony Express stamp? Cor
respondence relating to all of these
riddles as we'll as to many others
Is known to exist.
Comdr. Vaughn Bailey, U. S. N,
naval Sttache at the American
Emassy, London, is an applicant for
membership in the Washington
Philatelic Society.
Stamps in recognition of the BIZ
centenary of the University of Penn
sylvania and of the 15Oth anniver-
sary of the death of Benjamin
Franklin have been requested of
Postmaster General Farley.
Technical Sergt. Charles w. In
glee 1920 Fuller street, NV, Is
sponsoring an attractive colored
and embossed cachet honoring
Jacob Perkins, inventor of the
steel engraving process which made
CrANKnC