Adam Lindsay Gordon: a Biography
Posted: Saturday, December 12, 2009
by Carolyn Tytler
Any parent who has had to deal with an wild, unruly son will understand the frustration experienced by Captain Adam Durnford Gordon and his wife, Harriet. The fact that they were first cousins may have had a bearing on the more challenging aspects of their son's personality.
Adam Lindsay Gordon was born at Fayal in the Azores on October 19, 1833. His father was a retired military man, and plantation owner. After a brief sojourn in Madiera, the family settled in Cheltenham, England in 1840 and Adam was enrolled in Cheltenham College.
Because of his erratic and irresponsible personality , Adam either walked arrogantly away from each school or he was asked to leave by authorities. After Cheltenham, he attended Dumbleton Rectory, the Royal Military Academy at Woolwich, returned to Cheltenham College briefly, and finally attended Worcester Royal Grammar School.
By 1852, Adam was leading a wild, undisciplined life, incurring substantial debts, and causing his father severe anxiety. It was decided that the best solution would be to ship the youth off to the prosperous colony of Australia, where he could get a fresh start and perhaps straighten out his life.
As Adam was preparing to sail, he impetuously declared his love to a girl whom he had long admired: Jane Bridges. He promised that if she would consent to marry him, he would alter his plans and stay in England. Jane refused his proposal, and characteristically, any grief he felt was short-lived.
In 1853, he set sail for Australia, never to see England or his parents again. He disembarked at Port Adelaide in November and immediately joined the South Australian Mounted Police. He had enjoyed riding and working with horses in England, so he seemed well-suited to the position.
Adam had also developed a talent for writing poetry, and he transcribed the sights and sounds of Australia in pencil as his horse trotted from post to post. All too soon, this routine became boring and in 1855, Adam resigned to become a horse breaker and steeplechase rider. He soon gained a reputation as the best and most daring non-professional steeplechase rider in the colony.
It was during this phase of his life that he met Father Julian Tenison Woods, a Roman Catholic priest, scientist and classical scholar, who lent him books and encouraged his poetic talent.
In 1859, Adam received an inheritance of 7,000 pounds from his mother's estate. He bought land in Mount Gambier and continued to make a name for himself in local hurdle races and steeplechases.
In 1862, he married a girl of 17, Margaret Park. She did not understand his poems, but she was a stabilizing influence in his life, at least temporarily. The couple purchased a small cottage, Dingley Dell, in Southern Australia, and in 1864, Adam's first book of poetry, "The Feud" was published.
In 1865, Adam, aged 32, was elected to the South Australia Parliament. As a politician, he was a maverick. His speeches were entertaining, colorful and loaded with classical references, but they seldom held any reference to the topics under discussion. He managed to remain in the position almost two years, before resigning in 1866.
There followed an intense period of activity in horse-racing, speculation and writing. He contributed articles to several newspapers. Two of his books were published in 1867, "Ashtaroth, a Dramatic Lyric", and "Sea Spray and Smoke Drift".
The year 1868 was tragic for Adam. He bought a sheep farm in Western Australia which failed; he sustained many serious injuries while riding, his daughter Annie died at eleven months, and his wife left him.
Desperate for money, he turned again to riding and one day he won three steeplechase races in a row, a daunting feat for a man who suffered from lifelong short-sightedness. He once admitted to a friend that some days everything past the horse`s ears seemed enveloped in a thick fog. However, his financial circumstances improved and his wife rejoined him.
He was also cheered by the belief that he would soon inherit the estate of Esslemont in Scotland; however, this hope failed to materialize. His last book, ``Bush Ballads and Galloping Rhymes``was published on June 23, 1870. Adam was unable to pay the publisher. He had no money and no prospects of getting any.
The following morning, June 24, 1870, Adam Lindsay Gordon took his shotgun to the beach at Brighton and committed suicide. He was only 37 years old.
As often happens, the artistry in Adam`s poems was only recognized after his death. Now, there is a statue of him near the House of Parliament in Melbourne, and a bust with his likeness rests in the Poet`s Corner of Westminster Abbey.
One wonders if Captain Adam Durnford Gordon had been able to access some contemporary ADHD medication ( attention deficit, hyperactivity disorder) and administered it to his son, would Adam`s life have proceeded differently.
That the young man was talented is beyond question. Had he been able to focus his attention and concentrate on a task for an extended period, he might have been able to gift the world with literary works superior in both quality and quantity to those he was able to produce. In any case, it makes for interesting speculation.
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