Page:Life in Java Volume 1.djvu/131

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WANT OF PUBLIC GARDENS.
113

man, quivering with rage, " he will have to kill me first before I'll do that."

"Very well," replied the governor, as the man delivered his message, " we'll see."

That night the Chinaman was a prisoner, and the next day he paid the penalty of his rashness with his head.

One great want in Surabaya was the paucity of public gardens—a deficiency, however, which none endeavoured to supply; and those who had been cooped up in some heated office all day, were compelled by necessity to take the cool evening air on the roads about the town.

A short time previous to our visit, the Surabayans were gratified by seeing this want supplied. A whole village was razed to the ground, and the space, probably from twelve to fifteen acres, when cleared of the rubbish, was laid out in walks, bypaths, lawns, and flower-beds; which, together with the old trees that had been left standing, soon

VOL. I.
I