To Issue June 1

 

TO ISSUE JUNE 1.

Postoffice Department Has Handsome Exposition Stamps in Nine Denominations Nearly Ready.

The May number of the Postal Guide just issued contains the following information regarding the new Trans-Mississippi stamps:

On the 1st of June next, or sooner if practicable the department will begin issuing to postmasters, and will continue to issue until December 31, 1898, the new series of postage stamps. They will be known as the trans-Mississippi series, and will comprise the following denominations: 1, 2, 4, 5, 8, 10, and 50 cents, and $1 and $2. These stamps are not intended to supersede the ordinary series now in use; so that postmasters may obtain supplies of either or both whenever needed.

The trans-Mississippi stamps differ materially in size from the ordinary series, the engraved space being about seven-eights of an inch wide by about one and three-eighths long. The designs are also radically unlike those of the ordinary stamps—consisting of a border (substantially the same in all the denominations, except that the colors, and the figures and letters representing values are different) and a central scene in black, indicative in some way of the development of the great region beyond the Mississippi river.

The scenes represented on the stamps, together with the colors of the borders of the several denominations, are these:

One-cent—"Marquette on the Mississippi," from a painting by Lamprecht, now in possession of the Marquette college of Milwaukee, Wis., representing Father Marquette in a boat on the Upper Mississippi, preaching to the Indians. Color of border, dark green.

Two-cent.—"Mississippi River Bridge," from an engraving, a representation of the bridge over the Mississippi at St. Louis. Color of border, carmine.

Four-cent.—"Indian Hunting Buffalo," reproduction of an engraving in Schooleraft's History of the Indian Tribes. Color of border, red brown.

Five-cent.—"Fremont on Rocky Mountains," modified from a wood en-graving, representing the Pathfinder planting the United States flag on the highest peak of the Rocky mountains. Color of border, dark blue.

Eight-cent.—"Troops Guarding Train," representing a detachment of United States soldiers convoying an emigrant train across the prairies, from a drawing by Frederic Remington, permission to use which was kindly given by the publisher, R. H. Russell of New York. Color of border, dark lilac.

Ten-cent.—"Hardships of Emigration," from a painting kindly loaned by the artist, A. G. Heaton, representing, an emigrant and his family on the plains, in a "prairie schooner," one of the horses having fallen from exhaustion. Color of border, light brown.

Fifty-cent—"Western Mining Prospector," from a drawing by Frederic Remington (permission to use which having been kindly given by the pub-Heller, R. H. Russell of New York), representing a prospector with his pack mules in the mountains, searching for gold. Color of border, orange.

One Dollar.—"Western Cattle in Storm," from a large steel engraving, after a picture by J. MacWhirter, kindly loaned by Mrs. C. B. Johnson, rep-resenting a herd of cattle, preceded by the leader, seeking safety from a gathering storm. Color of border, copper red.

Two Dollar.—"Harvesting in the West," from a photograph, representing a grain field with a long line of harvesters at work. Color of border, sapphir blue.

No trans-Mississippi postal cards or stamped envelopes will be issued.

Although this series of stamps will be discontinued on the 31st of December, 1s98, they will be good for postage at any time afterwards.