Pet Department Continued-Christmas Suggestions

BOYS AND GIRLS! GET BUSY AND SEND
FOR A SET OF THESE BEAUTIFUL PENCILS
WITH YOUR NAME STAMPED HERE

NAME STAMPED IN GOLD LETTERS ON HIGH GRADE
GREEN, BLUE, RED, OR WHITE ENAMELED RUBBER
TIPPED LEAD PENCILS. 3 Pencils in Christmas box, 25c., 6 Pen-
cils, 50c. Stamps or Coin. Write plainly name to be stamped and colors of
enamel wanted.
Rochelle Pencil Co.

1815 Model

Dept. H New Rochelle, N. Y.

For School, College or Society. We make the "right kind" from hand cut steel dies. Beauty of detail and quality guaranteed. No pins less than $5.00 a dozen. Catalog showing many artistic designs free. FLOWER CITY CLASS PIN CO., 686 Central Building, Rochester, N. Y.

30 Days FREE TRIAL FOR XMAS-A FOREIGN LANGUAGE!

and freight prepaid on the new 1915 RANGER"
bicycle. Write at once and get our big catalog and
special offers before buying.

Marvelous improvements. Extraordinary values in
our 1915 price offers. You cannot afford to buy without
getting our latest propositions. WRITE TODAY.

Boys, be a "Rider Agent" and make big money taking orders for bicycles and supplies. Get our liberal terms on a sample to introduce the new "RANGER." Tires, equipment, sundries and everything in the bicycle line half usual prices. Auto. and Motorcycle Supplies, MEAD CYCLE CO., DEPT. T-15

CHICAGO

Boys! Girls! Ask for a Language Outfit. It includes a
standard talking machine upon which you can also play
musical records. An Ideal Xmas Gift that combines both
pleasure and instruction. You will enjoy learning to speak
a foreign language by the

LANGUAGE PHONE METHOD
And Rosenthal's Practical Linguistry
No tiresome rules to study. Just listen to the professor pro-
nounce French, German, Spanish or Italian-until you know it.
Let your talking machine teach you. Write for free booklet.
THE LANGUAGE-PHONE METHOD, 979 Putnam Bldg., 2 W. 45th St., New York

CHRISTMAS

Advertising Competition

OMEONE we know says that the boys and girls who compete in the

"We'll see," we said to ourselves, and sitting right down then and there, wrote this competition. When we showed it to "Someone," she said, just as a man did last month, "Oh, but that is too hard; why, many grownups could n't do it." So we said, "All right, then, this competition will be for the whole family."

When you send in your answer, tell us how many people took part. Do it some night soon when everybody is gathered around the evening lamp and see how much fun you get out of it.

This competition is in the form of "A Christmas Story." As it stands now the story does n't make any sense at all. It's just nonsense. But when you have changed the italicized phrases into the name of a product advertised in the November ST. NICHOLAS, it will make sense, and read just like any story. The words in italics are phrases that appear in the advertisements, or phrases that describe a product advertised in the November ST. NICHOLAS, so you can't mistake it."

A CHRISTMAS STORY

In a Connecticut town, called STEEL FISHING RODS, there once dwelled a man who had a son named MUSICAL INSTRUMENT. One dark stormy December day when MUSICAL IN STRUMENT was about ten years old, his father took him out into the woods to find a Christmas tree. When very small, the boy had taken GREAT FALLS, so he was strong and healthy. He had the cheerful smile of the boy who understands the value of THE JUNGLE POW WOW, and he used it faithfully. Before kissing MUSICAL INSTRUMENT good-by, his mother put on his cheeks a little NATURAL COMPLEXION. Carefully placed in the pockets of both MUSICAL INSTRUMENT and his father, were 40,000,000 to keep them from being late for dinner. The boy had just had some, PERHAPS FIVE MILLIONS OF THEM, and he was looking forward cheerfully to GOOD HEALTH FIRST OF ALL for dinner.

As they left the house, MUSICAL INSTRU MENT'S father took from his vest-pocket an CASE OF LUCK and snapped THE NEW KIND OF BOOKS FOR GIRLS, who was MUSICAL INSTRUMENT'S little sister. Then, after stopping at the drug-store for FAIR, SOFT AND PINKY-WHITE for the boy's mother, they tramped on. Both of them had heard of EGYPTIAN AND SEA ISLAND COTTON YARNS. They both wore them and the boy wore CHILDREN'S ANKLES too, so they trudged along comfortably and cheerfully. They spent all day in the woods without seeing anything that looked like a Christmas tree. Finally MUSICAL INSTRUMENT exclaimed: "Why father! this is a GARTER'S forest." "So it is! so it is!" said father, and they trudged home without a tree, but

3.

Write us a letter telling how many people took part in the competition and what "make" or "brand" of pen you wrote your letter with. In case more than one correct story is received, the prize will go to those who write the best-looking letter from the standpoint of neatness, care in preparation, decoration, etc.

