THE AQUARIUM, 
REPOTTING PLANTS. 
When repotting plants see that the 
soil you use is in proper condition, 
neither too wet nor too dry. If too 
wet, it will clump together and the 
roots can not penetrate it. A good 
compost, suitable for nearly all kinds 
of house plants, is wood mold and 
sandy loam, equal parts, mixed with 
one-third its bulk of rotten cow manure. 
This is worked over until it is reduced 
to a fine, evenly grained compost. 
But other precautions are necessary, 
besides having a suitable compost, to be 
successful in raising and keeping house 
plants. When they are first potted 
(taken in from the garden) it is import- 
ant that they gradually become accus- 
tomed to their changed mode of life. 
They should be taken up from the 
ground while there is yet growing 
weather, carefully pressed into the pot, 
pruned to diminish the evaporating 
surface, and shaded a few days till they 
recover. When the plants are taken 
indoors, it is best to keep them in a 
room without a fire, and where they 
can have plenty of air on mild days. 
October is a good month for potting 
most flowers for the winter. 
Let the pots be new if possible ; if 
you use old ones have them well washed 
inside and outside, and dried again be- 
fore use. 
All pots in which plants are to be 
grown must have at least one hole in 
the bottom, so thesurplus water may run 
off ; if it remains, the plants will soon 
die. Pots should be also of porous 
material; such as the common tlower 
pots are made of is best. Never 
paint your pots, therefore! Ornamen- 
tal china pots are intended merely as a 
cover of a common pot. 
Regarding the size of pots, it may 
here be stated that, as a rule, ama- 
OCTOBER, 1892. iz 
teurs use too large pots for their plants. 
Always bear in mind that not the quan- 
tity but the proper quality of the soil is: 
what grows the plant, if otherwise 
properly cared for, to perfection. 
i 
A CHEAP EXPERIMENT. 
How AN INGENIOUS PROFESSOR MADE 
A ONE HunpDRED DOLLAR FEE. 
Before the Fish Commissioners de- 
cided to stock the streams of the State 
with that much despised but powerful 
fish, the German carp, they were greatly 
concerned as to whether the species: 
would live in certain waters, says the 
San Francisco Hxaminer. 
They debated the questions through 
several meetings, grew red in the face 
over it, and to save heat and a possible 
disruption of the board, determined to 
submit the question to Professor Hoch- 
stadter, the eminent pisciculturist, for 
decision. 
Numerous samples of the water were 
obtained and turned over to the profes- 
sor, who in a very brief space submit- 
ted a report and a bill for $100. The 
bill was paid and the devastating carp 
turned loose to disorder the rivers. 
It was not until the other day, how- 
ever, when Judge Henshaw and Pro- 
fessor Hochstadter were straining their 
imaginations over fishing experiences 
while crossing on the Piedmont, that 
the truth about the great scientist’s 
experiments with that water came out. 
He chuckled so much over telling about 
his bill for $100 that Henshaw asked : 
“But how did you ascertain that. 
carp would live in the water submitted 
to you?” 
‘‘Why, I bought a carp for ten cents 
and put it into the water. It lived.” 
— FHachange. 
