Friday 17 February 2012

"Motor Car will be shorty received" - An Interesting 'Urgent Train Message'

I have a number of these London and South Western Railway 'Urgent Train Messages' in my document collections. These originally were sent on trains between stations throughout the period. Those in my possession all originate from 1911 and 1912 and, as this was an era when telephones were common, the UTMs do not seem to convey anything of importance. The topics covered include unpaid charges for transported items, lost property and shipping arrangements. Probably the most interesting is one sent from Bishops Waltham to Eastleigh Station on 2 November 1911 concerning the shipment of a 'motor car' (shown). It reads:

"Motor Car will be shorty received at yours from London consigned F.S. Moss Esq, Eastleigh. Immediately it arrives will you please wire "Hales" Winters Hill, Bishops Waltham and deduct the charges. Ack."

I'm not sure about the words in red, so please feel fee to make suggestions.

1 comment:

  1. I wonder if the word you have as "deduct" might be "debit"? There seems to be a dot over one of the letters.

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