IN BOHEMIA 27 



possibly, of my own selection. I preferred 

 dabbling in science, devoting myself to natural 

 history, and following the free life of a Bohemian 

 journalist to continuing my medical career. . . . 

 The struggle at that time was a hard one, but the 

 life was free and uncontrolled." In those last 

 three words lies a wealth of significance as to the 

 man's character. Significant also is the sentence 

 which followed : "I became one of the band of 

 brothers who founded the Savage Club." As the 

 club was started in 185/, and the friendships 

 which led to it must have been formed some time 

 before its establishment, it is obvious that this 

 refers to the period covered by this chapter, when, 

 as he himself tells us, he was following the life of 

 a Bohemian journalist. 



Akin to this period is the subject of cock- 

 fighting, in which Tegetmeier took a certain amount 

 of interest ; no doubt it would appeal to his 

 love both of Bohemianism and of science. He 

 wrote what is described by contemporaries as a 

 " most remarkable account " of a cock-fight for 

 Colman's Magazine, in 1863. That he was not 

 particularly anxious to be identified with the sport 

 is shown by the fact that he did not sign the 

 article with his proper name, but with the nom- 

 de-guerre " T. Hornby " — the only occasion on 

 which I have known him to do so. It is, however, 

 only right I should add that the same number of 

 this short-lived magazine contained articles by 



