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Auction: 21042 - The Opium Wars Collection
Lot: 2

First Opium War
General Trading in Canton
The Hongs
1837 (30 Aug.) entire letter from Canton from William Wetmore to Messrs Morrison, Cryder & Co., London "via U States"; rated "3/2", the flap bears a fair strike of boxed "liverpool/ship letter" and London arrival c.d.s. (6.4).


The letter begins, "Original per Duncan via St. Helena to London - Duplicate". The long letter gives an account of the state of the tea trade with some interesting insight into the business including, "Don't in the anxiety to secure English business, overlook the American. ... they will take anything, but what is deadly poisonous", and in relation to obtaining stocks, " ... it throws us completely in the power of the Chinamen & deprives us of that independence we ought to assume in the position of affairs as they are now.". He continues, "The situation of the Hongs is enough to dampen the spirit of any one. There must be a great revolution before long - the present system cannot be carried on. We anticipate difficulty in their being able to get the teas from the tea men, unless under cash advances to full cost ... The inside opium trade is stagnant the only operation to the coast outside. The drug is terribly dull ..."


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Sold for
HK$3,500

Starting price
HK$1200