John Abernethy (1764-1831) was John Hunter's devoted pupil and immediate successor who " constituted himself a sort of champion of his master's physiologic theories, which he dramatized in the lecture room with a poetic imagination and a vigorous style of delivery. 11 Abernethy's lectures were so popular that the Governors of St. Bartholomew's Hospital built him a lecture theatre in 1791, an event which constitutes one of the beginnings of organized medical instruction in England. Abernethy served as President of the Royal College of Surgeons in 1826. Of the many anecdotes concerning Abernethy, an interesting one is told by Sir James Paget: "Entering his lecture room at the beginning of one session, he looked around at the crowd of students and said solemnly, 'Good God! what will become of you all?