36 PREPAIUN'G TBS TANK. 



that is to say, only expose the tank to the morning sun, 

 and not to his midday powers, as they would be liable to 

 heat the water to a temperature that would be uncom- 

 fortable, if not dangerous, to the fish ; therefore, if we do 

 not wish to subject our pets to a process of slow boiling, 

 wc shall do well to shield them from the sun. If we have 

 not a window looking on the east, a southern aspect will 

 answer nearly as well, only we will have to be more par- 

 ticular as to shading the tank from the direct rays of the 

 sun, otherwise the water would soon become heated, and 

 such a bright light, though it would be advantageous to 

 the growth of the plants, would also increase the quantity 

 of conferva that thus accumulates on the glass quicker 

 than the snails can remove it. 



The gold-fish, however, from being natives of warm cli- 

 mates, thrive best in water that would be uncomfortably 

 warm to other species. Many of those exposed fur sale arc 

 reared in water which receives the waste steam from fac- 

 tories, and is often kept at as high a temperature as eighty 

 degrees of Fahrenheit. 



A northern aspect is never favorable for an Jquariiwi, 

 and a westerly one is the worst of all. In either of these 

 positions the plants, it will be perceived, do not grow vigor- 

 ously, and the fish are never as lively as in a southern or 

 eastern one. Iu winter wc can expose our tank longer to 

 the direct rays of the sun, especially if it is not kept in a 

 warm room, as wc have to keep up an eternal summer for 

 our animals and plants to make them flourish ; once let 

 the water freeze, and wc will perceive, especially iu a fresh- 

 water collection, that the latter will droop and die, and 

 the fish become slow in their motions. Gold-fish will not 



