"Here," says our chronicler, "occurred something amusing; the auctioneer probably fancied that as this was unique and exciting competition, it was a _handsome_ stamp, so as the bidding rose described it as 'beautifully engraved,' which created great laughter, for it was a foully hideous thing, and the engraving apparently done by a blind man with a skewer." Altogether there were many rare American locals, the majority of which fell to Sir Daniel Cooper, Mr. Atlee, and Mr. Pemberton. Then came "some miscellaneous lots, sets of used, &c., of which some fetched exorbitant prices, for instance, four varieties of 5 cents, green, eagle, Bolivia, were sold for 14s., the 5 cent lilac for 23s., the 10 cent brown for 17s. The early Luzons (Philippines), used, were good lots and the 5 and 10 cent 1854, with 1 and 2 rs., fetched in the aggregate £6 9s., so they were no bargain." Lot 150 was the ½ T. Naples, arms type, bought in for 40s., and the cross type was bought in for 9s. Lot 160 was "a remarkably good 13 cent of the commoner type of the 1852 figure Sandwich Islands, which the owner boldly started at £6 and bought in for an additional ten shillings, _a very full price indeed_." Nevertheless it would have cost £90 or more to-day. The record of this sale deserves more attention than I am able to give it here: the event was certainly one of extraordinary interest, though it was considered at the time something of a failure, and was not repeated. The next auction sale of stamps did not take place until sixteen years later. But I must spare a few lines for my chronicler's peroration. "The results of this sale are so far satisfactory that they prove that Philately is not yet on the wane, _and never will be_. It is a young science, but before many years pass, we shall regard £5 for a valuable stamp as calmly as we do now the pound sterling for an ordinary specimen; and those who have been the mainstays of the dealers will undoubtedly find that their outlays, however extensive, will produce at least cent. per cent. What are we to think of the matchless collections of Mr. Philbrick, Sir Daniel Cooper, Mr. Atlee, Baron Arthur de Rothschild, E. J., and others, gathered together with unflagging toil and patience, but all of which contain practically unattainable things? And will not these in the course of years inevitably become of fabulous value?"