PHILATELY.

Otago Witness, Issue 2400, 1 March 1900, Page 44

PHILATELY.

By Peiajue.

Stamps teach us geography and other things, but more than all else they teach us history. The Dundee Courier applies this truism to the affairs of the moment by giving its readers illustrations of five Transvaal stamps that picture the principal epochs in the history of that land of gold from 1870 to date. " Con any pages of history," asks the Courier, "give a more emphatic comment on the rapid changes through which its Government has passed? Look at the first illustration — a stamp of just 30 years ago, issued by the First Republic in 1870, before the annexation by Great Britain.

"In 1887, when the annexation, was accomplished, the stamp was not altered, but simply printed over with the letters 'V. R. and ' Transvaal.' In the next year was shown a complete change — the familiar profile of Victoria now appeared. " The next stamp denotes a memorable epoch, and is a reminder of Majuba Hill, the one modern battle which sets the Briton's teeth on edge. The Transvaal started the Second Republic jubilant at their independence. Observe the suggestive Dutch. ' Een Penny ' run across the Queen's neck in aggressive lettering. In 1885 came the significant new issue bearing the full-fledged arms of the South African Republic."

According to current catalogues the hundred rarest stamps in the world are now worth a trifle of £6540.

All the Home philatelic papers notice a strong revival of late in our hobby. Auction prices, which, are the most reliable guide, plainly point to a strengthening of prices, particularly in America.

A Mr John Wilson, for 40 years an official of the Birmingham post office, writes thus interestingly to an English paper re the first issues of Great Britain : " That the Government were preparing to take penny postage in hand in its complete shape became obvious on August 23, 1839, by the issue of a notice to artists, men of science, and the public in general to offer proposals " as to the manner in which the stamp may best be brought into use.' Two coloiirs were to be used for two prices, a Id black and 2d coloured, and prizes were offered to the successful competitors of £200 and £100 each. Several booksellers had before this date been disputing among themselves the honour of its private introduction into business use. Mr Charles Whiting, who took the risk of the Post Circular, had as early as 1830 used ' Go-frees,' as he called them, for parcels-, and Mr James Chalmers, of Dundee, had been diligently suggesting ' stamped slips ' to the Select Committee of the House gs? (Commons in 1837, to the Mercantile Committee in 1838, and to Mr Wallace, M.P. Mr Charles Knight had proposed a stamped cover for newspapers in 1836, and Dr Gray, of the British Museum, claims to have suggested their application to the prepayment of letters, while a papermakerj named JenkinsQn, was just as positive that his special silken paper was the only method not open to the possibilities of forgery. The Government did the very wisest thing they could do to settle these differences by having a public competition. Mr Henry Coie competed and won one of the prizes, and gave very many valuable suggestions tD the Treasury in favour of stamps over stamped envelopes. Mr M. W. Mulready, 11. A., however, was aAvarded the palm for an allegorical design of cover. " Over 3000 drawings were sent in on tins occasion, and came to be xised afterwards in propagating further postage improvements. The Ocean Penny Postage Association, 1840, used one of these, and Elihu Burritt, when consul for Birmingham, was very fond of illustrating his lectures with it."

And again this reference to the Mulready envelope and the first penny stamp : — " No sooner had the Mulready envelope been launched as celebrating and contributing to the completion of the new reform, than the satirists found means to laugh it into disrepute. A comic edition (figure 2) was issued privately, and the wags discovered that one of the flying angels was short of a limb (the one to the right of the design). It fact, so severe was the sarcasm that the Government offered another reward of £500, this time for a stamp only, but not one of the JOOO specimens sent m was selected, and a black stamp, the result of experiments within the ofnee, was adopted, because of its supposed forgery-resisting qualities." Mr Wilson's articles embody many such passages, and are well calculated to interest philatelists, and especially such philatelists as devote particular attention to British issues.

NEW ISSUES,

Austria. — The new stamps now making their appearance are a direct result of tho new financial conditions inaugurated in Austria-Hungary as from January 1, 1900. Florins and kreuzer will henceforth disappear from the coinage of the Dual Kingdom, and will be succeeded by crowns and heller. Two heller, we understand, are equal to one kreuzer, so that the change will mean the reduction of the unit of Austrian currency to the equivalent, roughly speaking, of the German pfennig.

German Morocco. — The whole of the current stamps of Germany have been overprinted "Morocco," and values in centimes. Other European Powers, I learn, are to have the same postal privileges, and Morocco is to become apparently a second Constantinople in postal affairs. Great Britain. — Up to January 10, there was no sign of the altered British stamps promised for the opening of the new century. The old country will have to hurry up, or she will be the last country in the world to carry out the Postal Union's important recommendations with regard to the colours of low value stamps. With much regret I notice Victoria lias decided to issue twcspecial " War " stamps, presumably to rake in more dollars for their local Patriotic Fund. As I am quite sure all our philatelic friends have done their best for the good cause, I quite fail to see why they should be specially taxed. One would think that Victoria would have profited by the miserable sum raised by her " Hospital " issue of a year ago, which was strictly boycotted by all true philatelists, and accordingly fell exceedingly flat. I sincerely trust history may repeat itself. Victoria's action is on a par with the attempt to build a Dunedin library a few years ago specially at philatelists' expense. I"'