Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1894-12-19

| peculiar characteristics may be of ger
eral interest, writes n New York cor
respondent of the San Francisco
Chronicle.
In a self-sustaining aquarium in New
York, containing about nine gallons
| of water, are some varieties of gold
fish of an aggregate value of nearly
$1,000. Clarence McKim, the banker,
is the possessor of this valuable tank
of fish. He has collected the specimens
at different times as they were import.
ed to or bred in this country.
About the smallest and yet mos
prominent pair of fish in this aquarium
is the telescope goldfish of Japan, OF
, which variety there are not more than
ten specimens in New York. They are
of soft velvety black color, with
bright golden tints on the end of
the scales. The body is dwarfed to
such an extent that the fish appears to
be almost round, while the beautiful
double tails droop far below the ven
trail fins and give the fish the appear
ance of wearing a long train. The eyes
are as large as those found in five
inch bull-frog and protrude beyond
the head to the same extent. These
fish are unusually intelligent and so
tame that they can be fed from the
hand. Their regular diet consists OF Il
small piece of fishwood wafer made OF
rice, flour and water, which is fed to
them every morning, and once week
q small piece of earth worm. After re-
ceiving the latter delicacy they usually
exhibit their qualification by stretch
ing the dorsal fin to the utmost and
swimming round and round after each
other, playing and curvetting among
he water plants in the aquarium in III
amusing manner.
\ few years ago, when Admiral Am
men, of the United States Navy, was in
Japan he tried very hard to get pair
of these fish for the purpose of breed
ing them and introducing them into
this country. He found, however,
that the Mikado was SO jealous of this
rare stock leaving the country that he
prohibited any dealing in this fish.
The Japanese fish culturlst who pro-
duces this variety of fish produces
artiicially their peculiarities of shape
and color. Originally, they were bred
from the long, slender-b bodied, single
tailed gold fish, and it requires untir-
ing patience ON the part of the cultur
list to develop the peculiarities which
give the fish their value. The Japan
ese, it is said, take the fish when
young and place them in cylindrical
tube made of dark colored glass Mt
each end and with two openings OF
| Il, h., s H.
These cylinders are laid in the small
artificial ponds constructed for the
purpose, and the water is allowed TO
pass freely through the tube. The
tendency of the tiny fish is to swim
always toward the clear part of the
| cylinder. and in time the eyes grow
put into the cavities made for the pur
| pose.
| The youngest daughter of the late
| Colonel Elliot F. Shepard has in her
aquarium three fringe-tail goldfish.
One of the fish has n brilliant carmino
color, making the ordinary American
goldfish look pale in comparison with
I his glistenirig sides. He presents
| beautiful appearance by gaslight when
passing from side to side in the
aquarium in search of tidbits from his
little mistress, Margherita. Besides
this fish, she has small American
striped dace, noted for their SYM
metrical form and swiftness in swim
ming. They will jump fully two feet
out of the water after small piece of
scraped beef rolled up to look like an
sarthworm and impaled on q broom
traw over the aquarium.
Master Arthur Gotthold, of West
Fifty-eighth street, raised nearly 100
three-spined sticklebacks this spring
from one pair. During period of
ten days in April the larger of these
two fish busted himself in excavating
q large hole in the sand of his
aquarium, carrying it little at time
in his mouth all the way across the
aquarium. After getting the hole
deep enough he commenced to pull
little bits of branches off some of the
water-plants and piled them up until
they formed the nest indicated, stop
ping every little while to press his
sides against the branches to cement
them in place with the mucus exuded
from his scales. Occasionally he would
swim head down and poke his nose in
the opening to maintain the proper
shape in the nest. He then made an
opening on the left hand side near the
base, in such way that the water
could pass freely in at one aperture
and out at the other. During this
time the little builder changed in
color from an uninteresting slate hue
to brilliant red all over the chest and
gill covers.
After the eggs were deposited by
his mate the fish took position about
an inch above the nest, with his head
toward the opening, and began to fan
vigorously with his pectoral fins fore !
ing the water in through the top of |
the nest. From this time on for four |
teen days he showed very little inter
est in anything else. Instead of feeding |
ravenously he ate very little of the |
fresh beef offered him every morning. |
Whenever he did leave the nest for a |
few seconds it was seemingly for the |
purpose of swimming across the aquar- !
ium to numerically punish his unof-
fendiug mate. At the end OF the fort
night the young fish were Matched, |
but he still kept up the aerating pro |
cess over the nest until the tiny velb
sacs attached to the bodies Of the fry.
by which they are nourishin-. had
disappeared. Then the young fish
swan out and were able to feed them
selves from the small infusoria grow
ns under the leaves of the water plants.
The daughter of Mrs. Soutter owns
very interesting pair of paradise fish,
which came from India, and bear the
most brilliant variety of colors found
On any fresh water fish. The head is
gray with dark spots. The gills are
,lue bordered with crimson, the eyes