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The San Antonio and San Diego Mail Line ad had been appearing in newspapers
since July 1858. The two lines were competing for passengers on 900 miles of the
Southern Overland Trail. San Antonio and San Diego Mail Line passenger Phocion
R. Way reported that he traveled on broken-down passenger wagons and by mule
back even though the ad stated: "Passengers GUARANTEED in their tickets to ride
in Coaches, excepting the 100 miles as above stated." The 100 miles was given as
the Colorado Desert.

Unreliability of Delivering the Mail by Stage Wagon

The passenger wagons could not always be relied on to meet the delivery time
requirement, as they stopped many times along the trail to prepare meals and for
periods of sleep, as well as the unreliability of using many different wagons of vary-
ing ages prone to breaking down. The mail was often transported separately on mule
back, as it had to meet the thirty-day delivery requirement between San Antonio and
San Diego.
Correspondent Charles F. Huning reported in March 1858, that after leaving San
Diego they "…road on horseback that day…" before they arrived at Carrizo Creek.
After arriving at Vallecito, Huning writes "Here we met the passengers coming from
the other end of the route, five in number; they complained very much, and had had
a very hard time of it…" When he arrived in Tucson he writes "We got to Tucson,
was very much disappointed at hearing that I would have to stay at that place until
the return of the stage from Mesilla." This was sometime before Christmas and later
he writes "On New Year’s Eve, I was glad to see the coach arrive."
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Another correspondent writes that while at Carrizo Creek "We waited here several
days, until I. C. Woods [the line Superintendent] came up with about seventy mules,
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and another stage also, heavily laden."

Providing Mules was a Major Problem

In November 1857, a herd of stock was taken from Fort Yuma to Maricopa Wells
for use upon the central section. Silas St. John was in charge and was assisted by
James Laing of Kentucky and Wm. Cunningham of Iowa.
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"…Early in December 1857, three coach loads of passengers, the first from California, bound
East, 18 persons in all reached Maricopa. No attempt was made to put them through on
mail time - extra teams were driven loose with the stage and as far as practicable two hours
drives were made with an interval of two hours rest - thus fifty miles a day were made, but
absence of water and feed were often disarranged the schedule. St. John put this party
through to San Antonio, Texas, without an accident or especial incident."
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