1837-38 RELINQUISHES MEDICAL PRACTICE 107 
Whew hell. I have trouble enough with It at 
best ; so I hope you will not add to it a new alias. 
Owen now began gradually to relinquish his 
medical practice, in order to devote the whole of 
his time to scientific research. Meanwhile, he 
never neglected the opportunities which occurred 
of dissecting the animals which died at the 
Zoological Society’s Gardens ; and these oppor- 
tunities were naturally of frequent occurrence at 
a time when the habits and mode of life of 
the animals were but imperfectly understood. 
Constant reference is made in the diaries to these 
dissections. The carcases of such animals as 
Owen could obtain from menageries and other 
sources he not unfrequently dissected at horne. 
Those dying at the Zoological Gardens were dis- 
sected there. On January 29 we read in his 
wife’s journal : — 
‘ To-day Richard cut up the giraffe which died 
at the Zoological Gardens. Afterwards he went 
to the Royal Institution to dissect a snake. 
‘ They have now got the skeleton of the hippo- 
potamus up in the museum. 
The diary is continued ; — 
‘ February 3. — Dr. Buckland called early as 
expected, and stayed some time looking at fossils 
I have been astonished in looking over the few I 
have seen of the Hunterian fossils. The collection 
is quite wonderful. R. told me that Mr. Hunter, 
living at a time when geology was hardly known 
