The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1900-02-23
TROUT IN CAPTIVITY

~ al'I ylies-A Victim Of Unrestrain-
Cd Appetite.
- York Post: On arriving home,
Ns Weed him in the aquarium, where
1s p n,.Sed almlessly about for q time.
ss 'e gnalIy discovering the shelf OF
op. u.s. nat had been built for the rock
s'on'I 10 hide under, he routed these
D1s. s, lighters out after a brief battle,
sur, ,ooE possession not only Of the
luu :, beneath 1t, but Of the entire end
spa mo tank adjoining this retreat. The
o -, -" bass returned TO the attack
TN of times thereafter but never
n nSocecded in regaining their old nest,
SUI SUI, compelled to content Themselves
De' NJ nerch-grass In the opposite cor
ner. ,,,.. ,,bo hsd yyltnasaed thia
.,L ~ progress open-mouthed, then and
IN unanimously agreed upon name
w tbe newcomer, calling him Mr..
III uI.s - The right to this title he main
Dr.! DE- ns long as he remained with US,
aaa,Inr no opponent able TO Withstand
Its wrath. except the bull-heads, who
SStbsr seemed to enjoy tussling with
IN He still remained shy, retiring to
~ shadow OF his shelf when any one
.rnroachSd too near, but this feeling
s.P.sp5nalIy wore OF under the influence
y JnsIstent coaxing and the continual
.ssrinc OF daintles, until we so gained
n. confidence that he would take
, as from between our fingers, or
syen lei US rub his specified sides oc-
casionally. He thus became the most
,StorestIng member OF our aquatic fam
tiv. proving more hardy than most Of
,Ss other denizens Of the tank the
Sonular fallacy as to the tenderness Of
,rout 10 the contrary Notwithstanding.
The children were the hrBt to become
acquainted with him. Early In the
morning on the day after he estnbllsh-
ID his claim to premier position among
bIs companions, the Oldest boy toddled
nut into the kitchen in his nlght-dress,
and. catching n fly mounted g chair
ard dropped the insect through the bars
OF the grating that covered the top OF
the aquarium. He then retired to the
sj,tIng room. where we watched devel-
onments through the crack Of the door.
Mr.. Boss soon edged his head out
from under the shelf, and, attracted
nv The rlpples the fly made on the sur
face, rolled his eyes up, but made no
further demonstration for Some time.
Suddenly there came a furry in the
gravel and a flash OF color; a broad,
nd tail swept through the air under
thp grating, throwing cupful or more
Of water halfway across the room, A
writing, lIghtninG-like something
swept around the centre pipe In q
graceful curve and darted for the shell
fer Of the stones-and there was Mr..
Ross in his alcove again. no trace ofhis
tiger.lIke spring remaining save dimp-
ling eddles and miniature whirlpools
near the outflow pipe where the fly had
been. Many other files went the way OF
the first In quick succession, with the
result that by hreakfast-time our new
pet had come to associate the white
nIght-dresses with toothsome insects,
and rolled his eyes towards the surface
every time one OF the children came
near
When his shyness wore away, Mr..
Boss settled upon system OF living
that, as fat as the limited space OF his
new home allowed. conformed to the
habits Of his kind in wild state, as l
have observed them on many trout
streams. He came out Of his shelter
about half an hour before daylight, and
after running about the aquarium for
few moments constitution. took his
station near his hiding place, Here he
poised himself for a time, and then be-
gan to cast about for something to
eat Singing out q minnow from the
swarm that always huddlel near the
entire OF the tank he would dart after
#. Invariably returning to his corner,
with Its tail protruding from his mouth.
This manoeuvre was generally repeated
several times, after which he started on
tour Of Inspection, pokin6 up each OF
his fellow captiVes In turn. chasing this
one, biting that. and butting another,
until he had things In turmoil The
c:aw-fsh generally emerged from his
den in the seashell at some time during
the fracas, only to be threatened ana
bullIed about likewise. But master SAL
mo never actually touched this rough
looking customer, seeming to stand
somewhat in awe OF its long pinchers.
The cruwfsh had been taken from the
main river. and, being much larger
than anything of the kind Mr.. Boss had
seen in his native creek, must have In
SPIKED him with g feeling Of respect.
Having demonstrated anew his super
ioSlty over the other inhabitants OF his
the trout would again
retire to his corner and await the COM
ing OF the children with their files. II a
worm was dropped in at this early
hour, very little attention was ever
puid to II. AS the day advanced, he
sank nearer and nearer the bottom, and
about the time the sun reached q point
where its rays shone through the
glass sides of the tank. he made last
tour OF inspection. took In couple Of
mlnnows on the way. and then retired
to the shelter Of the rocks. The feed
pipe came In here, and he thus con-
formed to the habits formed while at
liberty. for all trout fishermen know
that the specified beauties make for
the spring holea under the bank in
summer to escape the heat OF midday.
From this secure retreat he was seldom
tempted until mid-Rfternoon, when a
worm would sometimes coax him forth.
A fly. however, would bring forth q
rise" at almost any time of the day
or night. About 4 o'clock he sailed
forth ngain and attacked the minnowS
or picked up n worm or two. II offered.
From then until dark he took station
near his retiring place. and poised him
self so steadily that the eye could de-
tect no motion. save for slight quiv-
ering OF the edge Of the fms and eX-
IRENE top OF the tail.
To illustrate the wonderful power
these fishes have over their muscles, II
will suffice to say that ] have in my
possession a photograph OF Mfr. Boss.
taken ono day when his nerves were so
firm as TO induce me to try for a pic
ture. I left the shutter open minute
and half by the watch. but the mega
tive showed him through the glnsS,
with every line perfect, some OF his
speckies even being in evidence. The
only parts that blurred were the tail
and fms.
There was one thing in the tank
which Mr.. Boss never tired Of fighting,
and which completely used him up ev-
ery time he attacked II. This was the
snail, white rubber pipe that carried
The tresh-water supply. Whenever this