Earl Albert Selle papers, 1906-1972

(bulk 1938-1972)

John Hay Library, University Archives and Manuscripts
Box A
Brown University
Providence, RI 02912
Telephone: Manuscripts: 401-863-3723; University Archives: 401-863-2148
Email: Manuscripts: hay@brown.edu; University Archives: archives@brown.edu

Published in 2020

Collection Overview

Title:	Earl Albert Selle papers
Date range:	1906-1972, (1938-1972)
Creator:	Selle, Earl Albert
Extent:	1.5 Linear Feet
Abstract:	The collection consists of newspaper articles, photographs, and other memorabilia covering the history of China in the early part of the twentieth century. The career of William Henry Donald as a journalist and advisor to Generalissimo and Mme. Chiang Kai-shek, the career of Earl Selle as a journalist on the Far East beat during and after World War II and the Selle Family are focal points.
Language of materials:	English
Repository:	John Hay Library, University Archives and Manuscripts
Collection number:	Ms.2007.002

Scope & content

The collection consists of items as diverse as the curiously filled out baby book of Earl Albert Selle, his curfew pass from Shanghai issued just before World War II, scrapbooks of articles on the Chinese Revolution (1911-1922) and the Russo-Japanese War collected by William Henry Donald, snap shots of the Chiangs visiting Chinese war orphans, a fan letter from Rabindranath Tagore to Mme. Chiang, Selle's first hand account of Pearl Harbor, post-war Pacific Rim articles filed by Selle for newspapers chiefly in Honolulu and an account by one of Selle's sons about what it was like to live in Hong Kong.

The earliest items in the collection are the 1906 clippings assembled by William Henry Donald while working for the newspaper China Mail, and Earl Selle's baby book from the same year. (The latter reads "1907" and has his name filled in as Alberta Earl Selle). The most recent items are articles written in the early 1970's by Selle about post-war developments not only in the Far East but in Hawaii where he was then living.

The collection is arranged with the personal materials of Selle and his family first, followed by his professional writings, correspondence on his book Donald of China and a photocopy of the cover for that book. The next grouping of materials comprises materials collected by Selle from and about William Henry Donald and includes signed photographs and correspondence, and Donald's two surviving scrapbooks.

The ensuing series contains materials on 20th century China. It consists of correspondence to Mme. Chiang Kai-shek in date order, photographs and negatives grouped as much as possible by subject and printed materials on China in order by date. All of these materials were probably collected by Donald but were never processed into scrapbooks and photo albums. The last section contains general materials on China in the 20th century and miscellaneous photographs and articles which Selle found interesting enough to save.

Access Points

Subject Names

• Tagore, Rabindranath, 1861-1941
• Cerf, Bennett
• Chiang, Kai-shek, 1887-1975
• Chiang, May-ling Soong, 1897-2003
• Donald, William Henry, 1875-1946
• Selle, Earl Albert

Subject Topics

• Journalists -- United States -- 20th century
• Journalists -- Australia -- 20th century
• Journalists -- China -- 20th century
• World War, 1939-1946 -- Sources
• Revolutions -- China -- History

Geographical Names

• China -- Politics and government -- 20th century
• China -- History -- Republic, 1912-1949

Occupations

• Photojournalists
• Writers
• Journalists

Document Types

• Articles
• Photographs
• Letters (Correspondence)
• Clippings

Arrangement

The Selle papers are divided into the following series:

• Series 1. Earl Albert Selle
• Series 2. William Henry Donald
• Series 3. China, 1925-1956
• Series 4. Miscellaneous

Biographical note

Earl Albert Selle was born on November 4, 1906 in Seattle, Washington. Ready for adventure at a very early age, he was already serving as a commercial seaman at 18. He did stints as a beach comber in Aruba, and a bell boy in New York whose real job was to deliver bootleg liquor. He returned to the Seattle area to work as a copy boy and later reporter at the Seattle Evening Post. As political events continued to heat up in the Far East, he crossed the Pacific to do his reporting from Shanghai where he worked for the Shanghai Evening Post and Mercury. There he met and married a young woman of White Russian heritage named Ilona, then fashion editor of the Yankee Clipper. He was in Shanghai when the Japanese invaded Manchuria in 1931 and by 1937 he was writing for China Weekly Review, broadcasting on Chinese radio under death threats from the Japanese military. The Selles returned to the West Coast to be with Earl's dying father, planning to return to Shanghai when feasible. However, as they migrated West again in 1939, Selle and his wife, Ilona, stopped in Honolulu and found jobs with the Honolulu Advertiser. He continued to cover the developments in the Far East, though not from the front lines because of his deteriorating vision, and she wrote the popular "Miss Fixit" column under the pen name of Alycia. They were in Honolulu at the time of the Dec. 7th assault on Pearl Harbor. For the duration of the war Selle continued to work for the Honolulu Advertiser and Reuters.

