HuirkPloav

OPERATING MANUAL — PHILATELIC BUREAU COUNTER. Four windows, worked one at a time. SECTION 1: PERF GAUGE. A stamp rests on the bench with perforation teeth along its edge. Tap each tooth to tally the count. Lock the tally. Select from the ruler tray the gauge whose pitch matches. Note: both the count and the gauge must be correct before a reading will file. Sixty levels are provided. Teeth range from eight to twenty-six, gauge steps narrow to a quarter, and compound edges, a blind edge, a clock and an off-corner ruler are introduced progressively. SECTION 2: BUREAU QUIZ. A watermarked plate is displayed. State the watermark orientation — upright, inverted, sideways left, sideways right — before the clock expires. Fifty-five levels. From level twelve the gum must also be graded; from twenty-four the plate is withdrawn after a brief viewing; the glyph fades in later levels. Three misreads terminate the session. SECTION 3: RATE TABLE. Enter a parcel weight and a service tier. The counter returns postage due and the fewest stamps that make it. SECTION 4: ALBUM. File stamps by catalogue number, country, gauge, condition and watermark, then search the stockbook. Twelve badges record progress. All filed entries are retained.