4. In the upper left-hand corner of your answer paper give name, age, address and the number of this competition (156).

5. Submit answers by December 20, 1914.

6.

Do not use a lead pencil. Write on one side of your paper only.

7. Address answer: Advertising Competition No. 156, ST. NICHOLAS MAGAZINE, Union Square, New York.

The First Prize, $5.00, will go to the person sending in the correct answer and finest-looking letter. There will be Two Second Prizes, $3.00 each, to the next two in merit. Three Third Prizes, $2.00 each, to the next three. Ten Fourth Prizes, $1.00 each, to the next ten.

Note: Prize-winners who are not subscribers to St. Nicholas are given special subscription rates upon immediate application.

This Competition is open freely to all who may desire to compete without charge or consideration of any kind. Prospective contestants need not be subscribers to ST. NICHOLAS in order to compete for the prizes offered.

A

ST. NICHOLAS STAMP PAGE

ANOTHER PRIZE COMPETITION

FEW months ago, Stamp Page held a "competition." The number and quality of the replies were very encouraging, and we now offer two more prizes. Every one is, of course, exceedingly interested in the terrible war which is, at present writing, raging in Europe. Stamp-collectors, perhaps, are even more interested than most other people. And naturally so. Who of us reads of an attack upon Belgrade without at once thinking of the page of Servian stamps in his album, of the stamps issued in 1904 called the "Death Mask" issue, of the current issue with a portrait of King Peter, with his fierce military mustache, his vizored cap? Or of the Austrian page with its many portraits of the Emperor Francis Joseph; of Russia with its portraits, with its eagles, its "thunderbolts," and "laid" paper? Of France, with the "sower" type, her many colonials with the ever-recurring "R. F." upon them? We think of Germany's stamps with the picture of Germania upon them, of England with the portraits of Victoria, Edward, and George. And we think, too, of plucky little Belgium, with the long-bearded King Leopold, and the new King Albert, its various newspaper and charity stamps, and the page of Belgian postal-packet stamps of which we are so proud.

Apart from all the bloodshed and suffering, apart from who is right and who is wrong, there comes to us stamp-collectors another question. What effect will the war have upon our favorite hobby? What will happen in the stamp line? No one of us knows, of course, but who of us can write the best article upon what may happen-the most interesting and instructive paper?

Any one may compete for prizes. All essays must contain your name, age, and address, be written in ink on one side of your paper only. All answers must be in our hands by December 20. Successful contestants will be announced in our February number. Replies should be directed to

EDITOR STAMP PAGE,

St. Nicholas Magazine,

Union Square, N. Y. City.

WAR ITEMS

THE readers of this page are close students of geography; it goes hand in hand with stampcollecting. And at present the map of Europe is most absorbing. Perhaps a few little "stampic" items may be specially interesting. We have all heard of Wellington, of Napoleon, and of Waterloo. The name of this city has been frequently mentioned of late in the war news. But do all of our readers know that the crouching lion, which appears on the low values of the Belgian stamp issue of 1869 and later, is copied from the figure of a lion which crowns the monument upon that celebrated battlefield of a hundred years ago? This large bronze lion was cast from cannon used in that battle.

A second item of interest lies in the destruction of the city of Malines. Here is (or was) located the factory or printing-house which for many years furnished all the stamps required by Belgium and her immense colony, the Kongo Free State (and, we believe, the envelop stamps and post-cards also).

All will want to know what the two prizes will be. One of our advertisers was so interested in our last competition that his firm now offers as first prize a copy of Scott's Junior Album, and for second prize a copy of Scott's new catalogue, a book which no collector can be without. And bear in mind that correctness of spelling and general neatness of the reply will count in the awarding of the prizes.

Airships have figured prominently in all the war news. They have been of untold value in all scout ing operations, furnishing the contestants with reliable information not otherwise so speedily obtainable. Aëroplanes have been depicted upon several stamps. Now rumor has it that Russia is about to use them regularly as mail-carriers, and that special stamps are to be issued for use on such mail. The stamps are to be bicolored, and the pictures represent different kinds of air craft. There is to be a special increased rate for mail carried in this way.

Postmarks are closely allied to stamps. It was to be expected that the war would yield a series of very interesting cancelations. It seemed probable that there would be a special mail service for the English Army operating abroad-that this would be entirely in English official hands, that English stamps would be used canceled with postmarks bearing names of cities or locations in France or Belgium. Whether the English handle this mail or not, whether or not English stamps are used, we do not know, but the interesting cancelations are not to be. The Russian-Japanese war taught the military world the value of secrecy, and so nothing is to be given out which will indicate to the enemy the location of opposing forces. Even the postmarks on letters from soldiers in the field give no clue as to the whereabouts of the writer, and the censor is kept busy blotting out everything which might give a hint to the ever watchful spies of the combatants. We copy from an English journal, "The Stamp Lover," pictures of three postmarks for English use, one each for the army, the navy, and the censor.

PASSED

NAVY.