T THE golden leaf, tobacco, was long the staple of Virginia's plantation agriculture and the colony's most valuable export. No matter where a discussion started, Virginians could be expected to bring the topic around to tobacco. Burgesses in the Assembly and farmers at crossroad stores spent interminable hours discussing crop conditions and market prospects. The structure and state of the tobacco trade fundamentally affected Virginia's economy, public finance, politics, and general sense of well-being. Tobacco staple acts, planter's petitions about the state of the trade, voluminous and sometimes acrimonious correspondence with English merchants, and the lengthy British customs records all attest the importance of the trade. For many Virginia planters the successful cultivation and marketing of tobacco was at once an economic necessity and a symbol of status and respect within the community. Tobacco was more than an agricultural commodity. Something of the pride of the planter went into his crop. The Virginia economy cannot be studied without reference to tobacco; the study of any facet of Virginia's colonial history will be to some extent enlightened by a proper understanding of the Virginians' role in the tobacco trade. Fortunately for historians, English colonial bureaucrats were methodical record keepers during the hectic years that preceded the Revolution. The Crown's interest in trade was considerable, and the government required regular reports on the volume of trade. The naval officer, in particular, was a Crown official with the responsibility of keeping detailed records