a 

THE PROPAGATION OF THE GOLDFISH 

the American breeder, goldfish culture being a comparatively recent in- 
dustry in the United States, but has been a science in China and Japan for 
centuries and an occupation of very considerable magnitude, to which must 
be added the endless patience and perseverance which is characteristic of 
the Oriental. It is also known that they only retain those young fishes 
which are the most perfect of their respective kinds, as with all animals 
-even the most careful breeding will produce many variations from the 
parent stock, which in the goldfish leads to the hatching of imperfect fishes 
and ‘‘sports.”’ 
The breeding of the fine varieties is best conducted in tanks where 
the fishes may be kept under constant inspection and supervision, but the 
common goldfish multiplies rapidly in the pond; requiring only moderate 
attention, some little protection from natural enemies and sufficient food. 
None of the early writers mention or illustrate the so-called scaleless 
goldfishes. These really are thin or transparently scaled fishes. ‘The 
young of these breeds show a change from the dull to the bright colors 
almost as soon as the umbilical sac is consumed and when the fish is still 
very small. Under the microscope both the embrio and alevin show a 
mottled appearance different from the dull olivate color of the heavily 
scaled goldfishes. These thin-scaled fishes are the most sensitive to cold 
water and low temperatures, as they are derived from fishes bred in the 
warmer parts of China. 
In breeding for color both parents should have the desired markings 
or have been derived from highly colored stock. To produce scaleless 
(transparently scaled) Japanese Fringetails a female Fringetail should be 
crossed with a transparently scaled male Chinese Telescope; as when the 
female is transparently scaled and the male scaled, a smaller percentage of 
the young will be transparently scaled. A scaleless (crossed) female Fringe- 
tail and a male scaleless Telescope will produce the telescopic eye and the 
Fringetail body and large fin development; and when both parents are 
scaleless (crossed) Fringetails, they are most likely to produce scaleless 
Fringetails with smaller and flat eye development than the Chinese Teles- 
cope, but larger than that of the common goldfish. These are the hand- 
somest and most highly colored fishes, superior to the Scaled Japanese 
Fringetail stock. 
Prof. John A. Ryder stated that experiments in shaking apart the 
cells produced by the first cleavage in the egg led to the development of 
two separate embrios from the same egg, as well as the production of 
monstrosities in both invertebrate and vertebrate animals. He mentioned 
experiments in producing double monsters by violently shaking the re- 
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