I have to second Rob here, Mail::POP3Client is easy to use and fast. I was able to write an entire web-based mail reader around Mail::POP3Client in about 30 minutes.

Writing the mail SENDING part took a little bit longer :) Since there are no public links to this program any more you can download it here:

http://www.oakbox.com/scripts/oakmailer.shtml

And see Mail::POP3Client in action.

-Richard