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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;Hobo, post: 1229454, member: 11521&quot;]Remember that there was no automation in the 1860s for handling mail. Handling mail was very labor intensive. Letters were hand-cancelled. Addresses were read by a human, not a machine. There were no zip codes. There were no tractor-trailer rigs or air cargo planes to haul mail long distances; mail moved mainly by stagecoach or Pony Express. (When the Pony Express first started out the charge for a 1/2 ounce letter was $5. That charge was later reduced to $1. By comparison, in 1860 the United States Post Office charged 3 cents for a 1/2 ounce letter delivered up to 3,000 miles and 10 cents for a 1/2 ounce letter delivered over 3,000 miles. In 1863 they changed the fee to 3 cents per 1/2 ounce with no limit on distance.)[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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