FROM DEPTHS OF DESPAIR TO TEMPLES OF ENCHANTMENT: BERKELEY LENNOX, 1828-57.

While the destiny of the eldest sons of aristocratic British and Irish families was marked out from birth, younger male siblings and their male offspring were often faced with major challenges when endeavouring to find a place for themselves in the world. Unless they were fortunate enough to be educated for business or the law, to carve out a successful career in the army or the church, or to marry wealth, they could be condemned to living in reduced circumstances, dependent for survival upon more privileged relatives. This was the case with Berkeley Lennox. Although clever, he lacked the financial means and the family support necessary to exploit his talents fully, although his unlikely career as a magician in colonial Australia during the mid-1850s was not without its successes. His story exemplifies the difficulties junior members of aristocratic families could face, and it serves also to illustrate how youthful indiscretions could blight an upper-class man's later life and prospects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]