by the "dry process." The essential difference 

 is that dampened ungummed paper is used in 

 the former method and dry pregummed paper 

 in the latter. 



Two changes in the layout of the plates have 

 been made since 1934. Beginning with the 

 1946-47 issue, the plates were laid out with 

 central vertical and horizontal gutters, dividing 

 the plates of 112 subjects into four panes of 28 

 stamps. This permitted the complete perfora- 

 tion of the stamps on all four sides whereas 

 formerly there was a straight edge on one or 

 two sides of 10 out of every 28 stamps. With 

 the change from printing by flatbed presses to 

 the new rotary presses in 1959, the size of the 

 plates was increased to 120 subjects to better 

 utilize the new multicolor method of printing. 

 Stamps from the new plates are issued to post 

 offices in sheets of 30, instead of the former 28. 



Beginning with the 1946-47 issue also, the 

 inscription "It is unlawful to hunt waterfowl 

 unless you sign your name in ink on the face 

 of this stamp" has been placed on the back of 

 each stamp by offset printing. Beginning with 

 the 1958-59 issue, a slogan has been added to 

 the back plus the inscription quoted above and 

 this may be changed each year. 



The stamp designs are 1.21 inches vertical by 

 1.82 inches horizontal. The stamps are printed 

 on unwatermarked paper and are perforated 

 1 1 .X 1 1 . 



Duck stamp collection on display at 

 Smithsonian 



In March 1955 the Fish and Wildlife Service 

 transferred its complete set of full sheets of the 

 annual series of Migratory Bird Hunting Stamps 

 to the Smithsonian Institution for public display 

 in the National Postage Stamp Collection in 

 the Old National Museum Building in Wash- 

 ington, D.C., housed in the Arts and Industries 

 building on the Mall. 



Accompanying the stamps was a complete set 

 of die proofs of all the stamps. 



At that time the Service's official collection 

 consisted of 21 sheets of 28 stamps each, dating 

 from the 1934-35 issue, when the duck-stamp 

 requirement became law, through 1954-55. To 

 keep the collection up to date, an agreement 

 has been made between the Fish and Wildlife 

 Service and the Smithsonian Institution for the 

 former agency to add a sheet of each year's 

 new issue and a die proof to the Smithsonian 

 collection. 



The official presentation and acceptance of 

 the collection took place on February 10, 1958, 

 at a ceremony held in the office of Dr. Leonard 

 Carmichael, Secretary of the Smithsonian, who 

 accepted the collection from Ross Leffier, Assist- 

 ant Secretary of the Interior. 



Illustrations of duck stamps now permitted 



Prior to September 2, 1958, when Public 

 Law 85-921, 85th Congress, H.R. 9370, was 

 approved, it was illegal to reproduce a picture 

 of the actual duck stamp since these stamps 

 were listed as revenue stamps. 



Public Law 85-921 now permits: 



The printing, publishing, or importation, or the mak- 

 ing or importation of the necessary plates for such 

 printing or publishing, of black and while illustrations of 

 postage and revenue stamps and other obligations and 

 securities of the United States, and postage and revenue 

 stamps, notes, bonds, and other obligations or securities 

 of any foreign government, bank, or corporation for 

 philatelic, numismatic, educational, historical, or newsworthy 

 purposes in articles, books, journals, newspapers, or 

 albums (but not for advertising purposes, except illustra- 

 tions of stamps and paper money in philatelic or numis- 

 matic advertising of legitimate numismatists and dealers 

 in stamps or publishers of or dealers in philatelic or 

 numismatic articles, books, journals, newspapers, or al- 

 bums). Such illustrations, except those of stamps, shall be 

 of a size less than three-fourths or more than one and 

 one-half, in linear dimension, of each part of such obli- 

 gation or security. The negatives and plates used in 

 making the illustrations shall be destroyed after their 

 final use for the purpose for which they were made. 



The reproduction of the duck stamps in their 

 original color is thus prohibited. 



