Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1955-03-27
PhiIoteIic News

Wurzburg, Germany. has ar
rived at the Bureau of En-
craving and Printing in crates.
and the work of assembling
the huge machine will be
started soon. A number of
I beams, required to support
the excessive weight of the
press. estimated at 80 tons,
have been delivered on the
scene, and a plate-behding
drum also is available.
Meanwhile, it has become
known that the Cottrell presses
on order for the bureau are
limited to one color work only
and are not designed for two
color intaglio.
The De la Rue press from
London is en- route to Wash
ington, but no date for it's
arrival has been reported.
Plates for the new currency
are being lightly engraved as
compared with traditional
practice.
Stamps produced by the
Giori and De la Rue machines
may not reach collectors for
a year. DR.. G. Cartsssatta of
Milan, Italy, has been in
Washington as a consulting
engineer for the Giori press.
Comment on Centerinq
David Lidman, editor of the
American Philatelist, Park
Ridge. N. j., writes: THE Post
Office Department should slow
down the speed-up of perforat-
ing stamps, so that we can
have well-centered copies for
our collections. -. Unless the
Bureau of Engraving and
Printing is so harried with
other work that it just can't
take the time to do a good job,
I think that the Postmaster
General should act to improve
this part of his stamp-produc-
ton program as he has in
slightly improving our stamp
designs"
A check of 100 packages of
manuscript submitted to the
Poetry Editor OF The Star re-
Gently showed II per cent of
the stamps Thanking the same
to be off-center.
A letter from Robert H.
Schaffer, acting postmaster,
New York City. says: You
are advised that renewed
cautionary instructions have
been issued to operators of
canceling machines at Grand
Central Station that the ut
most care must be taken at all
times to see that machines are
properly adjusted"-that is,
set properly to avoid stripping
OF stamps from envelopes in
transit.
Miscellaneous Notes
1t is possible that Post Office
Department officers are con-
sidering a series of stamps in
tribute to great sports figures
OF the past, including Babe
Ruth, Knute Rockne and Jim
Thorpe. A series of stamps
IN memory of famous actors
and actresses also may be
under consideration.
The proposed stamp for
Amelia Earhart, pionee
woman flier. may be author
lied shortly. Also the long,
overdue commemorative for
Gen. John j. Pershing.
Unofficial reports from Sault
Ste. Marie, Mich, indicate that
the 500 locks centennial COM
memorative may be released
there on June Is.
H. I. Phillips has pointed out
that a postman delivering
23-cent special delivery letter
is not supposed to wait for
receipt for it. while a postman
delivering the projected 49,
cent certified delivery letter
would be required to obtain a
receipt.
The current discussion of
rate increases has brought out
the fact that many first-class
letters are overpaid. This
results from their being just
enough over the Scent weight
to require 6 cents postage. The
Post Office Department profits
accordingly.
The Providence, r. l., Sum-
day Journal asks: why not
put out a series of U. S. stamps
depicting some of the highly
colorful figures of American
legend-Paul Bunyan, Mike
Fink, Davy Crockett, Natty
Bumppo? Such i. a series
would have regional variety,
educational and entertain
ment value and very respect
able patriotic overtones. It
would be a sure-fire hit on the
international stamp market.
And it would also give free
rein for artistic treatment and
slick production techniques
that might put even Monaco
and Paris to shame"
Monaco has issued a series
OF stamps in memory of Jules
Verne, the great French fiction
writer who died at Amiens
half a century ago last week.
Mexico announces a set of
three denominations for the 4
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