G'day Bruce & Stewie,

John Meredith was always adamant that Waltzing Matilda was widely known, long before Paterson 'wrote' it. He was also equally adamant that the tune had no resemblance to Bonny Wood of Craigielea ... and that there was no evidence of the 'cock and bull story' of it being written at Dagworth in 1895.

Since then (based on Richard Magoffin's researches, recently released McPherson familt letters and papers and the holograph copies of the 1895 song and tune that I have had access, to), I have shown how the successive versions - WS Barr's original Craigielea - Thomas Bulch's 1893 'quick march' arrangement of Craigielea - Christina McPherson's holograph version of the tune as she remembered it from hearing the Bulch arrangement at Warnambool Races - and the Marie Cowan ("Billy Tea') arrangement ... all progress in logical steps from each other. John and I had to agree to disagree on this one.

John's belief in the antiquity of the song is mostly a product of his good country manners - he would never doubt the word of an older informant. Unfortunately, for there to have really been an older Waltzing Matilda ... based on a much older Marlborough ... - and for these to have totally escaped the attention of an energetic British collecting fraternity ... and, particularly, for not one person to have commented on the existence of older versions at the time that Waltzing Matilda was spread round the English-speaking world by Australian troops in WW I would be truly remarkable. All the claims to its existence cited by the writers mentiones above come from at least a whole generation after the publication of Waltzing Matilda ... usually rather more!

As we are getting a lot more information than any of the pioneer folklorists had access to ... and finding the personal details on Paterson's love life (the reason that Magoffin seems to have dropped the research ... !) the real story takes on some all too solid flesh! (and Marlborough marches over some distant hill.)

Regards,

Bob Bolton