firmly believing that her high encomium had wounded the feelings
o f the great philofopher. One day, being in a melancholy
temper, he gave orders that no peribn ihould be admitted to him,
and placed himlelf, in his bed-gown and night-cap, fad and pen-
five upon his fofa. An officer in the Swedifh fervice arrived with
a party o f ladies, who had made a journey for the exprefs pur-
pofe o f feeing the Linnasan collection. T he officer was denied
admittance; but being aware o f Linnaeus’s caprice, he would not
be refufed by the fervant, but pufhed by him, and entered the
chamber where Linnaeus was fitting. A t firft fome indignation
was fhewn at this intrufion ; but the officer introduced the ladies
with a moil extravagant panegyric, to the illuflridus philofopher,
who was the foie ohjedl o f their journey; to the man whom the whole
world allowed to he the greateft; to that man who had put nature
herfelf to the rack in order to difcover her deareft fecrets, & c. L in naeus’s
furly humour inllantly forfook him, and he never appeared
more amiable in his manners than to this officer, whom he embraced
tenderly, calling him his true friend, &c. &c. He was io
Angularly enamoured o f praiie, that his mind was never in that
fedate ilate which would have enabled him to dillinguiih true
commendation from flattery and deception. The clergyman,
who at firil could not credit iuch reports, was convinced o f their
reality by one o f his friends, who compofed io ridiculous an eu-
logy for Linnaeus, that the weakeil child might have treated it as
a farce or fatire: it was worded in the bombail o f the middle
ages, or in the Afiatic ilyle : he called him the iun o f botaniils,
the
the Jupiter o f the literati, the fecretary o f nature, an ocean of
fcience, a moving mountain o f erudition, and other appellations
to the fame effedl. Linnaeus, far from feeling difpleafure at fuch
exceffive and ridiculous compliments, interrupted the panegynil
at each phrafe, embracing him, and calling him his deareft friend.
T he governor invited us to dine with him the following day.
A t table, talking of.oeconomy, it was agreed by the company that
Wafa was the town o f all others where one may live on the
cheapeft terms. A woodcock, which at Stockholm would coil
thirty-two Swediih ikillings, or fixteen pence Engliffi, is bought at
Wafa for four. T he price o f a water-quail at Stockholm, twelve
ikillings, here is only two ikillings the pair. Fire wood coils almoft
nothing, except the trouble o f cutting it. The clergyman ob-
ferved, that for three rix dollars he kept a fire in his apartment
every day without intermiffion during eight months o f the year.
The prefident is the firft peribn in Wafa, though, as his falary
is paid in paper, or rix-geld, he has about a thoufand rix dollars
lefs than the governor, whofe appointment confifts in provifions
or natural produce, by which he regularly clears an annual income
o f two thoufand four hundred rix dollars; a fum more than
fufficient to enable him to live in this place like a great lord.
CH A P T E R