d by the
present curator, Dr. Treub.

The Dutch Government gardens in Java, known to the scientific world as
the _Hortus Bogoriensis_,[15] and to the official as the _Nederlands
Plantentuin te Buitenzorg_, contain three separate branches--the
botanical gardens, a horticultural garden, and a mountain garden. Of
these, the last is situated at some distance from the town, on the
slopes of Mount Gede. It occupies seventy-five acres of land at an
altitude of between 4000 and 5000 feet, and is provided with a staff of
ten natives working under a European gardener. I was told that, while
all European, Australian, and Japanese flowers would grow there, it was
found impossible to cultivate the fruits of such temperate regions,
owing to the difficulty experienced in securing the necessary period of
rest. I have since heard that in Fiji the difficulty is overcome by
exposing the roots for some months, and thus preventing the sap from
rising. Why not adopt this method in Java?

[Footnote 15: _Bogor_ is the native name for this place;
_Buitenzorg_ means "beyond care," and is therefore the
equivalent of the French _sans sourci_.]

The horticultural garden adjoins the botanical gardens, and occupies
forty acres. As already mentioned, it owes its existence to Dr.
Scheffer, and it is, of course, devoted to strictly practical objects.
Consequently, everything is arranged in such a manner as to make the
most of the space. All the paths are at right angles or parallel to each
other, and the garden generally is laid out with monotonous regularity.
Yet no small part of the success of the Government gardens as an
institution depends upon the produce of this department. It has for many
years enabled the Government to distribute gratuitously the seeds and
plants required for various colonial enterprises. Within its trim beds
are contained tea and coffee plants, sugar-canes, caoutchouc and
gutta-percha trees, _Erythroxylon coca_ for cocaine, and trees
producing tannin and oils. Various medicinal plants are also to be found
here, and such as afford useful nourishment for cattle. The necessary
labour for this garden is supplied by a head-gardener and seventy
natives.

The botanical gardens occupy ninety acres of the southern corner of the
park, which itself forms their northern limit. On the east they are
bounded by the river Tjiliwong, and on the west and south by the
high-road from Batavia. Through the centre there runs the famo