Australia, Australia, Australia, we love you!

Regular readers of this blog – if, indeed, there are any… will be aware that I am researching ‘Beauty’ Smith, one of the sinister characters in the Red Barn affair. He was transported to Australia, and I have spent some time looking at Australian convict records.

The National Library of Australia (NLA) has put reams of material on line, accessible by ‘Trove’, their on-line resource. A recent enquiry of mine to Trove generated a timely and detailed response, and the person who made that response was interested enough to put a request, on my behalf, for more information to the NLA itself.

The reply from the NLA was received within two days. It was long and detailed and to say that it opened up a gold-seam is to underrate it. Last week I made another enquiry to NLA for more assistance. Once more, within two days I received a long and detailed response answering my question, and in a more complete way than I could have wished possible.

So I am a confirmed Australiophile. And if, in my youth, I relished the Monty Pythons and their Australian Philosophy Student's drinking song and offended any antipodeans,

Immanuel Kant was a real pissant who was very rarely stable,
Heidegger, Heidegger was a boozy beggar who could drink you under the table,
David Hume could out-consume Shopenhauer and Hegel… etc

…then I profoundly apologize to all Australians.