AQUARIUM. 



395 



of the small space occupied that they 

 are preferable. At the pleasure of each 

 person earthenware pots or wooden 

 boxes can be used. 



It is policy to prevent the breeding 

 of mosquitoes, to have goldfishes in all 

 aquatic gardens. And it is better to 

 have fancy, Asiatic fishes rather than 

 the common ones, as little more care 

 is required. Of course 1 do not mean 

 that any one, not a goldfish expert, 

 shall start out with the expensive, fine 

 fishes ; but fair specimens of fringe 

 tails, nymphs and telescopes can gen- 

 erally be obtained at moderate cost. 

 Having four tanks, two large and two 

 small, one can start with two pairs 

 of fishes. Place a pair in each of the 

 larger tanks, say in May, and have 

 some plants that float in the water and 

 at the same time possess many fibrous- 

 like roots or foliage. The water hya- 

 cinths, myriophyllum and the so-call- 

 ed Washington grass, all usually sold 

 by fish dealers, answer the purpose. 



Some morning very early you will 

 notice quite a commotion amongst the 

 plants and upon inspection you will 

 find small, semi-transparent globules 

 adhering to them. These are the spawn 

 of the fishes. Take out the plants car- 

 rying the eggs, adding additional plants 

 in case more spawn should be deposi- 

 ted, and place them in one of the small- 

 er tanks wdiere they will hatch in about 

 a week. The fishes usually deposit 

 the eggs at intervals during a couple 

 of hours, and if the eggs are not re- 

 moved many will be eaten by the par- 

 ents. The young fry after hatching do 

 not require food during the first 

 five days ; after that for two weeks 

 rice flour very sparingly dropped 

 on the surface of the water will 

 usually furnish sufficient food. Yet if 

 access can be had to very green pond 

 water containing minute animal mat- 

 ter, it is well to add a couple of quarts 

 of it every day. In fact, when obtain- 

 able, the minute animal life from ponds 

 is during the whole raising of the young 

 fishes the best food for development. 



When the fry is about one-half or 

 three-quarters of an inch long the feed- 

 ing of cooked oatmeal can begin, feed- 

 ing daily but always removing an ex- 

 cess to prevent fouling the water by 



the decomposition of the excess oat- 

 meal. A good plan is to place the food 

 in a fairly deep bowl which daily can 

 be lifted' out, water and all, and 

 cleansed before putting in a new sup- 

 ply. 



As the young fishes grow, put the 

 adult fishes together in one large tank 

 and place the larger of the young ones 

 in the other. If there is much dif- 

 ference of growth use the second smal- 

 ler tank as an intermediary, and shift 

 them as required. This is necessary, 

 as the larger often eat the smaller. 



Usually tanks are made out of wood, 

 and those commonly called the best 

 are of cypress. There is no doubt that 

 under conditions of moisture cypress 

 is the most durable wood available, but 

 durability is not the only quality re- 

 quired in fish tanks. Many occasions 

 present themselves when it is neces- 

 sary or desirable to empty the water 

 for considerable periods of time. Un- 

 der such conditions cypress is disap- 

 pointing for it does not act well in 

 changes from wet to dry ; it will shrink, 

 warp and crack, so that leaks are sure 

 to occur when the tank comes in use 

 again. It has also a gummy sap that 

 does not disappear for a long time ; 

 in fact, it is this very sap that largely 

 gives it the durability it possesses. In 

 addition, for an amateur a serious ob- 

 jection is that it is a rather difficult 

 wood to work. If, however, a cypress 

 tank is kept filled and allowed sufficient 

 time to become seasoned for fishes, it 

 makes an excellent container. 



White pine is easily worked and is 

 comparatively little affected in changes 

 from wet to dry. The sap, too, is 

 rapidly extracted from it by water. 

 Taking everything into consideration 

 white pine is the best material for the 

 construction of all wooden tanks. The 

 quality should be fair for small boxes 

 and very good for large tanks. It 

 should be kiln dried but naturally sea- 

 soned and, if possible, lumber from 

 rafted logs should be procured. This 

 latter lumber is particularly suitable for 

 fish purposes as the long soaking has 

 already taken out most of the sap and 

 we are thus enabled to utilize it much 

 sooner for fishes. Whilst it is prefer- 

 able to have planks without knots, still 



