The Failure of the Pony Express Communication System in America :: American America History

The Failure of the Pony Express Communication System in America A race from the start, a rider jumped to the back of his fresh pony and bolted from the station, sweating and tired, but always knowing the mail must go through, the young boy spurred the pony on as the station keepers watched the dust rise under the feet of the United States fastest mail transport†¦ Genghis Khan is often credited with the idea of a Pony Express, more however a relay then a mail service. He began the horse relay for provisions, using a station every 40 miles, then there was William â€Å"Lightfoot† Visscher, who’s credited with working the mail into the idea. He was a rider from a Boston paper, and used ponies to run for news (Bloss 13). And all the while the United States was growing, with it grew the demand for communication between east and west. Having received assurances that fast communication from the Missouri River to California would be well patronized, three early stagecoach men, Senator W.M. Gwin, Alexander Majors, and Daniel E. Phelps, made preparations for the inauguration of the new service. Six hundred broncos, especially chosen for fleetness, toughness, and endurance, were purchased. Seventy-five men, none of them weighing over one hundred and ten pounds, were engaged as riders, being selected on account of their bravery, their capacity for deprivation and their horsemanship, as well as for their shooting abilities and their knowledge of the craft and the manner of attack of the Indians (When 1). While the pony express founded the postal system and played a significant role in communication, it was doomed for failure, due to Indian warfare; hazards on the trail; and the economics, politics, and corruption within the system. Indian warfare presented a large amount of turmoil for the Pony Express. Wars often broke out between settlements, and tribes, causing hardships to the riders. Some Indian tribes believed there was â€Å"magic† in the mochillas (leather pouches carrying the mail), which explained why the ponies they chose were so fast (Adams 86). More often then not, the wagon trains traveling west, would open fire on defenseless Indians, killing and wounding them, and creating more havoc for the express riders traveling from east to west and vice versa (Adams 88). More havoc and turmoil between the two groups was created when cases of slave labor were brought to light.