Pheasants for Coverts and Aviaries. Tegetmeier, W[illiam].B[ernhardt]. Publication Date: 1873 Condition: Very Good

Title: Pheasants for Coverts and Aviaries.

Publisher: London, Horace Cox.

Publication Date: 1873

Binding: Hardcover

Book Condition: Very Good

Edition: 1st Edition

Title page, (4), 124 printed pages. 4 page publisher's adverts at back. Steel engraved frontispiece and 10 full page plates by T.W. Wood. Ownership signature of Sir Ross Price Bart., 1877 on front free endpaper. All edges gilt. Some very mild age toning; final page of adverts very slightly foxed. Two marginal short closed tears at pages 3/4 & 109/110. 25 x 32 cm. Original emerald green embossed cloth. Spine with gilt lettering with greek key pattern borders at head and tail (some wear and rubbing, including along joints). Both boards with Victorian embossed border pattern of twigs and branches intertwined with leaves and flowers. Upper board with large gilt stamp of pheasant within gilt ruled border ( slight rubbing and a few spots of old ink or other tiny spots). Corners bumped and worn. Inner hinges cracked. Sir Ross Price (1837-99) gained the rank of Major in the service of the Royal Marine Light Infantry. Tegetmeier, a Fellow of the Zoological Society (1816-1912) was an English naturalist, a founding member of the Savage Club, a popular writer and journalist of domestic science. A correspondent and friend of Charles Darwin, Tegetmeier studied pigeon breeds and along with Darwin he conducted experiments involving the application of colour dyes to wax to determine that bees attempted to form cylindrical cells that were altered to a hexagonal form by their attempts to economize on wax. Darwin also had Tegetmeier repeat some of his experiments on breeding different varieties of pigeons and fowl to see if their offspring were fertile. Tegetmeier wrote a number of books dealing with home economics, poultry farming, pigeon breeds, bee-keeping and on the maintenance of livestock. He was a Tory and opposed campaigns for women's rights and suffrage but was a promoter of ideas on evolution. Seller Inventory # 5133