60 
MEMOIR OF DE GEER. 
mander of the Order of Vasa, was born in the year 
1 720. When about four years of age, he left Sweden, 
his native country, and accompanied his parents to 
Holland, where he continued to reside till his eigli- 
teenth year. His family originally belonged to that 
country, but had left it and established themselves in 
Sweden in the time of Gustavus Adolphus. The head 
of the family at that period was Louis de Geer, who 
acquired great wealth and reputation by the improve- 
ments he effected in manufactures and the mechani- 
cal arts. He introduced new methods of casting iron 
and brass, established founderies for canon, and 
manufactories of fire-arms, bringing workmen from 
Leige and other places to conduct them on the most 
approved principles, and to instruct the native ar- 
tists. These foreign artizans were so numerous as 
to form a colony in the canton of Dannemora, where 
their descendants long continued to reside. That 
the wealth and influence of this ancestor of our na- 
turalist were extensive, may be judged of from the 
fact, that, in the reign of Christinus, when the country 
was threatened by a foreign enemy, he equipped a 
considerable fleet for protecting the commerce of the 
coasts, exclusively from his own resources. His 
patriotism and philanthropy were rewarded by his 
name being enrolled among the nobles of the country. 
When in Holland young De Geer is said to have 
acquired a taste for Natural History by observing 
the proceedings of some silk-worms, which had been 
given him to rear as an amusement. This predilec- 
tion was confirmed by his conversations with the 
