92 LIFE OF TEGETMEIER 



at " these " improvements " of exhibitors' birds. 

 Tegetmeier replied that the exhibitors had some- 

 thing to unlearn, and pursued the even tenour 

 of his way undaunted by threat and undeterred 

 by disapproval. He knew he was in the right, 

 and his opponents were in the wrong : that his 

 methods courted publicity and theirs avoided it. 

 A radically bad system had been allowed to grow 

 up, and only a small minority wished to see a 

 change for the better. Tegetmeier was among 

 that minority, and he made it his business to 

 bring about the change despite hostility, open or 

 covert. There can be no doubt but that his 

 inflexible courage and honesty of purpose were 

 largely instrumental in bringing about a more 

 creditable state of things. Doubtless it was a 

 hard fight ; but as Tegetmeier's reputation grew, 

 when he became known as a careful and clever 

 judge, who could be neither hoodwinked nor 

 persuaded to overlook faults or deceptions, his 

 services in this capacity were more and more in 

 demand, and the sphere of his influence became 

 almost daily enlarged. As Sir Walter Gilbey, 

 who knew him well and had considerable experi- 

 ence of him as a judge, has a note on " Teggy, 

 the Fighter " in his Introduction, I need not 

 further enlarge on the point — indeed, this same 

 spirit of hatred of shams and impostures was 

 displayed throughout his long life, and 1 fear being 

 accused of repetition in again referring to it. 



