Worcester daily spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1850-1888, 1872-12-09
EsHlIVfP.

The COmte de BeauvoiS, who has recently
published a work in Paris on Java, says of the
city of Batavia, that in truth there are no streets
there are only majestic ALLEYS shaded by beau
tiful tufted trees, framed in long, vast arbors,
known 10 MS in Europe only as operalic decOra-
tons. The rays of the pitiless sun can but PEN
citrate their shade AZ intervals, while they Gid
with wonderful reflections the counties plumei
of the cocoa trees, the upright branches of the
fame trees, which arc all scarlet flowers, the
bananas, with green leaves the size of man,
the cotton trees, laden with snow-White puts,
the travellers palm, colossal fans OF unsurpassa-
bic elegance, which yield streams of milk TO the
summons OF Il cane pushed into tnClr Bark! tins
ally, the immense banyanS, whence fall thou
sands of vertical lanes. which touch the earth,
take rapid root, and spring up TO the summit OF
the tree, there TO bind themselves into Intricate
garlandS, and again to fling themselves down.
One Of these trees alone forms the entire wood,
surrounded with curtain, network Of inter-
twlning leaves and flowers, through which chl'
dren in the costume of angels, pushing BACK
the lanes with their dark, 1.-the hands, watch
the pirogues and the swimmers as they glide
over the waters of the canal, For these alleys
and arbors are the iootpaths of the "arroyos
of the tropical Babylon, or of those great
aquatic ways which the Dutch would have made
by hundreds in memory Of the mother country.
if the Malay population had not already made
them by thousands Thus have the instincts
of the white race of the north and the yellow
| race of the equator met We 90 on Tin little
open carriages drawn up by Lilputian ponieS)
| through a delicious succession of those em6ow-
cred alleys by the side of the arroyo, covered
with nnumerable barques, which float amid
gigantic water lilies, and catching glmpses OF
| fairy like gardens and white marble palaces,
with glittering many coored YerandaS closing
up the vistas. Seeing nothing but these alleys,
believe myself in valley of delights, in the
neighborhood of the city, when | am deposited
at the hotel of the Netherlands, which, it seems,
is the centre of Batavia. This fiOwcry forest in
the city itself! | am intoxicated; | cannot be-
lieVe my eyes, and swear by all the monkeys,
sacred and prolaDe, which ! have seen since
then, that am incapable OF making you under
stand my delight and admiration. The building
is Of white marble, supported on a cOlonnade of
pierced arches; opposite TO great oval kiosk,
open to all the breezes, protected by light
rOOl-this is the dining room, where busy ant
hill of servants swarm about, laying the table.
How fine is the effect of their robes of red silk
or muslin, their blue turbans, and their golden
| sashes, thrown out against the whiteness of the
| marble floor and balconies.
Al nightfalI we dine in the kiosk; around us
| a brilliantly attired crowd dance in the alleys
| lighted up with Venetian lamps. We are served
by the Oriental troop just mentioned. l have a
Malay 10 pour iced water into my glass, two TO
change my plates, three TO hold the dishes, one
to carve, one to wait till the coffee comes round,
1t | wanted to taste twelve dishes, and could
succeed in asking for them in the local tongue,
| might employ the twelve mOtiouless men in
red who squat behind me. What a sight! What
colOrng! What Il sky! And when stretched
along the veranda, in the full perfumed breeze,
| cry, "Sdpddd cdSSi dpi" quick; one OF the
| Orentals Of the thousand and one nights,
whom one is tempted to call slaves, leaves
the column nc whose foot lie has been
mutely crouching like statue of Buddha,
and brings me, to light my pipe, a long
luSp of which he is the Amounted aTfiian.