Fortune, the botanist dispatched to China in order to collect and record the plants of the Orient, found adversity at every turn. Due to his humble origins, Fotune was not granted the typical luxuries of a gentleman traveling on behalf of the Royal Horticultural Society. It was a long time before he could even obtain proper weapons, convincing the Society that it would be more costly if he were killed than it would be to give him a gun. Once Fortune arrived in China, he found dozens of obstacles standing in his way, not least of which was the fact that European access to China was thoroughly restricted. In order to circumvent the ridged barriers preventing him from collecting his specimens, Fortune travelled in disguise. He also encountered serious language and cultural barriers, and thus had to rely on interpreters and locals for help. After his return from his first expedition to China, Fortune published his memoir recounting his journey. The book was an instant success, appealing to botanists, those interested in foreign culture, and those who were just looking for entertainment. In one chapter, Fortune recounts his exciting encounter with some notoriously brutal Chinese pirates. While in a fevered state, he managed to scare off the Pirates through some well placed shots fired from his advanced Europens weaponry and some very quick thinking.
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