LAPLAND JOURNEY 
83 
a superabundance of the poisonous water-hemlock, 
Cicuta virosa , in the meadows. As remedy he advised 
the digging out and uprooting of this plant, which 
could be done by a girl in a month’s time, and the 
result would be the saving of a large sum each year. 
On the day above mentioned, Linnaeus betook 
himself to Kemi, but when he reached the inn, he 
could get neither horse nor food, so he returned to 
Tornea, and some days later reached Kalix by water. 
In Kalix Linnaeus made the acquaintance of 
Circuit Judge Michael Eurenius Hoijer, a noble and 
learned gentleman who accompanied him back to 
Tornea and thence to certain neighbouring copper and 
iron mines. Meanwhile severe frost came on, show¬ 
ing that autumn had set in, and as a visit to Torne 
Lapland was desirable, Linnaeus used the same boat 
back to Tornea and spent a further six days with the 
judge, making notes of all that he observed. Whilst 
at Kalix he became known to the mine surveyor, 
Seger Svanberg, with whom he had spent some days at 
Qvickjock. This official offered to teach Linnaeus the 
art of assaying, an offer which was eagerly accepted, 
he, in his turn, standing as godfather to Svanberg’s 
new-born son. Only a few lines in his diary record 
his ten days’ hard work on “ Ars docimastica,” which 
proved most valuable, later on, in Uppsala. 
It was now time to journey homeward, there being 
three ways open, by sea to Stockholm, or by land, 
either on the east or west coast of the Gulf of Bothnia. 
The road along the coast of Finland was chosen as 
being new country; he learned the Finnish names for 
such things as he thought he should want, and thus 
equipped himself for his journey. 
In cool and rainy weather he set out, passing 
through Uleaborg, Gamla Karleby (Old Charles¬ 
town), Jakobstad, Nya (New) Carleby, Vasa, Chris¬ 
tina, and Bjorneborg, till on the 30th September he 
arrived at Abo. During this forced march, very few 
observations could be recorded in the Diary, beyond 
