EOCKS AND CORALS. 259 



THE PEEPAEATION. 



Your Aquarium being brought home, fixed in its 

 intended situation, and properly seasoned, the next 

 thing is to fit it up as a dwelling for its living inha- 

 bitants. Two or three points may be noticed here. 



Aetificial Kocks, Coeaes, &c. — When the two 

 longer sides only of the Tank are of glass, the two 

 ends being made of slate, the latter should be veiled, 

 by being made to imitate the irregular projections and 

 ledges of rock, which may be done in a very pic- 

 turesque maner. For this purpose, Roman, Portland, 

 or other cement which hardens under water, should 

 be employed ; the slate must be faced with this, which 

 while plastic may be fashioned into the semblance of 

 rock. Pieces of branching corals may be set in it, if 

 the effect of such accessories be thought desirable, 

 and ca^dties may be formed here and there, into 

 which the fragments of stone that support growing 

 sea-weeds may afterwards be dropped, so that the 

 tufts may droop elegantly from the mimic cliff. A 

 more elegant way of appropriating branching corals, 

 is to make a broad foot of cement to them, plunging 

 the base of the branch in it while soft ; these, when 

 the cement has hardened, will stand on the floor of 

 the tank like trees, and imitate more perfectly the 

 mode of gi'owth of the arborescent madrepores. 



Whenever cement is used, it will be absolutely 

 necessary to allow it to remain in water for at least a 

 month, in order to soak out the free lime, before it be 



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