DALECARLIAN JOURNEY 
105 
held because of the innumerable lemmings which 
came down and devastated the fields and meadows in 
the parish. 
A larger collection was made of minerals. These 
seem to have been specially looked for and therefore 
received particular attention in the first report drawn 
up by Linnaeus on his return to Falun, namely, his 
“ Pluto suecicus,” which, besides his previously men¬ 
tioned “ Systema lapidum,” can be taken as the first 
sketch of “ Regnum lapidum 55 appearing in his later 
“ Systema Naturae.” His note concerning the primi¬ 
tive method by which the peasants procured an ex¬ 
cellent iron from the native ore, is interesting. 
Besides the natural history, observations were 
made on the people’s ways of life, costumes, dwell¬ 
ings, economics, cooking, farming, hunting, fishing, 
diseases, medicines, marriage customs, dances, and 
the like. Undoubtedly its value may be recognized 
as written at a time when the old levelling civilization 
had as yet hardly affected the habits and customs 
handed down from father to son. Linnaeus seems to 
have got on well with the inhabitants, both educated 
and uneducated, which accounted for the generous 
hospitality accorded. But he was less pleased with 
some of the food, as when in spring each household 
salted down blood lymph, and then buried it in the 
forest for winter store as “ grovefish.” Still less did 
he like the chewing-gum prepared with garlic, which 
was chewed by the women in church as the finest 
aroma. 
After his return to Falun, Linnaeus remained some 
time the guest of the Governor Reuterholm, in whom 
he saw “ a pattern to all who study to love, under¬ 
stand, show favour and exercise fine judgment.” 
Soon he was busy in authorship; his first care being 
to fair copy his “ Flora dalecarlica,” which he handed 
to the Governor on August 25th, “ who was greatly 
pleased with the description of his tour and its arrange¬ 
ment, and invited him to stay some time with him to 
