But do not fill your albums with these vile forgeries. Many an album containing many fine stamps has been rendered almost worthless because page after page was plastered over with forgeries, reprints, and re-strikes of these private express stamps.
Among revenue stamps there are two most interesting classes—the municipal stamps of Italy and the private die or private proprietary stamps of this country. Revenue stamps are more in number than postage stamps, and, generally speaking, are more difficult to obtain, because of the higher values which the stamps represent. But the Italian municipal and the United States private die stamps will well repay the efforts of the young collector.
On one other point I wish to counsel you. Let there be consistency in your collection. By this I mean, let your stamps be all cancelled or all uncancelled!! Nothing looks so bad as to see part of a set bright and clean, and the rest all smudged with cancelling ink. Cancelled stamps are in the main much cheaper than uncancelled stamps, and the collector has less difficulty in procuring cancelled specimens than he has in procuring uncancelled specimens. In fact, one difficulty collectors of clean stamps have to contend against is that it is almost impossible to procure clean copies of some of the great rarities. But these will not trouble you for some time. Bear in mind what I said in a previous paper about putting in your collection none but perfect specimens. If you are careless on this point, you may be often imposed upon by many dealers, who will take particular pains to offer you their worst specimens.
MY FIRST MUFF.
BY F. C.
Here's my little lady,
Dressed with thoughtful care,
Smiling at the sunlight,
Smiling at the air.
Whither, little lady,
Whither shall we go?
O'er the lofty hill-tops—
Through the winter's snow?
Will you with me wander
Through the copses bare,
Where the dead leaves linger?—
Autumn left them there.
No, my little lady;
Snows would damp your feet;
Thorns would tear your jacket,
Trimmed with ermine neat.
I will fetch a carriage,
Drawn by ponies fine,
Lined with silken cushions,
Fit for lady mine.
We will drive right swiftly
O'er the hill-tops then—
Drive as quick as lightning
Through the merry glen.
Then my little lady
Safe from harm will be,
And her rich soft ermine
From sharp thorns be free.