G'day Zorro,

I'm glad to see that Joe Offer's copy of Richard McBrien's Encyclopedia of Catholicism (not a text I have) says pretty much what my various books say.

I'll admit that Englishman would not have been the term of the day in the language of the day, which was scarcely English. I'm much happier with the term Briton, but Englishman caught the attention much quicker - did it not?

Here in Australia we spend a lot of time looking at the process of poaching material from other sources and laying (often dubious) claim to it. This is what happens everywhere but most countries did it far enough in the past to conveniently forget about it. Some people (particularly the Irish - who make up an indecently large slab of Australia's traditional base, due to the English preferring to see the back of as many Paddies as possible) just become so good at it that they keep doing it.

Regard(les)s,

Bob Bolton