On the Rein-Deer. 39 



teresting tour through Sweden and Norway, which he under- 

 took at the instance of a distinguished nobleman, and for the 

 express purpose of bringing over rein-deer, diiferent objects of 

 natural history, and some living specimens of the cock of 

 the woods, has assured me, in the most decided manner, 

 that he is enabled to confirm, from actual observation, the fact 

 of the rein-deer eating the lemming. When passing through 

 Jemptland, in the month of September, before he crossed the 

 frontier mountains into Norway, he met with the lemmings in 

 very great numbers, near Aberg, oA^erspreading the country in 

 their usual manner. He had with him then ten rein-deer, which 

 he had procured ; and on two different occasions he had an op- 

 portunity of witnessing the fact ; at one time with a buck, and 

 the other with a young doe, which had been tied to a stake to 

 render her more tractable to lead, and which, upon one of these 

 animals coming within her reach, sprang forward, seized hold of 

 it, and quickly devoured it. 



9. On the Furia hifernalis. 

 Whilst noticing the enemies, to the attacks of which the rein- 

 deer is exposed, I am induced to make some observations re- 

 specting an animal, the supposed existence of which, for a con- 

 siderable time, deeply engaged the attention of the Swedish na- 

 turalists, and the great Linnasus himself, — the Furia iivfemalis. 

 The account of the singularly fatal ravages of this worm was 

 widely diffused, creating no inconsiderable portion of alarm. 

 Linnaeus first noticed the Furia in the year 1728, shortly sub- 

 sequent to his entrance at the University of Lund, in Scania. 

 The young naturalist was then full of ardour in the pursuit in 

 which he became afterwards so celebrated, and his active imagi- 

 nation in this instance probably led him to give credit too easily to 

 what he seemed to have his own experience for believing. While 

 engaged in his botanical researches among some marshes at Fa- 

 gelsong, in the vicinity of Lund, he was suddenly wounded, as 

 he supposed, by a small slender worm, which, darting upon 

 him, buried itself so instantaneously and deeply in the flesh, 

 as to render all attempts at extracting it of no avail, and caus- 

 ing so great an inflammation, as even to endanger his life. On 

 his recovery, Linnaeus, deeply impressed with what had hap- 



