I would like to agree in part here with Robert, retirement was certainly not a requirement for a man to declare he was a 'gentleman'. 'Gentleman' was also a very class-conscious declaration of status as Robert has correctly identified as meaning someone who was not dependant on a trade or profession for their income, however this is a definition in the truest British sense. A good discussion on the history and definitions of the title of gentleman can be found in 'The British Aristrocracy' by Mark Bence-Jones and Hugh Montgomery-Massingbird, Constable and Company, London, 1979. I would suggest that in Australia this also extended to those who were of sufficient wealth and power to not have to be concerned with the day to day hassles of earning a living, eg the 'boss'. Others who didn't fit this scenario also used the title if they had come from a line of 'real' gentlemen (I can think of a couple of cases in my own family). It would also not be surprising that many used the term of 'gentleman' for social snobbery reasons if they thought they could get away with it. A very tenuous description in 19th century Australia whichever way you look at it! Regards Viv