(c) German.
- Caroline Islands.
- German New Guinea.
- Marianne Islands
- Marshall Islands.
- Samoa (since 1899).
(d) United States.
- Guam.
- Hawaii (since July, 1898).
- Philippine Islands (since 1899).
Each of these, and the numerous other groupings, political, geographical, &c., which they will readily suggest to the reader, is capable of subdivision down to single countries or colonies, or into periods, just as others are capable of expansion if larger groups be desired.
In making his choice the collector will do well to give free scope to his tastes and inclinations, but he should not be disregardful of the financial side of the question, which is apt to confine the limitations of a speciality rather more closely than would his inclinations. It is well to realise from the start that some capital will be required to tackle a large group, and if the collector wants to specialise in the first issues of British Guiana, the "Missionaries" of Hawaii, the "Post Offices" and "Post Paids" of Mauritius, the "Gold Diggings" of New South Wales, the "circular" Moldavias, he will have to loosen wide the strings of a bounteously filled purse. Happily for the stamp collector, the interest and charm of his hobby is its broad adaptability to all requirements, and it cannot be gainsaid that the joys of the hunt for stamps are more real and stimulating to the collector of modest means, who personally knows and loves his stamps, than to the magnate who deputes the "collecting" to a secretary. In many instances, of course, the secretary is a desideratum; the vast collections of modern times practically necessitate an expert assistant, especially where the owner is a busy man; but in the really great collections of postage-stamps it is good to see the evidences of the personal attention and study of the owner. Philately is indeed fortunate in the number of wealthy stamp-lovers who build up monumental collections, at great personal labour and expense, and are ever ready to show portions of them at exhibitions and societies' meetings, and, indeed, to publish the results of their researches for the benefit of their fellow-students.