E-text prepared by Brendan Lane and the Project Gutenberg Online Distributed Proofreading Team (https://www.pgdp.net) Note: Project Gutenberg also has an HTML version of this file which includes the original illustrations. See 15713-h.htm or 15713-h.zip: (https://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/1/5/7/1/15713/15713-h/15713-h.htm) or (https://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/1/5/7/1/15713/15713-h.zip) WHAT PHILATELY TEACHES A Lecture Delivered before the Section on Philately of the Brooklyn Institute of Arts and Sciences, February 24, 1899 by JOHN N. LUFF New York Third Edition 1915 By way of preface, I wish to say, that I have prepared this paper with the hope of interesting those who are not stamp collectors and my endeavor will be to indicate some of the interesting and instructive things that may be learned by those who follow this fascinating pursuit. Much that I have to say will be ancient history to philatelists, but I trust they will remember that this is not especially intended for them and pardon any dryness in it, in view of its intent. Stamp collecting, as pursued to-day, has become something more than an amusement for children. It affords instruction and mental relaxation to those who are older and more serious. On the title page of every stamp album and catalogue should be inscribed the old latin motto: "_Te doces_" thou teachest, for it is certainly an instructor and affords much intellectual entertainment. [Illustration: Stamp, "Hankow Local Post", 2 cents] In connection with this motto we have a little philatelic joke from the orient. In one of the Chinese treaty ports a stamp has been issued which bears the motto. We find them on the tea chests, written in excellent Chinese, and, even if we do not read the language, we cannot doubt that they refer to the _tea doses_ which the chests contain. By some, philately has been called a science. Perhaps it hardly merits so exalted a title but it opens for us a wide field for research, in which we may find many curious, interesting and instructive things. It trains our powers of observation, enlarges our perceptions, broadens our views, and adds to our knowledge of history, art, languages, geography, botany, mythology and many kindred branches of learning. [Illustration: Stamp, "Canada Postage", Christmas 1898, 2 cents]