iven up entirely or left to
professionals, because such racing is productive of good sport. The best
course to pursue under the circumstances, then, is to have a meet
especially for bicyclists. I am sure there are enough wheelmen in the
schools to make it worth while, and the fall season with cold days and
bracing air is just the time for such sport.

If a bicycle field day cannot be gotten up this fall, there is no reason
why there should not be an interscholastic road race. The executive
committee of the N.Y.I.S.A.A. could easily arrange such a contest, and
offer a pennant to the winning school. Let each school of the
association enter two riders, and let the managers of the race adopt a
course. This can be easily done by looking over the back numbers of
Harper's Round Table, and choosing a good road from one of the many
bicycle maps of the vicinity of New York that have recently been
printed. This would be a novelty in the way of school contests, in this
section at least, although it is quite a common event with the
California school associations.

THE GRADUATE.

[Illustration: STAMPS]

This Department is conducted in the interest of stamp and coin
collectors, and the Editor will be pleased to answer any question
on these subjects so far as possible. Correspondents should
address Editor Stamp Department.

Thirty years ago there were probably fifty coin-collectors where there
is one to-day. As a consequence coins have now little value unless they
are, first, coins of great rarity; or, second, scarce coins in
absolutely uncirculated condition, or "mint state."

Dealers in coins whom I have questioned say that there is very little
demand, and that in many instances they sell coins now at a lower price
than they would have paid for them a generation ago. Further, if coins
could be sold as quickly as stamps, they could afford to sell them at an
even lower price. As it is, the interest on the capital locked up in
stock and the cost of doing business are so large, that they make very
little profit. The common obsolete coins (except U. S.) are bought by
the dealers at the price of old metal. There is no money in collecting
coin, but lots of fun.

JOS. GOLDSMITH.--The green 5c. Confederate unused is sold by
dealers at 50c. The value of common stamps by the million depends
on the assortment. If there is a fair quantity of 1, 2, 3, 4, 5,
6, 8, 10, and 15c., etc., they b