presence of Hon. Wm. Mulock, postmaster-general of Canada.... This is probably the dearest stamp album in the world, and contains only a single specimen of each denomination of the jubilee issue. [137] =Mekeel's Weekly Stamp News=, X: 28 It will be noted that the Superintendent's last circular concerning the exhaustion of the Jubilee stamps stated that the plates had been destroyed. An eye witness sent _Mekeel's Weekly Stamp News_ (X: 166) an account of the process which is interesting enough to reproduce. On Friday afternoon, Sept. 10th, ... I presented myself at the Post-Office Department and joined a party who were just leaving the building to go over to the American Bank Note Co's. building, a couple of blocks away.... Arriving, we were conducted to the top floor by the manager. The plates, dies, etc., were brought out by those in charge, and the seventeen original dies after inspection by those present were placed one by one under a press and an obliterating roller passed over them several times: proofs were then pulled which faintly showed the outline of the ovals, etc., but the words showing the value could not even be made out. Next the rolls for transferring the impression from the dies to the plates came in for their share of attention. There were nineteen of them, and a few burns from an emery wheel quickly put each one "out of sight". The plates, 31 in number, were subjected to the same treatment as the dies and the total time occupied in the destruction of the various parts occupied almost two hours. The Postmaster General's Report for the 30th June, 1897, reprints the extract from the _Canadian Hansard_ of 20th May, which we have already given.[138] The stamp accounts show a few curious things. In the first place the announcement of the issue gave the quantity of 8 cent stamps as 200,000. The accounts for 1897 give the number received from the manufacturers as 240,000, and we find in the column headed "Returned by Postmasters as unfit for use," 40,000 copies, and in the column headed "Stamps destroyed as unfit for use", a like amount! When the Post Office Department estimates for the ensuing year were being discussed in Parliament in May, 1898, the following interpellation occurred and was replied to by the Postmaster General:[139]-- _Mr. Ingram._ I notice that 40,000 eight cent stamps were returned by the postmasters as unfit for use, and that 40,000 were destroyed as unfit for use.