Questions and Answers.
Claude G. Smith, William F. Tillson, Hubbard Marsh, Lawrence Fraley, Albert R. Bullman, Frances De Berard, Rolfe McCollom, G. Du Bois, and a score or more others are reminded that the Table has no exchange column, and cannot publish notices of trades, as of stamps, pictures, addresses, printing-presses, and the like. We should be happy to oblige members in this respect, but space does not permit. We do not give the addresses because improper uses are often made of them by unscrupulous persons. The only exceptions we make—and these we do not make often—are in publishing the names of members in far-away countries, since advertisers rarely use such, and cases where requests are purely educational, as in getting seeds to plant and study, gathering mosses for a natural history collection, etc. We repeat that we much regret that we cannot oblige you in these respects. Charles W. Anderson and Charles Cohen apply for Patents and give no addresses.
James D. Waite: The National Guard of the State of New York is not a part of the regular army of the United States. It is under the State control, but may be mustered into the United States service through the action of the President, who calls upon the States, if need be, to furnish troops. If your father does not wish you to join the N. G. S. N. Y., do not do so. Hubbard Marsh, Groton, N. Y., wants to belong to some literary or similar society having corresponding members. Write him. Claude G. Smith: There are, just now, no prize offers open. New ones, when ready, will be announced on this page. The only contest awards in which have not yet been announced is the Illustration. In that about 300 young artists are trying to make a picture for a story, a proof of which has been mailed to them. This contest closes March 21st, but applications for proofs with permission to enter the contest have already closed. D. Blondheim: We fear it is a bit late for descriptions of Christmas entertainments. Better tell us about oysters and the oyster trade. E. M. Wallace, Monmouth, Ill., and Jay F. Hammond, Harford, N. Y., want to receive samples of amateur papers.
Daniel W. May: We should think old skates could well be made use of in constructing an ice-boat. Coils in use in the relay and sounder of telegraph instruments are two in number. The cores are soft iron bars, and around them there is wound, for the relay, very fine wire that is covered with silk thread, to perfectly insulate it. The finer the wire, the more its resistance. The large wire that you see on the poles connects directly with this fine relay wire. When the electric circuit is complete, the soft iron bars are magnets; when it is broken, they are not. Thus is produced a backward and a forward movement of the armature which opens and closes a second or local circuit, in which is placed the sounder, having two similar coils, but wound with comparatively coarse wire. The Century Dictionary describes an induction coil as being essentially in two parts, one wound over the other. The first, of coarse wire, is wound about the soft iron bar, and connected with a key for breaking and closing the circuit. Above it, on the same coil, is wound very fine wire, carefully insulated from the first, which becomes magnetic by induction every time the electric circuit is closed. We advise, for a first attempt, a single coil of fine wire. All wire used in making coils should be insulated.
This Department is conducted in the interest of stamp and coin collectors, and the Editor will be pleased to answer any question on these subjects as far as possible. Correspondents should address Editor Stamp Department.
In the Round Table for January 21, 1895, I mentioned the fact that Ecuador had cancelled the contract for "Seebeck" stamps, as unworthy the dignity of a great nation, etc. It seems that the only change that has been made is one of name only. Another decree announces the issue of a commemorative set, for use ten days only, "part of the sum accruing from the sale to be devoted to the assistance of the families of soldiers fallen in defence of their country." No collectors of any importance will touch these stamps, nor will they be catalogued, or space reserved in any of the albums.
The Post-Office Department will not sell the Periodical stamps either used or unused, and yet they seem to be easy to get. One dealer in New York offers a complete set of all the stamps from 1c. to $100, unused, for $250, and offers to give the source from which he obtained the stamps. Probably these sets are the complimentary copies sent by the U.S. government to the P.O. Dept. of the various countries in the Postal Union throughout the world. There are 175 countries in the Postal Union, and each of these is entitled to five complete sets of all stamps issued by each country.
The auction season is in full blast, not only in New York, but also in Boston, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Chicago, etc. Hardly a day without an auction somewhere. And as auctions multiply, the quality of the stamps offered improves. Cheap and common stamps are worth as little to-day as they were ten or twenty years ago, and it does not pay to sell these in the auction-rooms. But scarce or rare stamps continue to increase in value, as demonstrated at each sale. At one sale last week every lot sold consisted of one stamp only. At another sale two evenings were given up to the sale of U. S. stamps only. They brought nearly $7000, and probably had not cost their owner, an old collector, one-third of the amount.
R. A. Hunt.—With a few exceptions (Russia, etc.), the way dealers take off stamps is simply to soak them in cold water a short time.
A. T. D.—An "error" is a stamp made by mistake in the color of another stamp of the same issue. Any daily newspaper is printed on "wove" paper. Most fine writing paper is "laid."
Kersky G. Williams.—The 3c. 1851 U.S., with extra lines on the right or left hand side of the stamps, are those from the tenth and eleventh vertical rows of the entire sheet. The stamps were printed in sheets of 200. These sheets were cut apart into half-sheets of 100. As a guide to the cutter, the division between the halves was made prominent by two extra lines. The 1870-3 varieties of the U.S. stamps were illustrated in the Round Table, September 10, 1895.
Philatus.
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