Iris (Iris Pseud'acorus) was mixed with the hay.
The milk-strainers are made of straw, and not very clean.
September 20.
Brabestad, not far distant, is a small town, though twice the size of Tornea, standing on a peninsula by the sea.
In the hospital of Cronby are many maniacs, whose insanity is said to have arisen from jealousy of the conduct of their wives. One of them, whose wife was a very old woman, took this fancy, supposing her to intrigue with several other men. Possibly in these cases impotence, or perhaps some fantastic concupiscence, may have been a cause of the derangement.
About this neighbourhood it is the custom to administer to women in labour a very nauseous medicine, which is called Hittatran, or Casual Train-oil; so termed because it is obtained from the carcases of
such seals as, having been killed early in the spring, have been left among the broken ice till they are by chance cast upon the shore. They are consequently putrid, and the oil is so offensive, that few persons, except such as are in great extremity, or not very nice, can be brought to take it. In general Castor is here considered as a sheet-anchor in such cases, as being found by long experience very effectual in bringing on the labour-pains. Others take saffron infused in wine. For after-pains they swallow, as at Kimi, a few drops of blood from the umbilical cord, not only in the woman's first lying-in, but every subsequent one.
Some Finlanders, as I was told, have a method by which they pretend to catch bears, with a sort of magic. This is done by procuring some of the bear's dung, fresh and warm if possible, and mixing it with that of one of their own cows. The consequence is said to be, that the bear will be attracted by sympathy to come after the
cow; an effect certainly not more wonderful than many sympathies upon record.
There is a fish in the lakes near Pyhejorki which is called Muicu. Bishop Terserus, a Dalecarlian, bishop of Abo, says that he has seen at this place a fish named Muicu, which is no other than the Blikta, taken in the lake of Silian in his native country. How true this may be I know not, but I saw plainly that this Muicu is the Small Sijk (Salmo Albula), such as is found in Smoland.