Blackfoot news. (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1891-1902, 1893-11-11
nc FLouNpER.
How the Under Eys works rs Way 10
the Top side

the Top sadie.
Some Of YOU may have heard the
saying las tat as a founder" and
have not stopped 10 think. What /
wish to tell you is why this fish Is
aat and what happens because il is
tlat. says a writer in Harper's Young
People.
II you have ever seen one in mar
ket or elsewhere, you know that the
upper and under parts Of its body are
OF different colors, and that its two
eyes are strangely enough. both on
the same side CT the head. II you
we're 20 see one in the water YOU
would notice that it swan, not up
right. as other fish swim, but lying
over on one side, with its eyes on
top.
Now all these things the hatness,
the two eyes together, the twisted
mouth. the differently eolored sides.
the peculiar swimming come from
the fact that the founder is not and
never has been an over brave fish.
We cannot blame the poor creatures
MUCH. because they have no way TO
defend themselves as swordfsh and
some others have. Their nsighbors
enjoy eating them. They know that
they are weak, and 50 they took.
ages ago 70 hiding al the bottom Of
the water This has been done so
long that now they have actually lost
the power 10 come to the surface.
Other fish rise and sink by means OF
an air bladder Those OF our friends
that used theirs and rose were
polneed upon and eaten The poor
scared ones that hid at the bottom
and saved their lives had no need OF
the rising apparatus, and now. as Is
always the case when an organ Is
not used, they have lost II
But when the FOUNDER took to his
hiding place al the bottom he ala
not settle himself al all comfortably,
according 20 our ideas Of hsh com
fort. Instead 81 an upright position,
with the two sides equally up. Ne
chose for some reason to lie over en-.
tirely on one Of them, with the other
side up This position accounts for
the differently coIored sides. That
on which he lay was protected al.
ways from the sunlight and lost its
color. The upper has come 10 Dc
the color OF the bottom on which he
lives, be that color what IL may.
That il should be so i not so strange
as i seems. A bright founder shin.
ing on dark bottom Is easily seen
by its enemies. and seized and eaten.
The same would be true OF dark
fish in bright coral home. Those
who lived to have families or their
own were those whose color was
most like the color OF their home.
Only the dullest color was trans.
mitted. and so. the world over mem.
bers Of this family are the color 81
sand. or mud. or gravel or shell. or
coral according to the place Of
their abode Some are even knotted
aad rough in way that makes them
wonderfully like their home We
find. for the same reason. arctic ami.
mails white like snow and desert In
sects the color u sand.
Another result Of the aatness III
this hatiish family to which the Houn.
der belongs Is that is eyes arc both
on the top Of It's heal We can hest
see how they have got together. and
how other changes have taken place.
BY noticing the growth ot a Young
founder. In the very beginning 81
its existence the baby fish 4 4 clear.
transparent little thing It, two
eyes are where well-regulated eyes
should D., on opp site sides ~ the
head, and il swims vertically in tho
water. as do other fish. But ia a
few days the influence 81 long line
Of founder ancestry Is felt lie, too.
takes 70 lying on one side, generally.
but not always. the left The OK.
posed skin darksns. In this position
the view Of the under eye i some.
what limited and it squints upward
toward "a larger one % begins 10
move, il turns the corner and comes
TO the top There it takes q stand.
The mouth twists upward and the
young fish swims along sideways on
the bottom.