Page:Emanuel Swedenborg, Scientist and Mystic.djvu/368

350 a conversation with some person," but as it was in a foreign language poor Mr. Shearsmith was no wiser. He said that times and seasons, days and nights, meant little to his lodger; he only rested when nature required it. When he went out he usually wore a suit of black velvet, made after an old fashion; a pair of long ruffles, a curious hilted sword and a gold-headed cane. He ate little or no animal food, except a few eels sometimes. He was fond of very sweet coffee and tea and he took a great deal of snuff.10

In the autumn of 1769 Swedenborg returned to Stockholm, where, besides protesting against the Dean of Gothenburg's treatment of him, he busied himself with another book, the last he was to publish, the one that was to be the compendium of the doctrines of the New Church as well as of everything he had learned and concluded about earth, hell, heaven, spirit world, and the conduct leading to each, with "memorable relations" illustrating his points. Taking a rough draft of this in hand, the eighty-two-year-old man left Stockholm again for Amsterdam in July, 1770, in order to finish it and have it printed.

This brought him once more within the orbit of that good reporter, Mynheer Iohan Christian Cuno, who met him on the Stock-Exchange where Swedenborg had gone with his Swedish friend, Joachim Wretman.

Cuno was in amazement at the amount of writing Swedenborg managed to do, although he also slept some twelve hours a night, and although he continued to lead a social life. As Cuno said, "He is reserved to no one. If anyone is curious to see him, he has no great difficulty; all that is necessary for him to do is to go to his house, where he admits everyone. It can easily be seen that the numerous calls which he thus receives draw largely upon his time; and so much the less can I understand, how he, nevertheless, accomplishes his design of having printed every week two closely set up sheets, and to compose ten sheets of manuscript, without having a single line in reserve. He says," Cuno added, "that his angel dictates to him, and that he can write fast enough."

The work appeared in Amsterdam in July, 1771. Cuno was shocked that on the title page Swedenborg described himself as the servant of the Lord Jesus Christ, to which Swedenborg replied, "I