CANTON TEA TRADE THOMAS HILLYARD LAYTON (1810-1850) British East India Company officer and early diplomat in China. A.L.S. ""T. H. Layton"" 3pp. 4to. ""H.C.S. Broxbornbury off the Bocca Tigris"" (Canton China) Nov. 6 1832 to William Sparrow Ward. Excellent content. A long letter written on the point of landing in Canton to take up the post of Inspector of Teas at the East India Company's Factory in Canton. Reads in small part: ""…I expect to land at Canton tonight. We are in a few minutes about to pass the batteries which were silenced by Capt. Maxwell in H.M.S. Alceste…When we left Anjeer we steered through the Straights of Sunda and of Gashar and had full opportunities of observing the dangerous navigation with which those parts unfortunately abound. The China Sea is a fearful place…our voyage from the Island of Java has been destitute of any incident until…Suddenly we missed three of the crew…one of them is a returned convict…The third is a black man. One of them did not cry out when he was flogged…I rather fancy that they entertain forlorn hope of getting me to intercede for them…I shall not…I landed at Anjeer and had my first introduction to Indian scenery. It is a poor little village…I drank tea with one of the Europeans - an Agent of the Dutch East Indian Company. The tea was the produce of the Island of Java. The Dutch King…now drinks no other than that from the Celestial Empire…The tea was very bad…The Malays - who abound in all the Eastern Islands - come off the ship with pineapples coconuts…birds fowl monkies &c in abundance…the gift of an old shirt would make a poor Malay happy for a week…""Much more. Small tear from opening the seal otherwise very good condition.