Peter Fleming was born in 1907 and educated at Eton and at Christ Church, Oxford, where he edited the magazine *Isis* and graduated with First Class Honors in English Literature. After working briefly in Wall Street during the 1929 crash, Mr. Fleming returned to England and joined the staff of the *Spectator*, after which he deserted journalism for travel. In 1933, his first book, *Brazilian Adventure*, was published and was highly successful both here and in England. This was followed by two popular travel books, *One's Company* and *News from Tartary*. During World War II, Mr. Fleming served with the Grenadier Guards, seeing action in Norway, Greece, and the South East Asia theater. After the war, he commanded the Territorial Battalion of the Oxfordshire and Buckingham Light Infantry. He is married to Celia Johnson, the actress, and they have one son and two daughters. Mr. Fleming runs his estate of 2,000 acres in Oxfordshire, of which county he was once High Sheriff. A frequent contributor to the *Spectator* and the *Times of London*, he is also the author of *Operation Sea Lion*, a book about the projected German invasion of England in 1940, and *The Siege at Peking*, the incredible story of the Boxer Rebellion. (From back cover)