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ANECDOTES COLLECTED BY MR. ROBSAHM. 71
ber of anecdotes concerning Swedenborg’s life at home,
which he published in a pamphlet, and which, although
not of much importance, may nevertheless be read with
interest by those ho desire to know every thing that can
be known concerning the life of so extraordinary a man.
Mr. R. commences thus :
66
66
Swedenborg was assessor of the Metallic College,
and member of the Academy of Sciences in Sweden.
The little regard he had for titles of honour and human
grandeur, made him determine, after he began to devote
himself exclusively to spiritual studies, to request his
dismission from the office of assessor, the duties of which
he had punctually fulfilled for about thirty years. He
had a house in the environs of Stockholm. It was built
and arranged after his own taste ; the apartments were
rather small, but suitable to himself. Although he was
a man of most profound learning, no other books were
seen in his study than the Hebrew and Greek Bible, to
gether with his own indexes of his works, whereby he
saved himself the trouble, when referring to different pas
sages, of going through all which he had before written.
Adjoining to the house was a pretty large garden, in
the midst of which he had a summer-house, or pavilion ;
there were four doors to the apartment which formed a
square, which was occasionally turned, in an instant, into
an octagon form, by the means of four other doors which
belonged to it. One of these doors shut with a secret
lock, which being opened, there appeared a glass door
placed opposite a fine green hedge, where a bird was seen
in a cage. This new spectacle produced an agreeable
surprise of a second garden to the person who opened
the door, which Swedenborg related to be more agreeable
than the first. At the entrance of the garden there was
a parterre well covered with flowers, which he was very
fond of. He derived no other advantage from the garden,
for he gave the whole produce of it to the gardener, who
waited on him ; as also that of a very handsome green
house, in which he took much pleasure.
"The gardener and his wife were the only servants he
had; of the latter he never desired other service than
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