Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1912-01-16
MAIL SYSTEM OF THE ROMANS
Important Letters Were Delivered by
Messengers Driving Fleet Horses.


and with which we are so little ac-
quainted, is the mail system Of the
Romans.
When the Roman mails were first
Established they were very poorly con-
Quoted, but we know that they exist
ed in the time Of the republic, and
grew rapidly with the great political
Organizations and with the construc-
tion Of the military commercial roads:
as. for instance. the Appian Way
which led southwark from Rome to
Rrindisi (begun by Appius Claudius in
the year 311 B. c. and the Flaminian
Way. which led northward from Rome
by the way Of Rimini to Aquiliea, and
which was constructed by Flaminius
Nepos in the year 221 B. c.
It is certain that the Romans got
their idea Of the mails from the
Greeks, so much so that they adapted
the word hangariae. from the Greek
word hangarieon: and we are inform
ed by learned men that the Greeks in
their turn got their ideas on this sub
iect from The Pcrsians.
| The Roman mail. or cursus publicus
as 1t was called, was for long time
used as the exclusive instrument OF
the government, and private persons
were obliged to use their slaves as let
ter carriers. Such persons, for in
stance. were used by Cicero to carry
his epistles to his friend Atticus, then
residing in Athens: and 1t seems that
in those times, as In the later times Of
Richelieu Napoleon and Metternich.
It was the custom OF the government
officials to delay, and even open the
letters Of private persons, II we may
believe that same Cicero himself. who
protested firmly, accusing Antony. his
eternal enemy. of having violated the
public faith.
Letters were written with the style
on the tabella pugillaris, that Is, wax
ed tablets, or written with ink on
parchment.
In the case of letters that required
great secrecy, or those that were Of
great Importance, the slave was COM
PEELED by his master to commit the
message to memory; or in other cases
the head Of the slave was shaved and
the communication written with dye
on the scalp, after which the hair was
permitted to grow and the slave sent
on his mission.
| 1t has generally been believed that
the Roman mails were a private mat
ter; but the cursus publicus was any
thing but that possessing an organi-
zation that was marvellous. It was
maintained by the prefect Of the prae-
tor and intrusted to the directors Of
the transport (procuratores), whose
duty It was to watch the special func-
tionaries (agentes in rebus).
julius Caesar. who desired to COM
municate more rapidly and with great
er regularity with the provinces, es-
pecially Gaul. divided the mails into
two divisions-fast and slow. The fast
mail was carried by messengers drawn
by the fleetest horses, which were
changed at stations (stationes) placed
at convenient points along the military
roads. These last named stations
were situated about twenty miles
apart, and had in constant readiness
about twenty horses for the use of the
couriers. They were equipped with
veterinaries and with carpenters.
On the roads, about 100 miles apart
were placed the houses Of the messen-
gers (mansiopes). that is to say, about
one days journey, and were fully pro-
vided with provisions and arms for
foraging. and were in charge of su-
pervisor called a prepositus or man.
ceps. The service was organized in
such a way that the journey from
Rome to Gaul took from seven to
eight days.
No people understood better than
the Romans the advantages Of a per-
feet mail system, especially as a mill
tary factor. The service was perfected
by almost every emperor. So on a
coin struck in honor Of Vespasian we
read the inscription: "Vehiculatione
/ itoiioC ihSHiiooC oo oioO Va RheoAAeo
Plus Of whom it was written. "vehicu-
laruin summa diligentia sublevavit."
We learn from the code Of Theodo-
sius (Section W the dimensions Of the
vehicles, which were: The rheda, a
wagon on four wheels, with a capacity
Of thousand pounds, drawn by eight
mules in summer and twelve In winter:
the cistum. a two-wheeled wagon; the
carpentum, a covered wagon on two
wheels. drawn by two mules, and ca
bula, a military transport, drawn al
most entirely by oxen.
The regulations Of the cursus pub
licus were Of the severest order. and
great were the dangers Of the mes
sengers, so much so that as a punish
ment for their beliefs the early Chris
tians were compelled to act as couriers
and 1t was Pope Marcellus /. that was
condemned as a caretaker Of the
horses in the stations of the messen-
gers. Maltreatment Of the horses was
prohibited, and all persons were COM
PEELED by law to lend aid in time Of
need to the messengers.
The Romans also had maritime
mail service. the chief seat Of which Is
not known, but 1t is generally suppos-
ed that 1t was situated at Ostia, at the
mouth of the River Tiber.
| The Roman mail service was DOOM
ed with the barbarian invasions, bu'
such was its stability that, notwith-
standing the ravages Of the barbarians
1t was still used to a certain extent by
the Goths and Ostrogoths in later GEN.
turtles.
During the sixth and eighth centu-
ries many of the laws and customs Of
the Romans were adapted by the Lom-
bards, but the one person who alone
attempted the re-establishment Of the
mails was Charlemagne, but in vain.
The destruction Of the roads and
bridges was not reparable. and the
constant quarrels of the feudal lords