Posted by Peter H on March 24, 2008 at 20:15:06 from 86.130.137.242 user Peter_H.
In Reply to: Re: Ransome the Socialist posted by Duncan on March 24, 2008 at 10:25:29:
If the three taicoons are caricatures of contemporary Chinese political figures . . .
As always with AR, I don't think it's that simple. When he was in China, Ransome met a number of provincial Warlords. These included Chang Tso-lin and, interestingly, a 'Wu' - Marshall Wu Pei-fu who controlled Honan province. Much info about these, and AR's stay in China, is contained in Ransome in China 1927 by David Jones, published by Amazon Publications. I cannot recommend this book too highly. Also, for those who like Missee Lee (I do) this book tells you a lot about where the incidents and settings come from. It also has info on Soong-Ching-Ling, or Mme Sun Yat-sen as she became, including a charming photo of her reading.