News has just reached me that the theme for Europa-CEPT stamps for 2007 will be "100 years of Scouting".  Europa stamps are special stamps issued by European Postal administration under the aegis of PostEurop.  This is great news and we look forward to seeing Scouting well publicised during our centenary year.  For the record more than 50 European countries and territories have issued Europa stamps since they were first issued in 1956.

For sale on eBay a couple of months ago was a part cover showing the 1936 Darlington Scout camp cancellation.  This as many of you are aware, is one of the scarcest of all U.K. postmarks, not just Scout but of

I recently attended the International Stamp Exhibition at Brno in the Czech Republic, but was most surprised that out of the large number of displays, there was only one page showing the Czechoslovakia 1918 Scout stamps.  There was a two frame Scout exhibit by Nohr Christian of Denmark titled "The life as a Boy Scout" and included in this was cover with a pair of the 1947 French World Jamboree stamps sent to Aachen, Germany.  This was posted at Courbevoie (Seine) on 19th October 1947 and showed the British Censor 3142 purple circular cachet and the white censor label, which was still being used two years after the end of the war.  This display showed how a first class exhibit could be put together using mostly modern Scout stamps.

During June an auction was held in Edinburgh of the late David Jefferies collection of stamps, cigarette cards, postcards, commemorative china and books etc.  David was a long time member of SGSC, and although it is some eighteen months since David passed away, nothing had been heard of his collection since then. What was a big surprise was that nobody knew anything about the auction until about ten days before it took place.  The first I heard about it was when I was sent a catalogue from a friend not in the Scout movement. Although the auctioneer was most efficient, I am sure his executors would have received considerably more money if it had been well publicised.  It was really essential to attend the auction which a number of our members (including two from overseas) did, as many of the lots were very large and could not be fully described.  There were some 30 people attending the auction and prices were high on certain parts of the collection.  At the end of the day it would be most advisable if we all left instructions with our will, on how and where our collection should be disposed of.

The Club has recently been represented by Peter Duck and Melvyn Gallagher at the recent Gilwell Cub Weekend and Terry Simister will again be making arrangements for us to have a stall at the Gilwell Reunion in September.  Through this we hope to gain more members especially as it was passed at the Annual General Meeting held in June that the Club's Constitution be changed to include "paper ephemera".  It is hoped that members will now contribute articles on this area of interest.

To finish on a personal note, I would like to thank all those members, including a number from overseas, who wrote, telephoned or emailed me offering congratulations on my award of the Silver Wolf.  This was very much appreciated.  During April I attended the Queens Scout parade at Windsor with other recipients of this award and understand that I will be asked to lunch with the Chief Scout next February after the annual Founders Day Service at Westminster Abbey in London.