CHAPTEE XIX 

 CULTUEE AND CAEE OF GOLDFISH 



The house aquarium and the goldfish are so 

 closely linked in the minds of the great major- 

 ity of persons, that it seems fitting that in deal- 

 ing with aquarium life first attention be given 

 this member of the minnow family. It orig- 

 inated with the Chinese in remote antiquity, 

 and was introduced into Europe between the 

 17th and 18th centuries, and into this country 

 early in the 19th century. It has been pro- 

 duced from the Crucian carp, an Asiatic fish 

 of the family, after centuries of careful selec- 

 tion and breeding, and is therefore one of the 

 minnows. 



The original colour of the Crucian carp is 

 olive-brown, and when the young are hatched, 

 and for some weeks after, they possess this hue 

 of their primal ancestors. The goldfish also 

 affords a striking example in another way of 



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