Griggs courier. (Cooperstown, Griggs Co., Dak. [N.D.]) 1885-1902, 1901-10-03
WORK or THE FISH DOCTOR.
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The 6sh doctor ct the Pan-American
exhibition = a deciA edly, impprtAnt
peesonege. He takearseaEs aof Z Nj
eharges;in health % we'll II a. stskS
nesssi feedssst them nth ! IL. sei1nshand.
tests the teinperStdrs Of their water,
oyeraees the, cleaning sos their tanks;
and keeps rs wAtehfpl an eye on them
~ . trained nurse does ON Q, fever. pa
tient. Charts ON the rough wallsof the
gallery above and behinds lie aqpsr tum
record the temperature OF the aairsAad
y water +! for every day, and also ! list q
A9writer "A q daily paper accompan-
led the doctor in one,sof his rounds,
starting at the salt; water side ofsthe
gallery with q huge pan OF chopped
beet, liver, clans and strips sof.raw
fish. AZ. asI f. e.
Taking : handful Of chopped clam,
the doctor scattered It. carefully over
the surface Of the first tank so keep
the itsh from bunching up" 1mme-
diatey there were precipitated in the
green pool enough pugnacious and live
II sticklebacks to form round every
bit Of clam as many rays as are worn
by double daisy. ss7s
The real lively scene of the aquarium
greenroom was the feeding of live
minnows to the trout. A bucketful Of
slender minnows was brought, and .
handful dipped up and slapped into the
tank. The trout gave instant chase,
leaping and flashing, and fairly inter-
lacing themselves in their mad rush.
The contest was not as unfair as it
seemed. for a minnow cannot be
caught haphazard and swallowed on
hand. If seized by the tail he will erect
his dorsal fin and effectually block the
trout's throat. He must be pursued
until he can be caught fairly by the
head, when he will slip smoothly to
his death with barely struggle.
This made the chase a lively one,
but three minutes after the appear
ance Of the minnows the last one had
been captured, and only a fine rain Of
silver sparkles settling slowly to the
bottom remained to tell of their fate.
The feeding over, the hospital tank
was visited. This is rather big name
for q simple wooden trough, with pos
sibly dozen invalid fish in it. An at
tendant produced sort Of stretcher,
which he laid across the top of the
tank, the sagging cloth making shall
low bag half full of water. