Haulin' the Mail

[Jet]

Does anybody know of the origin of the saying "Haulin the Mail" when somebody is on a smokin run? I have herard it for decades and since my wife is a letter carrier she wants to know and I don't have a clue.

 

[megadeth]

I can't answer that but it certainly doesn't apply to the current postal service that's in place now!

 

["Dr. Dirt"]

I believe an "In-Depth" search will point to the pony express that delivered mail where neither rain, nor show, nor sleet, nor hail stopped the mail from getting through at speeds that required frequent horse changes, multiple water stopps and excellent marksmanship against frequent robery attempts.

No, I wasn't their first rider.

 

[Jim]

I believe this goes back to the first half of the 20th century when mail between major cities moved by rail. Railroads ran "mail trains" that were basically bulk mail cars. They were generally pulled at high speeds by powerful locomotives with very quick stops to drop or add cars. They usually were a high priority train, with freight and passenger trains taking a siding not to delay them. Hence, "hauling the mail" meant moving at high speed with little delay. My opinion, anyway.

 

[Jet]

I can't answer that but it certainly doesn't apply to the current postal service that's in place now!

Thanks Bob, I will tell that to my wife who slugs through 12" of snow and -20 temps to get those letters delivered.