In the early 1940's, Selle and Ilona separated and he went to California to consult with an eye specialist. While there, he met Elizabeth Nagle who was working with the same specialist to improve her vision in order to join the Air Force. He returned to Honolulu; she followed and they were married in 1944. They had three children: Peter born in 1945, Terrence in 1946, and Rebecca in 1950. Earl rose to the post of chief editorial writer for the Advertiser so that when the Chiangs' ailing advisor, W.H. Donald, was flown to Honolulu by Mme. Chiang for medical treatment in 1946, Selle was able to obtain special permission from the U.S. Navy to interview the Australian who was by then dying of lung cancer. Those interviews resulted in the book Donald of China, which was published in 1948 and widely read. In 1994, selections from the book were translated into Chinese as Wo zai Sun Zhongshan, Zhang Xueliang, Jiang Jieshi shen bian di ri zi / Duanna kou shu ; Zele ji lu.

Selle, who had moved with his family to his wife's home state of Rhode Island after the war, returned to the Far East in the 1950's on a rehabilitation program which allowed the reporter, by then virtually blind, to return to his Pacific beat and report from Hong Kong while Elizabeth Nagle Selle worked for the Civil Air Transport. After the Selles returned to Rhode Island from Hong Kong, the marriage deteriorated. They divorced and Earl Selle eventually returned to Honolulu where he wrote a number of articles and other works about Hawaii, including a 1959 biography of Hawaiian Olympic medalist and surf legend Duke Kahanamoku, published as The Story of Duke Paoa Kahanamoku. Selle died in Honolulu on April 9, 1978.

The Australian journalist who figures large in both this collection and in the interests of Earl Selle is William Henry Donald (1875-1946). Donald was working as a reporter in Melbourne, Australia when he was recommended for a job in Hong Kong at China Mail. Fascinated with Chinese politics, Donald went quickly from observer to participant by becoming first an independent correspondent, and then in quick succession an editor for Far Eastern Review, a friend to "Charlie" Soong and his family which included May-Ling, the future Mme. Chiang Kai-shek, and her sisters, Ching-Ling (the future Mme. Sun Yat Sen) and Soong Ai-Ling (the future wife of one of the wealthiest men in China, H.H. Kung). Donald went on to serve as an advisor to the Chiangs as Chiang Kai-shek rose to power during the Chinese Civil War. Most of his 40 years of papers were lost during his internment in a Japanese prison camp during World War II, but at least two scrapbooks, dozens of candid photos and several folders of clippings housed in this collection remain. The letters of the many publishers who tried to lure him into writing his memoirs fill yet another folder. However, Donald steadfastly refused to share state secrets until he was dying. In the end, it was Selle who convinced him that it would be wrong to take so much history to the grave with him. With Donald's assent, Selle took Donald's scribbled and dictated reminiscences and fleshed them out into the book Donald of China.

(Information in the above paragraphs taken from biographical information in the collection and an interview Holly Snyder conducted with Elizabeth Nagle Selle in March of 2007)

Access & Use

Access to the collection:	There are no restrictions on access, except that the collection can only be seen by prior appointment. Some materials are stored off-site and cannot be produced on the same day on which they are requested.
Use of the materials:	Although Brown University has physical ownership of the collection and the materials contained therein, it does not claim literary rights. Researchers should note that compliance with copyright law is their responsibility. Researchers must determine the owners of the literary rights and obtain any necessary permissions from them.
Preferred citation:	Earl Albert Selle papers, Ms. 2007.002, Brown University Library.
Contact information:	John Hay Library, University Archives and Manuscripts Box A Brown University Providence, RI 02912 Telephone: Manuscripts: 401-863-3723; University Archives: 401-863-2148 Email: Manuscripts: hay@brown.edu; University Archives: archives@brown.edu

Administrative Information

ABOUT THE COLLECTION
Acquisition:	The collection was given to Brown University by Elizabeth Nagle Selle in 1998.
Custodial history:	Custodial History noteThe Earl Albert Selle papers (A2006-41) were compiled by Earl Albert Selle. Prior to entering the possession of the Brown University Library, the material belonged to Elizabeth Nagle Selle, Mr. Selle's former wife
Processing information:	Shanghai Municipal Police curfew pass no. 04772, signed Earl A. Selle.
ABOUT THE FINDING AID
Author:	Lindsay Woodel
Encoding:	This finding aid was produced using ArchivesSpace on 2020-08-03.

Additional Information

Related material:

Related Archival Materials note Brown University has the following related books:Selle, Earl Albert. Donald of China. New York, Harper [1948]Chiang, May-ling Soong. General Chiang Kai-shek: the account of the fortnight in Sian when the fate of China hung in the balance. Garden City, N.Y., Doubleday, Doran & Company, 1937Chiang, May-ling Soong. General Chiang Kai-shek: the account of the fortnight in Sian when the fate of China hung in the balance. New York, Book League of America, 1937Resources beyond Brown:William Henry Donald Correspondence 1924-1946. Australian Dictionary of National Biography (Online)A contemporary review of Selle's Donald on China can be found in the journal Pacific Affairs, Vol. 21, no. 3 (September 1948) at pp. 309-310. This journal is available online through JSTOR.

Other information:

Brown University Library catalog record for this collection: Earl Albert Selle papers, 1906-1972

Inventory

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