G'day Lyle,

I bought the issue last night and read a bit of it on the 'bus this morning. The general article is surprisingly good ... National Geographic work the geography and characters aspect well. I didn't get as far as the Waltzing Matilda coverage, but had a skim throught that after eating my lunch.

I think they have covered the 1895 composition of the poem, Paterson's apparent bust-up with his erstwhile fiancée and his subsequent reluctance to discuss the matter pretty well ... and kept it to a short item within the overview of Paterson's "Man From Snowy River" country, times and characters.

If you do read what they have to say about the murky side of the song's history ... and then follow up any of my answers to the strange sorts of Mudcat threads that Waltzing Matilda seems to inspire, I don't think you'll find much divergence. The NG have done their homework ... and rejected most of the looney fringe theories ... and presented the story in context ... and taste!

Regards,

Bob Bolton