Who was Dr J.A.C. Smith of his eponymous Chinese mammals? Update

On 15 May I posted a draft of this article because I was trying to obtain a copy of a privately-published book by Margaret Johnson on Dr Smith. I could no find trace of Mrs Johnson’s book in mainstream publishing. I then contacted the three outlets around mentioned in the newspaper article from 2011; they had no copies. I therefore wrote a letter to the editor of the Spalding Guardian, the publication of which brought me an offer of a book and a contact with her family. I am most grateful to Jane Cooke for sending me her copy of the superbly produced book and for telling me that Mrs Johnson, who she knew, had died.

I have now re-written the article, incorporating the late Mrs Johnson’s work which also provided clues for further research. The revised version can be found here.