Exactly one hundred years ago, the first travelling post-office ran over the Home railways. At the recently held centenary celebration at Euston Sta tion, there was placed on show a special train, including a replica of the first specially-built sorting-carriage which commenced to run on the Grand Junction Railway in January, 1838; also examples of the 1885 sorting-carriage, originally fitted with oil lamps, and the first carriage to have internal protective padding; one of the latest post-office cars; and an open car demonstrating mail pick-up and delivery equipment. The pioneer sorting carriage was really a converted horse-box, and this was replaced six months later by a specially-built 16 ft. van, equipped with pouch exchange apparatus. The first service was between Euston and Blatchley, but in September, 1838, a through mail car was introduced between Euston and Preston. To-day, the whole of Britain is covered by a network of more than 70 travelling post-offices. Their total annual mileage is approximately four millions, and the number of postal items handled each year exceeds 500 millions. In the travelling post-offices a postal staff of about 500 are at work daily. So important is this business of handling postal matter, that the structure of the page 26 page 27 Home railway time-table is largely based on the skeleton service run to meet the needs of the postal authorities.