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About Medford mail tribune. (Medford, Or.) 1909-1989 | View Entire Issue (Dec. 21, 1958)
SB MAIL TRIBUNI, Uadfonf, Oregon, Sunday, Dacamber 21, 19S8 Med Treasure Graf Zeppelin Stamps Now Collector's Item If you happen to be one of the fortunate people who bought or acquired one or more of the Graf Zeppelin stamps our government brought out in 1930, you had better hang on to it. The rate at which the value rises makes it one of the better invest ments. The value soared so be use the issue proved to be one of the most unpopular our government ever put out. The stamps, issued to pay for mail carried by the Zep pelin on its flight from Ger many to the United States and back, via Spain and Bra zil, were sold only during May and June. Over 1,000,000 stamps in each of the three values had been printed, but when they were withdrawn from sale on June 30, over 80 per cent of each were still unsold and were subsequently destroyed. The three denominations are: 65c green, $1.25 yellow brown and $2.60 blue. They carry the legend "Graf Zep pelin Europe-Pan American Flight United States Post age," and each has a different picture of the huge dirigible. What caused the stamps to be so unpopular is something of a mystery. It couldn't have been lack of collectors, be cause proportionately there were very, nearly as many in the country then as there are today. It is also unlikely that it was due to political feel ing. Hitler had not yet come to power and the scars of World War I were fairly well healed. In any event, so few of the stamps found their way into the hands of collectors that even an unused 65c one com mands a price today of $35, and a used one, not on its original cover, has a price tag of $20. As for those fortunate in dividuals with the foresight to buy these stamps as issued in sheets of 50, they are real ly in a position to cash in. The last quotation I saw on a sheet of the $2.60 denomin ation, representing an origin al outlay of $130, was $3,700. However, the price of the in dividual stamp has risen so that the true value of such a sheet would be nearer $4,000. Seaton Sees Three Revolutions Necessary for Republican Party MTU ' A. Kobt Smith HULL'S OAK TREE SHILLINGS AMONG FIRST MINTED Most people have heard of the pine tree shilling, but not so many know there are also "oak tree" and "willow tree" shillings the latter being by far the more valu able. All of them were made in the first mint in North Ameri ca which was operated in the rear of the home of one John Hull, at Boston, Mass. Though any of these coins one is likely to see looks like a strictly amateur production, that isn't due to Hull. Instead, It is due to the fact many of our Puritan ancestors were not above clipping off the edges of the silver coins be fore attempting to pass them on at face value. Hull himself was well paid. The colonial government al lowed him to keep every 20th coin he produced. They want ed to stimulate his produc tion, and they certainly suc ceeded. He wouldn't even bother to make new dies, which is why all his coins have the same date, 1652. When they finally tried to buy back his contract, he re fused. The oak tree shilling, as he stamped it out and the fol lowing is substantially true of the others, also had a beaded circle on the face, be tween the circles was the leg end MASATHUSETS . IN . The oak tree was in the inner circle, at the center. The leg end on the reverse side was NEW ENGLAND. AN . DOM . In the center was the date 1652 and the Roman numeral XII. On most of these coins found today the outer circle is completely missing, having been clipped off. Nonetheless, don't be unhappy if you come across one in even that condi tion. So long as it is recog nizable, it is a worth - while find. Either the pine or oak tree shillings would be worth at least $25 in almost any con dition, and the one carrying a willow tree would be worth probably ten times as much. . ENGLISH POET'S WORK ON BLAKE IS SOUGHT-AFTER Algernon Charles Swine burne was one of the great est English poets, but he also had a high reputation as a critic, and so some of his prose writings are valuable, too. There are many of them, and among the most inter esting if not the most valu able, from a collector's view point, is his book, "William Blake, a Critical Study." The book, which contains Illustrations taken