The Irish Mail was a quadricyle-style toy from 1922 that was propelled by a central lever that was pushed and pulled, while the feet controlled the direction. It was owned and donated by Hubert Clarke Wright of Shepody, NB and Toronto, ON, who restored and repainted it in 1930. It now resides in the Albert County Museum Jail.
The Story of the Irish Mail" by Hubert Clarke Wright
“When I was small boy, I was taken to do my Christmas shopping at Eaton's in Moncton. I spent twenty-five cents for each gift, maximum, and then I spent the rest of my time at Eaton's admiring little cars. There were five or six of them and I could sit in them, couldn't drive them around, but I could sit in them and dream. Over a period of time, I decided I wanted one, so I saved my money very carefully and finally had enough money to buy one of the little cars. But what had happened was that I had grown and the cars hadn't! So my mother very wisely decided that a car was a poor investment. She found an advertisement for an Irish Mail in "Child Life Magazine" which my sister, Annie, received. Mother bought it, using my money of course, and brought it to me. I was devastated. I wanted the little car. And I had an Irish Mail! However, it turned out, as usual, that my mother was right and I was wrong. The Irish Mail was a vehicle that was propelled by a central lever that was pushed and pulled, while the feet controlled the direction. The size was not a factor. It was strong and could take big people, and although it was meant to be in the city, we drove it out in the country. We drove it in the barn. The barn floor was a good place. We also drove it around the yard and on two occasions I actually drove it up the road to my Aunt Edna and Uncle Alden's place and back, a distance of a half a mile. It was driven by my brother Hillman, my sister Annie, my brother Carl and myself. Later on, when I came back home to Shepody to visit with my wife, Elsie, and children, it was driven by our son, Harvey, and our daughter, Janet. Then it got in ill repair, so I took it back to Toronto and rehabilitated it. I got it all fixed up and painted and there, Matthew, Harvey's son drove it. Then it got put away and I tried to think of what I should do with it. It occurred to me that maybe it should come back to the Albert County Museum in Hopewell Cape where it would be a point of interest and wonder for people who had never seen one of these contraptions. And so the Irish Mail is now in Hopewell Cape. “