Vol. IV. 



APEIL, 1896. 



Copyright 1896. All Rights Reserved. 



Xo. 39. 



A NATURAL AQUARIUM. 



It is a curious fact how little interest 

 most of us take in nature, wlien out for 

 an hour or two's ramble, not necessarily 

 in the solitude of the country, but any- 

 where. The naturalist, of course, finds 

 something wherever he goes, that en- 

 livens his walk, and induces a train of 

 thought ; but how many ordinary mor- 

 tals pass by some of the most interesting 

 spots without taking the slightest notice 

 of the rich field of observation that 

 they might afford. I know of nothing 

 that can give greater pleasure than to 

 follow some little babbling brook, either 

 wending its way through the underbrush 

 of a wood, or creeping its sluggish way 

 through the open meadow. Coming 

 upon such a brook, we will say, where 

 it ripples over a shallow bottom, spark- 

 ling and fiashing in the sunlight with 

 its '•' many twinkling smile,'"' there is 

 lots of material, even in that shallow, 

 to while away an hour ; but. follow its 

 course a little further round the point 

 beyond, where the slow current over a 

 muddy bottom is only evidenced by a 

 curling eddy here and there, near the 

 bank, or by some floating leaf quietly 

 gliding along the surface, with just 



speed enough to show that there is a 

 current. This sluggish channel gener- 

 ally ends in a pool, somewhat deeper 

 than the channel of the brook itself, 

 and this jdooI constitutes a veritable 

 natural Aquarium. 



Be very careful not to let your 

 siiadow fall athwart the water, for if it 

 falls there, even for. a moment, you 

 will then see no trace of life whatever 

 in those waters. The reeds, the sedges, 

 and the willow herb, along its banks, 

 whose verdure is enhanced by the moist 

 surroundings, will afford a screen suffi- 

 cient for you to drop beside and there 

 to take up your quarters for a quiet 

 observation of the pool. 



Tenantless at first as it looks, in a 

 very short time you will see small fish 

 appear as if by magic from under their 

 covert, their tails in a perpetual motion 

 like the screw of a propeller, to keep 

 their heads up stream and their bodies^ 

 as it were, at anchor. Here and there 

 a more sportive one darts out from the 

 others as if on a tour of observation, 

 and circles round or across the pool, re- 

 turning to his fellows, one or more of 

 whom again indulge in the same 02:)era- 

 tion. Should a fly or a small caterpillar 

 come down with the current, all is at 