from Blake's designs in facsimile, was published in London in 1867. The first issue was lim ited to six copies, but the three subsequent issues, all in the same year, were in a suf ficient number to make the work fairly common. The three can be distinguished from each other by the title of a vignette that appears on the title page. In the second. It is "Ithuriel"; the third,. "Zamiel"; the fourth, "Going to and From the Earth." Copies of the four issues may be found in either a cloth or leather binding. All con tain 304 pages. The value of the book is due nearly as much to Blake as it is to Swineburne. Blake, whether he is generally cred ited with it or not, was the father of free verse. He wrote reams of it. In addition, he was a mystic of extrordinary powers, an artist of great ability, and, for a time at least, was such an advanced political thinker that he was in great danger of being im prisoned. As to the price such a book would bring, I have seen a copy of the third issue, in a cloth binding and in excellent condition, sell for $30. How ever, since copies of even the second edition, published in 1868, have sold for up to $35 in recent years, it is quite probable that a higher price would be realized today. No copy of the first issue, so far as I know, have ever gone on the market. (Released by McClura News paper Syndicate) Radio's first loudspeaker was almost identical to the phonograph horn at that time except that it was generally secured in almost an upright position in early models. Porpoises outswim most fish, but can remain under water no longer than three minutes. They usually surface for breath every 30 to 45 sec onds, even during sleep. By A. ROBERT SMITH Mail Tribune Washington Correspondent Washington - If Secretary of Interior Fred A. Seaton was disheartened b y the Title landslide A I which follow ed his person al campaign ing for Re publicans in the western states and Al aska this fall, he showed no sign of it in his first political speech since the election. In a "let's bind up our wounds" sort of speech to Western Republicans meeting in Honolulu last week end, Seaton said the GOP must ac complish three revolutions in the next 19 months if it is to make a comeback in the elec tions of 1960 which will de cide the presidency. Seaton cited a Gallup poll, showing that if all Americans were now to register as vot ers, 54 per cent would line up as Democrcats and only 36 per cent as Republicans. This indicated that "a split party is a luxury only Democrats can occasionally afford. We Re publicans can't afford it at all. In our party today a wing doesn't have a prayer, much less any chance of victory." Revolutionize Thinking Seaton's "three revolutions" were: 1. We have to revolution ize our thinking about politics and campaigning. To some Republicans, "pol itics is a four-letter word." Some will vote Republican, but they "won't run, work, contribute or sometimes even talk Republican." Democrats learned long ago that elec tions aren't won in the last four weeks before the election and Republicans "shbuld have learned it the hard way by now." "Looking to 1960, we should be determined that everyone who shares our beliefs about government get into politics up to the chin," said Seaton. He called for recruiting of the most capable and articulate candidates for all top offices, citing such examples of this as Oregon's Gov.-elect Mark Hat field and New York's Gov. elect Nelson Rockefeller. 2. The second "much-needed Republican revolution is the shift from negative to positive thought, from re verse to forward drive." Seaton said the Eisenhower administration has succeeded in maintaining the peace, keeping the nation's defense strong, . providing Americans with both a tax cut and a higher than ever standard of living. "Yet in 'political debate, 4-H Club News Lone Pine Merry Maids The Lone Pine Merry Maids met at the home of Mrs. Mil dred Edwards Dec. 6. They started to make monkeys for the children at the Fairview home. On Dec. 8 Patty Jones, Beverly Jones, Ilene Mitchell, and Teresa Edwards were on television. They showed how to make a toy horse and a ball representing a doll's head. They also showed how to make rattles and can building blocks for younger children. Linda Betz, Reporter. Elk-Trail Forestry Squirrels The meeting ras held at the home of Lois Rogers on Dec. 10. Seven members were