Figure 1.--This unidentified German boy rides an Irish Mail in 1930. We do not know what the German term was. Notice that the vehicle is propelled by arm rather than feet sction. He was from Stuttgart. The boy looks to be about 4 years old. He wears a striped jersey or sweater with a collar, short trousers, and black long stockings.

The Irish mails were a child's vehicle rhat appeared in the early 20th century. It was propelled by hand rather than leg saction. It might be called a push cart. They were prominently featured in American catalogs, but not very common in the photographic record. They were even rarer in Germany, but we have found a few images. We believe that the relative prominance in the photographic record is a good indicator of just how popular they were. We do not know what Irish Mails were called in German. A Germasn reader tells us, "The German name was (and is) "Holländer" (Hollaender) - Dutch people from The Netherlands ("Holland" is an alias name for "Die Niederlande" in German) have the same name, "Holländer". I don't know why these toy vehicles with four wheels have this name. The "Porsche" of a "Holländer" were vehicles with a movable seat, like in rowing boats, coming back and forth. Medical doctors recommended the expensive vehicle, but a scroller was always faster!" A Dutch reader tells us, " A vehicle like this sometimes is called "das Go-Kart". If it is closed on the sides it is called "die Seifenkiste" (the soapbox)."

Created: 3:53 AM 12/15/2009
Last upfated: 3:23 AM 12/16/2009