|
|
Buy Postal
Stamps
Before they became a hobbyists' collection, stamps
were primarily used as evidence that a letter to be
sent to any place in the world is already paid and
is all set for delivery. Stamps are typically
rectangular papers that are fastened in an envelope.
However, in other countries, residents were able to
buy postal stamps of different shapes, and were able
to buy postal stamps made of different materials
aside from paper. For instance, the African country
of Sierra Leone and the Pacific Island of Tonga have
supplied fruit-shape self-glued stamps before. On
the other hand, the Kingdom of Bhutan have had
stamps with their national hymn on a recorder. Other
nations like Switzerland have also issued stamps
made of wood and lace. The U.S had produced a
plastic stamp, while in Germany, they issued stamps
made completely of artificial chemicals.
But the first country to use a postal stamp is Great
Britain around 1840's. The use of postal stamps was
allowed mainly because of the book entitled 'Postal
Reform: Its Importance and Practicability published
in 1837 by Rowland Hill. In his book, Hill reasoned
that the sender must be the one who should pay for
the delivery, therefore, the sender must be the one
who should buy postal stamps and not the receiver of
the letter. For most of the time, recipients reject
the letter especially if they do not like to pay for
it. He also claimed that there should be a
standardized rate for every letter regardless of the
destination. Moreover, he explained that the
government's accounting costs would be lessen if
there would be uniform rate for stamp price instead
of the common per destination rate that requires
individual records in the Royal Mail's account for
every letter sent. Buying postal stamps whether for
a simple hobby or for mailing purposes can be a fun
activity especially when the buyer considers the
stamps' aesthetic value as vital.
|
|
