I looked forward to this book, but now that I have finished, it might well have been about the Trump brothers. Two elites who epitomized the term ugly Americans, the Roosevelt brothers managed to take advantage of everyone they came in contact with. Their idea of a fair trade was a mechanical flashlight in exchange for priceless religious artifacts such as important illuminated manuscripts. They usually bullied the natives into trading even when they didn't want to. Here is a particularly painful example:
"A pathetic incident of our day at Muping was a visit from the widow of the Tibetan prince from Tatsienlu. She came with her daughter, a girl of eleven. The woman was plain, middle-aged and rather stupid looking. The purpose of their visit was to ask us to intercede for them with the Chengtu government. They were afraid that the government might have them executed. I am persuaded that their fear was groundless, but it was very real to them. They brought us gifts of dried meat. We gave them in return a silk scarf. On leaving us they stopped at our kitchen to beg an empty tin can from the cook."
End of that story, on to the hunting. This tone ran throughout the book. ( )