present. Roll call topic was on how and where to cut Christmas trees. The program for the year was planned. For recreation we opened our Christmas gifts and played a game led by Tommy and Billy Lawson. Lois Rogers served refresh ments. Margaret Hanson, Reporter Angelica, a perennial herb, once was considered an anti dote for poison. sqve DnvDur new rniv , New & Used RADIOS NEW Motorola Auto Foreign and American Table Radios Clock Radios Large Variety USED Hallicrafter Worldwide $87.50 Heathkit-AR2 Receiver. Sends Shortwave $22.50 45 r.p.m. Changer . . $24.95 Sylvania Portable $19.95 less battery New Record Players $2195 up RECORD PLAYERS and AMPLIFIERS Come In and Look Them Over A-l Radio Service 627 N. Central Phone SP 2-5056 what happens? Time and again we Republicans find ourselves cleverly maneuver ed into seemingly supporting reaction and negation because of our necessary and valid re sistance to the wild, even if politically appealing, propos als of the opposition," Seaton said. Democrats are for more of everything airport money, road money, small business money and farm price sup ports and at the same time want lower taxes and lower interest rates, he charged, and called this program "a phony." But he said Republi cans have failed to prove .to the voters that it is a phony. 3. The GOP must show that when it stands for preserving the value of the dollar, this is the best way of being for the man including the wage earner, the farmer, the house wife and their children. "What good are wage or profit rises if offset by price increases and more taxes? What good is it to talk about bigger and better insurance policies or higher pensions when their value is constantly being eaten away by the can cer of inflation?" asked Seat on. Can Reveal True Image "By ripping off once and for all the false labels our op ponents have pasted on us, LITTLE KNOWN FACTS ON DIAMONDS BY WEISFIELD'S Authorized Member of The Diamond Council of America HARRY L. POTTER Have you ever asked yourself why the diamond ring ia regarded aa a symbol of betrothal? The an swer embodies romance, adven ture and fascinating legends. From the earliest, of times, men toiled and struggled even fought and died to possess this spar kling, fiery gem. Legend established the dia mond as a lifelong emblem of faith and affection. To many, the fire of a diamond suggested the flame of love. Still others believed that a diamond possessed a charm against evil if the man who owned it was pur in mind and soul. This charm was passed on to the fiancee when she was given the diamond. Through the years, the diamond indicated a woman loved some one and ' was loved. That is why the diamond was worn on the third finger, left hand for it was once believed that a vein of love ran from this finger to the heart. We, here at Weisfield's will be happy to help you choose a dia mond for yourself or loved one. The diamond that you buy at Weisfield's will reflect the eternal faith and devotion that you wish to express. Our expert staff of qualified Diamontologista (Guild Gemologists) will be only too glad to help you make your diamond purchase. Drop in anytime and learn more interesting and inform ative facts on diamonds. 387so S fc','HH 122 E. Main Ph. SP 3-5348 Open Mon. & Tues. Until 9 p.m. Member Diamond Council of America we can reveal the true image of the Republican party as the part of the American people - all 175 million of them. You and I know that the Republi can party is not, and never will be, a kept political party. Seaton recalled that the Conservative party in Eng land was voted out of office by over '2,000,000 votes in 1945 after the war. But Wins ton Churchill called on Lord Woolton to rebuild the party. So in 1951 the Conservatives returned, and are still In po er in Britain. "We can and must put fighl and heart into our party," de clared Seaton. "Once we've accomplished that, we will win." OPEN MONDAY and TUESDAY NIGHT 'TIL 9 iZ 2 EBONY J Lif C0L0R -Sj 12V 'JL .aaar A Powerful 5-Tube TABLE MODEL RADIO "Superhet" chassis "Power-boost" antenna Undistorted tone Selectivity tunina DECORATOR COLOR MODELS PATTERN 53-PIECE DINNERWARE SET MANUFACTURED BY KENRO SERVICE FOR 3 INCLUDES: 2488 ONLY 1.00 WEEK NO MONEY DOWN ONLY 50c WEEK 8 Soups or Ceraalf 8 Tumbleri I Creamer I Covered Sugar I Serving Dish Rag. U. S. at. Off. 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