42 



THE AQUARIUM, APRIL, 1896. 



same time regarding its inferiority to 

 Avhat we used to supply. About the 

 end of April a carriage drove up in 

 front of our store from which the same 

 lady alighted. She came to ask the 

 name of that little plant which we had 

 sold her some time ago. We informed 

 her that it was a Vallisneria spiralis. 

 No, no, said she, I know vallisneria 

 well enough; the plant which you gave 

 me the last time when I called here is 

 not a vallisneria; it is much more beauti- 

 ful and is now in bloom, proving by its 

 flowers that it belongs to an entirely 

 different order. We were unable to 

 give its name from a verbal description 

 of the flower, and were invited to ride 

 down to her residence, in her company, 

 and see it, she being anxious to know 

 the correct names of her plants 



When we saw the little white flowers 

 floating on the surface of the water in 

 her aquarium, and the graceful shape 

 to which the plant had developed, 

 we were agreeably surprised, for this 

 little plant certainly was a prize for the 

 aquarium. We explained its origin. 

 The lady then voluntarily offered to 

 give it back to us in order to propa- 

 gate it. Soon after this, when she had 

 left for the seashore, we took possession 

 of it again. 



It was very fortunate indeed that this 

 little plant had come in such careful 

 hands, where its characteristics had 

 been noticed. We were as happy as if 

 we had discovered a gold mine. We 

 felt like "running"' home. The street 

 car seemed too slow for us so anxious 

 were we to find out whether the other 

 plant, its mate, was still in our posses- 

 ion. What then — If it had just been 

 sold to some careless, strange person 

 for ten cents ? Every person we met, 

 as we neared our store, we observed 

 closely, for he might have just carried 



off our prize. Had we met some one- 

 with a tin pail in his hand, we would 

 have surely asked where he came from. 

 On our arrival at home we found the 

 plant in the same place where it 

 had been put about six weeks before, 

 the real vallisnerias having started 

 to grow, no particular attention had 

 been paid to this "odd one." Now, 

 however, it was removed to our private 

 collection in the sitting room upstairs, 

 where it was safer, and where it soon 

 developed into as pretty a plant as was 

 its mate. When it bloomed we analyzed 

 it and found it to be a Sagittaria. 

 Owing to the fact that the flowers and 

 also the characteristic leaves, which 

 this plant produces during the warm 

 weather, always float on the surface of 

 the water, we added as specific name 

 natans, which means floating. At the 

 Cincinnati Industrial Exposition, in the 

 fall of 1879, we were awarded a compli- 

 mentary medal for it. 



The Sagittaria natans proved to be a 

 great plant for the parlor aquarium; in 

 fact it is to the present day the most 

 reliable aquarium plant under cultiva- 

 tion. We had soon propagated a good' 

 stock of this plant, and by judicial 

 advertising we disposed of several thou- 

 sand dollars worth in a very short time. 

 We have supplied it to all continents,. 

 Africa alone excepted, and the annual 

 sale of this aquarium plant to-day 

 can be estimated to several thousand 

 dollars. 



By careful cultivation we have greatly 

 improved on the original type, and by 

 cross-fertilization and hybridizing with 

 other species we have produced new 

 types. The ''New Era," "Frances 

 M." and "Windermere" are some of 

 its descendants. 



By the above sketch it is shown how,, 

 by perseverance, insignificant things 



