Dave, that's interesting. The sheet I just got appears to be similar to the second row you have shown above. I'll have to do a side by side comparison in daylight as well to check on the dullness/brightness of the paper.

I have a question about apparent perforation errors on early RILP sheets. I have a 1971 sheet that is perforate but is imperforate along one dagonal. Barbour's book on page 30 suggests these "errors" may be forgeries in which an imperforate sheet was taken and then perforations were irregularly applied. I presume this would have been done to trump up value. Barbour relates a communication from Bob Fritz in which the latter states because the perforations were applied via a die at least in the early productions, such perforation errors would have been impossible. Anyone have any insights about this. Steve Altic.

When I was a 12 year old boy back in 1966, as many boys did then, I collected stamps. In the local paper in 1966 or '67 there was an article about RILP stamps. I remember being fascinated by the notion of a local post (and the triangular design) and so began sending for them. But as often happens with youthful interests, stamp collecting went away. I am now a mostly retired physician and mentioned to a friend a couple years ago, who also collected stamps as a boy, that in the remote past I had a small collection of early RILP stamps. The reason the topic came up was that my friend had acquired a place on Kelleys Island, and we were discussing the Lake Erie Islands in general. One Christmas he presented me with several FDCs from RILP from 1967, and that reignited my interest. So here I am, a veteran collector 50 years on. Much thanks to Dave Gill for reinvigorating my interest as well.

Just as Dr. Frackleton had problems with the color of the first printing of the 1966 rectangular issue, it is prophetic, and maybe fitting that the 2022 re-issue has these perforation problems. Perhaps this will make this re-issue more unique than it is already. I am a traditionalist and prefer Perf 12 format, but if it is truly problematic as it sounds, then R 24 is fine. And thank you, Dave, for taking on this Herculean task. Steve Altic.