美国邮票的历史－42￠ Stamps

CNN Student News

May 13, 2008

(CNN Student News) -- May 13, 2008 Quick Guide 42￠ Stamps - Examine the history of the sticky subject of U.S. postage stamps. Shoutout AZUZ: Time for the Shoutout! Who was the first U.S. postmaster general? If you think you know it, shout out it! Was it: A) Ben Franklin, B) Alexander Hamilton, C) Thomas Jefferson or D) Aaron Burr? You've got three seconds -- GO! All of these Founding Fathers held government positions, but Ben Franklin was the first head of the post office. That's your answer and that's your Shoutout! 42￠ Stamps LLOYD: When Ben Franklin was in charge, the post office's main job was delivering letters between Congress and the army. One postmaster actually brought mail to revolutionary soldiers on foot because he couldn't afford a horse. Transportation isn't a problem these days for the postal service, but money still is. That's part of the reason why, starting this week, it costs you a penny more to send stuff through the mail. With the price of a first-class stamp going up to 42 cents, Carl Azuz looks at the history of this sticky subject. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) CARL AZUZ, CNN STUDENT NEWS: Business ain't booming at the U.S. Postal Service. It just posted a $700 million loss. Thanks in part to e-mail, snail mail volume is down. Thanks in part to gas prices, delivery costs are up. And so's the stamp, by one penny. That's a far cry from the first stamp, which featured a picture of this Founding Father. In 1847, Ben Franklin's face traveled all over the country for five cents a pop. Some folks thought that was too expensive, so in 1851, the price was dropped to three cents! About the only thing lower than the price: the speed at which letters traveled. It took about a month for mail to get across the country. And even after the Pony Express rode onto the scene in 1860, you were looking at ten days' travel time, with letter carriers facing lots of risks, like death. But the stamp system was well-affixed, and so were the faces on it. Some guy named George Washington has been pictured more times on U.S. stamps than anyone! They've featured everything from Star Trek to Secretariat, Frankenstein to Frank Sinatra, who's on the new 42-cent stamp. When the Hoboken crooner was born in 1915, a first-class sticker cost three cents; when he died in 1998, we were paying 32 cents. And now, his postal portrait is priced at 42 cents. But if you think that's too much, compare how long it takes to deliver a letter today to what it used to be; you'll see that at least in one sense, you get what you pay for. Carl Azuz, CNN Student News. (END VIDEO CLIP) Blog Promo LLOYD: Now, collecting stamps is a popular hobby, but when's the last time you used one to mail something? After all, you can pay your bills, write letters to your friends, even send birthday cards online. So, what kind of impact will this price increase really have? Go to our blog at CNNStudentNews.com and tell us what you think.

视频下载百科知识
　