large public offices, military and civil, whilst on the
other side of the stream are situated the large stone
house of the Governor-General, the cathedral, a
Roman Catholic chapel, some mosques, a Lutheran
church, a large military gymnase or high school, and
several others lower in grade. A s usual in Siberian
towns, the streets are wide, and in front of the house
o f the Governor-General is a triangular public garden;
but the glory of Omsk is undoubtedly on the wane.
Formerly it was on the high road from Europe to
China, but the opening of another road further north,
and the conversion of the Obi into a summer route,
have diverted the traffic, and so lessened its commercial
importance. The military gymnase was
attended in 1879 by 332 boys, and the other high
schools by 160 boys and 349 girls.
It was for a long time debated whether the new
Siberian university should not be established at Omsk,
but the decision was given in favour of Tomsk, and
the result must prove detrimental to the former. Again,
Omsk has derived much importance from being
the seat of government, and the residence of the
Governor-General of Western Siberia, who thus lived
in about the centre of his vice-royalty; whereas now
that the provinces of Akmolinsk and Semipolatinsk
have been thrown into the general government of the
Steppe, that ruler finds himself all but expatriated
to the extreme north-east corner of his dominions,
from the best parts of which he is a thousand miles
distant. I heard that General Kolpakovsky had a
great desire to transfer the seat of government to his
old quarters at Vierny, so that, should this be done,
there is every prospect of Omsk declining more and
more.