26 
The Ladies’ Page 
How to Keep Ferns Fresh. 
Many woman complain that they can- 
not keep the pretty little ferns purchasable 
for display in drawing-rooms in fancy 
pots, because they fade so quickly and 
die. This is because they are not man- 
aged properly. Twice a week they should 
be taken to the kitchen sink and the 
leaves well washed and stood under the 
tap, which should be allowed to drip 
water upon them until they are quite 
refreshed. After this the pots should be 
laid on their sides and allowed to drain. 
If treated in this way they will keep fresh 
and look pretty allthe winter. House 
plants of any kind must not be watered 
too often in cold weather, or the soil will 
go ‘sad’ and the plants die. 
(oS Sa RT 
Fancy Screens. 
Until a screen has been put to the test 
of usefulness, it may be considered | an 
unnecessary article of furniture, however 
‘fancy’ it may be. But many of our 
female foregoers of taste and gentility 
lavished fancy stitching on an embroidered 
canvas, which, when framed in glass and 
mounted on a wooden tripod, protected - 
their faces from the fierce glow. of the 
open fires. 
Screens of our own day are numerous 
in design, various construction, and 
adapted to every portion of the house. 
The Japanese screen is available in many 
places where one of heavier weight would 
would “be impossible to adjust easily. 
Some of these screens are made of silk 
satin, or cotton. 
“Their variations in colour and texture 
bring them within any colour scheme that 
may be planned fora room. To exclude 
a draft of air a screen of some weight is 
demanded, and a wooden frame that 
stands upon the floor with the sides. - 
covered with burlap is satisfactory. 
An invalid’s screen of a character 
altogether praiseworthy has been devised 
with pockets fastened to the inside of the 
f Winter. 
gets only one pellet. 
THE AUSTRALIAN GARDENER. 
frame, in which letters, photographs, or 
memoranda may be tucked away. The 
idea is one adaptable in many homes. 
Gold Fish Aquarium. 
The number of fish to be placed in an 
acquarium is a matter of great importance 
and one that is generally over-looked to 
the detriment of the fish; two fish, from 
two and one-half inches to three inches 
long, with two snails and one tadpole, will 
- be found ample for every five gallons of 
water and, no matter how much one may 
be tempted to have more, this proportion 
should be,strictly adhered to; overstocking 
is one of the causes, we might say the 
principal cause, of all failures in keeping 
the aquarium and its inmates in good 
healthy condition. If the fish persist in 
coming to the surface to breathe it is also 
a sign that there are too many fish in the 
acquarium, especially so if it is properly 
stocked with plants, of which it is not 
possible to get too many so long as the 
movements of the fiish are not retarded by 
them 
—Food Supply— 
Goldfish feed naturally on _ insects 
worms, larvee and alge that are always 
abundantly found in fresh water; in the 
acquarium, however, artificial food has to 
be resorted to, and the best-is, without a 
doubt, the rice wafer sold by all dealers in 
in acquaria supplies. For each fish three 
‘inches long, a piece of the rice wafer, from 
one-half to three-quarter inches square, 
should be given once a day; other fish in 
_ proportion to size; care being taken that 
only enough be given that the fish can 
consume, there should be none left to fer- 
ment. There is also other prepared 
goldfish food sold by dealers which makes 
an agreeable change of diet for the fish 
and which can be fed at intervals. The 
fish require more food in the summer, 
when they are more active, than in the 
The above diet of rice wafer 
should be varied by supplying them with 
some of their natural food once a week; if 
this is not possible they can be given a 
small pellet of raw finely chopped beef 
once a week, being careful that each fish 
it covers the gills, 
July 1, 190% 
—How to Clean the Container-— ~ 
When necesary to clean the acquarium 
the fish should be removed with a dip ne; 
and placed in another vessel containing 
‘water of about the same temperature as 
that to which they have been accustomed. 
Then all stones, sand, plants, and the glass 
of the acquarium should be thoroughly 
cleansed before refilling with fresh 
water, again being careful that the tem- 
perature of the water is as near to that 
which the fish have been used to as 
possible; a sudden change of temperature 
is very bad for them, for they are subject 
to diseases from colds as well as the human 
family. If the acquarium is a large one 
which cannot be emptied as easily as one 
of much lighter weight, a small hose will’ 
be found very useful, used as a syphon, to 
draw off all filth, sediment and offal that 
may collect on the bottom of’ the ac- 
quarium; the end of the hose can be 
guided to any part and the filth drawn off 
by suction. One of the mainessentials to 
success is strict cleanliness. 
—Fungus Disease of Goldfish,— 
Goldfish kept in an acquarium are 
subject to a fungus disease which, unless 
checked, will causedeath. It commences 
as a small white spot on the fins, head or 
body of the fish, rapidly extending until 
when the fish is 
suffocated. As soon as the fungus is 
noted the fish should be removed and 
placed in water in which a tablespoonful 
of table salt has been dissolved for every 
Leave the fish in 
this water for several minutes, or until ib 
two gallons of water. 
shows signs of distress, then remove it to 
a vessel containing pure water, in which 
it should be allowed to remain until 
entirely recovered before it is returned t0 
the acquarium. If any of the fish be 
attacked by this fungus, all should be 
removed and given the above treatment, 
while the acquarium, stones, sand and 
plants should be thoroughly cleaned with 
a salt water solution of greater strength, a5 
they will not be injured by it, This 
disease kills great numbers of fish 
and should have attention as-soon 48 
noticed, 
Florists’ Exchange. 
