The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1876-04-20


and particularly England, within the last
year or two must have been surprised and
delighted at the interest everywhere mani
tested in beholding by means of aquaria the
wondrous animals that live far down in the
depths of the wide ocean. Five years ago
there was but one aquarium in England, the
one at the Crystal Palace. Soon after fol-
lowed the colossal structure Mt Brighton and
another ut Manchester, until now they are
found in oil the principal cities and towns.
even in Wales and Scotland. The new
one at Westminster, adjoining the Parlia-
ment Buildings, which also includes con-
cert hall, cost eight hundred and forty thou
sand dollars. Another of immense size has
been built in Berlin, and smaller and older
ones exist in Paris and Hamburg No kind
Of exhibition seems so interesting as dis
play of the mysterious forms that dwell
where
The purple mullet and the rove,
And the waving form of the dulse is seen.
Long trains OF excursionists frequently
go down from London to Brighton, and the
curiosity of the visitors seems to be sharp
ened instead of satiated by first glance at
tho strange beings swimming in the tanks.
The Brighton Aquarium is a long, low build
ing OF one story in height, and along either
side of central hall are arranged immense
tanks with plate glass fronts. These tanks
are lighted by windows over them, and as
into the tanks rs one looks out Of window.
The sides and rear of each tank are made up
Of rockwork so as to resemble with singular
perfection grotto Indeed, one can scarcely
assure himself he is not walking along the
bed of the ocean, for on every side he beholds
the denizens Of the deep.
These aquaria each cost some hundreds
of thousands Of dollars. One is now pro-
posed in memorial addressed to the Legs-
lature by the trustees of the American Mu-
scum of Natural History. 1t is to cost only
fifty thousand dollars, but by placing it be-
side their new building on Manhattan square
a considerable cost for erecting chimney
sufficiently high to give the requisite draught
to the furnaces will be saved and other ex-
penses avoided, including foundation of
solid rock already levelled at considerable
expense. One of the difficulties experienced
in aquaria is the breaking OF the plate glass
that forms the fronts, even though it is usu-
ally an inch thick. BY building on foun-
dation of solid rock this frequent annoyance
will be entirely avoided. In former times
it was supposed to be absolutely necessary,
in order to keep alive animals from the sea,
that fresh supply must be constantly
pumped up from an adjoining harbor or bay.
In building the Crystal Palace aquarium an
entirely different plan was. adopted-namely,
of bringing up from the coast the supply
needed-some one hundred and twenty thou
sand gallons-in hogsheads, whichwas poured
into immense reservoirs beneath the room
containing the exhibition tanks. This water
was then pumped up into tank, from which
it flowed into a second and then into third,
and so on by a series of waterfalls about
three inches high, the water in this manner
absorbing from the air oxygen to replace
that consumed by the fish in breathing and
to purify it of deleterious excrementitious
matters. At Manchester it has been found
that even when the water had become too
impure to see through satisfactorily, and
when it was strongly impregnated by con-
tact with new cement, it could be
still rendered ''as pure as crystal"
by increased circulation. This, indeed, is
the way that the ocean itself is kept in a
proper condition to sustain life. All these
great aquaria contain only the fishes and
marine animals found on the neighboring
coasts. An attempt is now to be made TO
take up to England some of the bright COL
ored fishes of the Mediterranean.
New York is incomparably more favora-
bly, situated for a great aquarium than any
other large city in all the temperate zone.
Many species exist in our own waters, and
by having the Gulf Stream within a hundred
miles Of our harbor we can bring all the
wonderful ''angel," ''parrot" and other
fishes Of the most brilliant colors and bizarre
forms from the Bermudas or the West Indies.
Thus both the tropical and our temperate
seas will yield an abundance of forms that
would far excel the great exhibition at
Brighton. When Mr.. Barnum had his
museum on the site of the present HERALD
Building he brought many of these beauti-
full fishes from Bermuda without losing a
SINGLE specimen, and one such successful trial
shows the certainty of being able to accom-
plish what is now proposed.
The money asked for is to be used only
for erecting building, and the cost of fill
ing the tanks with fishes from far of seas
and to care for and superintend the whole is
to be borne by comparatively few persons
for the benefit of the masses of our people.
Such a noble and generous purpose ought to
receive the support Of all, and we hope that
our Legislators will pass the bill making the
appropriation at the earliest possible day.
New CRUsADE.-Driven on by the in
creasing difficulties of his position it is