Lintin, 9 October 1829, a possibly earliest international mail from
Lintin Island to the USA. On the front side, stamped with red
handstamp
Lintin, 9 October 1829, a possibly earliest international mail from
Lintin Island to the USA. On the front side, stamped with red
handstamp “SHIP”, red arrival c.d.s. “BOSTON / MAR 12 (1830)”, and
a rate mark “20 ½ (cents)” in magenta color. [20 ½ c = 18c ship
rate + 2½c local postage delivery from Boston to Philadelphia.]
This 1829 letter from Lintin Island, a strategic and notorious
offshore location for trade activities with China at the mouth of
the Canton River, offers rare documentation of early opium-era
logistics prior to open conflict. It captures the pre-war quiet
before the storm, when trade was still covert but expanding, with
Lintin serving as a strategic offshore anchorage to bypass the
Canton System. The letter mentioned “…. We dine with Capt. Phillips
& shall soon after be under way for Whampoa which the ship lay 10
miles below Canton. You may imagine my anxiety to arrive as I must
receive some letters from home…”
此信件寫於1829年10月9日，地點為中國珠江口外的伶仃島（Lintin
Island）。書信內容提到作者剛抵達船隻，並將經由“Mentor”號船前往黃埔（Whampoa），其後將北上廣州。此外，作者亦提及曾與同行友人一同乘坐「中國舢舨」前往澳門登岸，途中曾觀察連堂附近地形，並與其他數艘外國軍艦共同停泊於距廣州10英里處水域。
連堂島位於珠江口外，是19世紀初期外籍商船進入中國前的重要外港停泊點與轉運中繼站。在清政府實行「一口通商」政策（僅允許外商透過廣州進行貿易）之下，外籍船隻通常需在連堂等待入港許可，並辦理補給、船員登岸或貨物中轉等事宜。該島因其地理位置鄰近廣州與澳門，成為早期國際貿易與航運的樞紐之一，對了解當時中國對外貿易體制運作具有高度史料價值。
此信可能係最早從伶仃島出去美國的國際郵件。
