By the way ...
XOTcl offers powerful introspection techniques. Have a look at ::xotcl::Object->info (http://media.wu-wien.ac.at/doc/langRef-xotcl.html#Object-info), ::xotcl::Class->info (http://media.wu-wien.ac.at/doc/langRef-xotcl.html#Class-info) and the self command (http://media.wu-wien.ac.at/doc/langRef-xotcl.html). Applied to your problem: Can I invoke a method "content" on the object referenced by the variable "reference"? Try a "$reference info methods" which yields a list of all resolvable methods on the object's invocation pathway.
