than himself. This man was Dr. Kilian Stobaeus, a LITTLE 

 medical professor, physician to the king, and a natural- JOURNEYS 

 ist of note. Stobaeus had a mixed-up museum of min- 

 erals, birds, fishes and plants. Everybody for a hundred 

 miles who had a curious thing in the way of natural 

 history sent it to Stobaeus. Into this medley of strange 

 and curious things Linnaeus was plunged with orders 

 to " straighten it up.*' 



There was a German student also living with the doc- 

 tor, working for his board. Linnaeus took the lead and 

 soon had the young German helping him catalog the 

 curios. The spirit of Ray had gotten abroad in Germany 

 and Ray's books had been translated and were being 

 used in many of the German schools. 

 Linnaeus made a bargain with the German student 

 that they should speak only German he wanted to 

 find what was locked up in those German books on 

 botany ^ Jt> 



Stobaeus was lame and had but one eye, so he used to 

 call on the boys to help him, not only to hitch up his 

 horse, but write his prescriptions. 

 Linnaeus wrote very badly, and was chided because 

 he did not improve his penmanship, for it seems that 

 in the olden times physicians wrote legibly. Linnaeus 

 resented the rebuke, and was shown the door. He was 

 gone a week, when Stobaeus sent for him, much to 

 his relief. This little comedy was played several times 

 during the year, through what Linnaeus afterward 

 acknowledged as his fault. 



One would hardly think that the man who on first see- 



41 



