"why the gentlemen who have been the most injured by Sam's accompaniment haven't made the effort to write us"
Because we shouldn't bloody well have to - you have as much right to right to take an artists work and deface it as you have to draw a mustache on the Mona Lisa because you think it will draw in more punters.
Nor have you the right to take the results of anybody else's field-work and resell them, no matter how few to whoever... simply a matter of manner and consideration, obviously in short supply as far as you are concerned.
I asked before, rather than apologising for breaking copyright, would you care to address the damage and potential damage your behaviour might have caused?
Rather than help promote traditional song, your behaviour does much to ascertain that much of it remains on archive shelves, safe from the hands of predators such as yourselves.
I was prepared to put your behaviour down to naive ignorance - your arrogance indicated that I was premature in my judgement
Jim Carroll