CHAPTER XXI 



GENERAL CARE 



What normal family has never included among its varied 

 possessions a tank of goldfishes? The goldfish is almost as 

 ubiquitous as the canary, but unfortunately there has ex- 

 isted an almost universal lack of knowledge of the proper 

 care of this creature, and the first disastrous attempt at 

 keeping it is almost invariably the last. Just why this con- 

 dition should exist is not easy to say, as the needs of the 

 goldfish are simplicity itself. Perhaps the dealers are re- 

 sponsible, in a way, for it is to them that the tyro looks for 

 advice as to his new acquisitions. Very often, no doubt, 

 help is not solicited, the purchaser taking it for granted that 

 his crystal globe is the acme of perfection by way of a 

 habitation, and well suited to the comfort and exhibition of 

 its inmates, if only the water be changed daily! What 

 drudgery has been caused by this fallacy, and what secret 

 thanks have gone forth when the heavy globe finally has 

 been dropped, or otherwise broken, on one of its many 

 trips to the nearest tap ! 



But understanding of the aquarium is spreading. Al- 

 most every large city has its Aquarium Society, composed 

 of enthusiasts who devote their spare time to the cultivation 

 of aquatic life. Dealers are acquiring information, and are 

 learning that more is to be gained by oflfering their patrons 

 facts than by withholding them. Many schools maintain 

 balanced aquaria, so that the students are able to learn 

 something of modern methods. Thus the truth about the 

 aquarium is being disseminated among the public, and the 

 effect is already discernible. 



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