The Overland Mail

 "let the tiger turn tail--
In the Name of the Empress, the Overland Mail!"

In the poem “Overland Mail” the subject matter of mail delivery is significant because it’s the only thing they have that can be called their own. The author Kipling describes the letters by stating, “We are exiles waiting for our letters from Home”, home is such a powerful word and in this instance I feel like Home is more than a physical place it’s a place of being which is completely mental, a place that cannot be overpowered.

The runner in the poem also depicts colonial mimicry by breaking the mold of how colonial powers would like to envision or portray the natives and embracing a true Indian man. Kipling describes the runner with phrasing like “O Lord of the Jungle” and “...Soft sandaled feet, strains the brawny brown chest.” Reading this poem I can picture the scene, the man, and his journey.

This can be threatening to colonial authority because it goes against how they try to portray the natives. Through artwork and texts they show the Indian males as feminine and this poem shows an Indian man as strong, and determined as he makes his way through the Jungle not for a colonial power but “In the name of the Empress of India.”

Despite Kipling’s use of colonial mimicry, the poem still shows the struggle. Kipling uses the imagery of hills and cliffs throughout the poem which to me is showing the runner’s effort to overcome.

This poem is  to illustrate the postal service that has been in India since the thirteenth century. The runners were referred to as dak runner which in Hindi Dak means post or mail. While running through the jungles the runner would light twigs to guide his way.
The runners faced many hardships and dangers such as, wild animals, bandits, swollen rivers and snow-capped mountains. They carried a stick and a spear for protection, but that did not provide much. Today runners are still used in some parts of the country where wheeled traffic is not possible. The photo above is entitled "A road in the Jungle" and it what I imagined when I pictured the runner in the jungle. The poem was written to echo the rhythm the Calvary Horses in the song "Parade Song of the Camp Animals" from the Jungle Book.

 This video comes from Disney's take on the Jungle Book and a similar song to the Calvary Horses which inspired the rhythm to the poem. Just as in the poem, Mowgli depicts orientalism. Showing an Indian man or in the Jungle Book's case a child in a simple cloth and illustrating him as less intelligent and controllable.