LEYDENTHE FAT OF THE LAND 301 



full of tacit fires which spontaneously illuminated all 

 his best hours.' This, which in his wife was. such a 

 charm to even the serious Carlyle, is a good description 

 of the gay gleams which Carl Linnaeus flung over a life 

 which other scientific men contrived to render dry as 

 dust. He could throw himself into wildest spirits in 

 off-work hours. He would imitate the contortions, 

 grimaces, and incantations of the Laplanders until his 

 audience thought his acting equal to his science. 

 Clifford felt he could never do enough for a youth who 

 regilt life for him, wreathing it with flowers the while, 

 and bringing back all the best aspirations of his younger 

 days. The golden head brought back summer to the 

 rich man, whose hair was already just flecked with snow, 

 and showed him he still could enjoy ' more, indeed, than 

 at first when unconscious, the life of a boy.' He loved 

 Carl like a son, and gave him (what Carl most valued) his 

 duplicate dried plants. 1 Does this seem a bathos ? It is 

 really none. Now was Carl's time to bring forward his 

 * Critica Botanica,' 2 his ' Genera Plantarum,' and to 

 commence a fine folio volume called ' Hortus Cliffor- 

 tianus ' a complete catalogue, splendidly illustrated, of 

 the garden at Hartecamp. 



Tulips do not seem to have been of much account at 

 Hartecamp, though I dare say the ; Admiral Enkhuizen,' 

 valued at 4,000 florins, the 5,000 florin < Admiral Lief- 

 kenshoek,' and the famous l Semper Augustus,' costing 

 13,000 florins, displayed their splendour in the conser- 

 1 Diary. 2 In one vol. 8vo. This book is very rare. 



