diff --git a/libvips/include/vips/image.h b/libvips/include/vips/image.h
index 353dc5e2..301df54b 100644
--- a/libvips/include/vips/image.h
+++ b/libvips/include/vips/image.h
@@ -271,7 +271,6 @@ const char *im_guess_prefix( const char *, const char * );
 const char *im_guess_libdir( const char *, const char * );
 
 VipsImage *im_open( const char *filename, const char *mode );
-int im_close( VipsImage *im );
 
 /**
  * im_open_local:
@@ -329,6 +328,10 @@ int im_close( VipsImage *im );
 		(im_construct_fn) im_open, (im_callback_fn) im_close, \
 		(void *) (NAME), (void *) (MODE), NULL ))
 
+int im_close( VipsImage *im );
+
+void im_invalidate( IMAGE *im );
+
 #ifdef __cplusplus
 }
 #endif /*__cplusplus*/
diff --git a/libvips/include/vips/private.h b/libvips/include/vips/private.h
index 8ce1afd5..b07e5a8e 100644
--- a/libvips/include/vips/private.h
+++ b/libvips/include/vips/private.h
@@ -82,6 +82,53 @@ typedef struct {
 	size_t length;		/* Size of window */
 } im_window_t;
 
+/* window manager.
+ */
+im_window_t *im_window_ref( IMAGE *im, int top, int height );
+int im_window_unref( im_window_t *window );
+void im_window_print( im_window_t *window );
+
+/* Per-thread buffer cache. Held in a GPrivate.
+ */
+typedef struct im__buffer_cache_t {
+	GHashTable *hash;	/* Hash to im_buffer_cache_list_t* */
+	GThread *thread;	/* Just for sanity checking */
+} im_buffer_cache_t;
+
+/* Per-image buffer cache. Hash to this from im_buffer_cache_t.
+ * We can't store the GSList directly in the hash table, as GHashTable lacks an
+ * update operation and we'd need to _remove() and _insert() on every list
+ * operation.
+ */
+typedef struct im__buffer_cache_list_t {
+	GSList *buffers;	/* GSList of im_buffer_t* */
+	GThread *thread;	/* Just for sanity checking */
+	struct _VipsImage *im;
+	im_buffer_cache_t *cache;
+} im_buffer_cache_list_t;
+
+/* What we track for each pixel buffer. 
+ */
+typedef struct im__buffer_t {
+	int ref_count;		/* # of regions referencing us */
+	struct _VipsImage *im;	/* IMAGE we are attached to */
+
+	Rect area;		/* Area this pixel buffer covers */
+	gboolean done;		/* Calculated and in cache */
+	im_buffer_cache_t *cache;
+	gboolean invalid;	/* Needs to be recalculated */
+	char *buf;		/* Private malloc() area */
+	size_t bsize;		/* Size of private malloc() */
+} im_buffer_t;
+
+void im_buffer_done( im_buffer_t *buffer );
+void im_buffer_undone( im_buffer_t *buffer );
+void im_buffer_unref( im_buffer_t *buffer );
+im_buffer_t *im_buffer_ref( struct _VipsImage *im, Rect *area );
+im_buffer_t *im_buffer_unref_ref( im_buffer_t *buffer, 
+	struct _VipsImage *im, Rect *area );
+void im_buffer_print( im_buffer_t *buffer );
+
 #ifdef __cplusplus
 }
 #endif /*__cplusplus*/
diff --git a/libvips/include/vips/region.h b/libvips/include/vips/region.h
index 6c4cfb1f..7c98703d 100644
--- a/libvips/include/vips/region.h
+++ b/libvips/include/vips/region.h
@@ -36,45 +36,6 @@
 extern "C" {
 #endif /*__cplusplus*/
 
-/* Profiling madness only, who cares about portability.
- */
-#ifdef TIME_THREAD
-#include <sys/time.h>
-#endif /*TIME_THREAD*/
-
-/* Per-thread buffer cache. Held in a GPrivate.
- */
-typedef struct im__buffer_cache_t {
-	GHashTable *hash;	/* Hash to im_buffer_cache_list_t* */
-	GThread *thread;	/* Just for sanity checking */
-} im_buffer_cache_t;
-
-/* Per-image buffer cache. Hash to this from im_buffer_cache_t.
- * We can't store the GSList directly in the hash table, as GHashTable lacks an
- * update operation and we'd need to _remove() and _insert() on every list
- * operation.
- */
-typedef struct im__buffer_cache_list_t {
-	GSList *buffers;	/* GSList of im_buffer_t* */
-	GThread *thread;	/* Just for sanity checking */
-	IMAGE *im;
-	im_buffer_cache_t *cache;
-} im_buffer_cache_list_t;
-
-/* What we track for each pixel buffer. 
- */
-typedef struct im__buffer_t {
-	int ref_count;		/* # of regions referencing us */
-	IMAGE *im;		/* IMAGE we are attached to */
-
-	Rect area;		/* Area this pixel buffer covers */
-	gboolean done;		/* Calculated and in cache */
-	im_buffer_cache_t *cache;
-	gboolean invalid;	/* Needs to be recalculated */
-	char *buf;		/* Private malloc() area */
-	size_t bsize;		/* Size of private malloc() */
-} im_buffer_t;
-
 /* Region types.
  */
 typedef enum region_type {
@@ -196,22 +157,6 @@ int im_wrapmany( IMAGE **in, IMAGE *out,
 int im__call_start( REGION *reg );
 void im__call_stop( REGION *reg );
 
-/* window manager.
- */
-im_window_t *im_window_ref( IMAGE *im, int top, int height );
-int im_window_unref( im_window_t *window );
-void im_window_print( im_window_t *window );
-
-/* buffer manager.
- */
-void im_buffer_done( im_buffer_t *buffer );
-void im_buffer_undone( im_buffer_t *buffer );
-void im_buffer_unref( im_buffer_t *buffer );
-im_buffer_t *im_buffer_ref( IMAGE *im, Rect *area );
-im_buffer_t *im_buffer_unref_ref( im_buffer_t *buffer, IMAGE *im, Rect *area );
-void im_buffer_print( im_buffer_t *buffer );
-void im_invalidate( IMAGE *im );
-
 /* Macros on REGIONs.
  *	IM_REGION_LSKIP()		add to move down line
  *	IM_REGION_N_ELEMENTS()		number of elements across region
diff --git a/libvips/include/vips/vips.h b/libvips/include/vips/vips.h
index 564b6069..7a239f64 100644
--- a/libvips/include/vips/vips.h
+++ b/libvips/include/vips/vips.h
@@ -101,7 +101,7 @@ extern "C" {
 
 #include <vips/private.h>
 
-/* @(#) Definition for structure to hold integer or double masks
+/* Argh, these horrible things must go :(
  */
 
 typedef struct im__INTMASK {