136 
LINNiEUS 
advised the peasant to sue the driver at law, and not 
to delay the post. The red-faced fellow turning upon 
him with his axe, Linnaeus would have tackled him, 
but was prevented by the other passengers. 
The travellers halted at Hamburg till the 16th May, 
and here Linnaeus enjoyed himself, visiting the pretty 
gardens and other noteworthy places. At the same 
time he made acquaintance with the resident naturalists, 
who showed him much politeness, entertained him well, 
lent him books, showed him their collections, and drove 
him round in and outside the town to see libraries, 
museums and gardens. The first visit was naturally to 
Johann Peter Kohl, who in his “ Hamburgische 
Berichte ” had already made known the name of 
Linnaeus among the learned. He was remarkably 
polite and showed him every attention: Linnaeus had 
also the pleasure of reading his own name many times 
in the said “ Berichte,” and always mentioned with 
respect. Among others who entertained him may be 
named, Gottfried Jacob Jaenisch and Johann Heinrich 
von Spreckelsen, Licentiate in Law, in whose beauti¬ 
ful garden were many exotics and orange trees. He 
had a large number of books on botany in his library, 
and also possessed so many fossils that Linnaeus had 
never before seen so large a collection. Johann Alb. 
Fabricius, Doctor of Theology, showed him his extra¬ 
ordinarily extensive library, many rooms being lined 
with books in place of tapestry. The great drug 
merchant, Natorp, took him to his house, where he saw 
numerous preserved lizards and snakes and many other 
rare things. But he did not omit to take a survey of 
notable buildings in the town, such as the Exchange, 
the Synagogue, and the old Reformed Church which 
was then turned into a vast wine-cellar, etc. 
It is plain that Linnaeus found himself very happily 
situated in the splendid town of Hamburg, with its 
fortifications, fine houses, handsome people, pleasant, 
lively, and French in manner. The reverse side was 
the disagreeable pervading smells, or rather stinks, the 
