will always be a distanced Western view of the Chinese events touching the life and actions of W. H. Donald. Fortunately, modern Chinese history withstands being viewed through several different lenses.
Xing Jianrong in Shanghai
Still, it is good to include some Chinese perspective. Historians and publishers in China have been looking anew at the impact of foreign advisers upon Chinese history, pro and con.
Three Chinese translations of E. A. Selle's Donald of China appeared between 1991 and 1994 in Hunan.
Shanghai historian and researcher, Xing Jianrong, came to Australia last year to present his paper on Donald
for the CHAF (Chinese Heritage of Australian Federation) conference held at the Chinese Museum in Melbourne. I also presented a paper - on the earliest screenings of Chinese films in Australia. Naturally, we met and
exchanged a few papers.
I hope to add one or more pages in both English in Chinese on Mr. Xing's research and some personal background on himself. In any case, I look forward to seeing the fruits of his research in
print. He has written several pieces about W. H. Donald for Chinese-language publications.
