From my reading of JulieW's explanation, express mail was a "private" affair. As in the example of Colonel Forster, the express would have been sent "by a servant of his or a serviceman who could ride." Such explanation suggests that you could pretty much send a message wherever you needed to send it. Because you were essentially paying a person - be it someone who was already under your employ or another - to do so. It doesn't require an "express service," as you termed it. I think you're also assuming relay riders would be necessary, which perhaps gives you that impression that there must be a service or network already in place in order to send a message by express. But again, from JulieW's post, it sounds like the delivery was the work of one person. It's quite probable that horses may needed to have been changed at posting houses to afford rest, but I think the takeaway is that for all these reasons, sending an express was a costly affair, and thus not a common occurrence.
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