Gwen, Marg and others, I've enjoyed reading the postings about early mail services. I'm curious though. How was mail paid for in 1838. I think we're looking at a mail service long before the postage stamp system. Another thought - were any mail contracts for overland travel ever officially given to females or was the service purely via hemail? In my wife's family I know of one where the husband held the licence for a very small post office service near Mudgee. He was never home long as he mainly was a drover into Qld and the Northern Territory so his wife was the unofficial post master. There were no overland delivery wth this licence though. (Read Lawson's story "The Drover's Wife" for what I think may be a link to my wife's family although nothing mentioned of postal services) David

Hello Sandra and David, Re your posting on the subject of how those early bits of mail were paid for, prior to the "lick and stick" era: There is a comprehensive section in the "Australian Encyclopaedia" under "Post Office" which looks at each state in Australia and its postal matters. Just had to reply to that, post haste! Would women have been safe by themselves on the lonely roads, carrying the mails in those times? It would probably have been scandalous as well....no, I think the blokes had the contracts. Gwen