He was learning from those he admired, and borrowing from a rich tradition. That is the folk process, is it not? The only beef people have with Dylan is that he was so successful in doing it.

Listen to 98% of blues and old country, and you will discover that those tunes are also "stolen", if the lyrics are not. Hank Williams stole a ton of stuff, but he improved upon it. So did Dylan.

- LH