afforded an interesting and successful experiment in an art direction.
As a result it is said that a strong demand has been generated in
other colonies for similarly beautiful and localised designs in
preference to the stereotyped mediocrity supplied by the ordinary
label process.




[Illustration]

XIII.

Stamp Collecting as an Investment.


When a stamp collector is charged with being extravagant, with
spending money lavishly and foolishly on a mere hobby, he may very
justifiably reply that even his most extravagant spendings may be
regarded as an investment.

The ordinary investor in, say, industrial securities is fairly content
if he can, with a little risk, secure a steady six or seven per cent.
If he launches out into more speculative shares, yielding higher rates
of interest, he must be content to face a much greater risk of the
capital invested. Now, the severest test of an investment is the yield
of interest over a series of years covering periods of depression as
well as periods of prosperity. The stamp collector who has used
ordinary discretion in his purchases may confidently submit his
investment to this test.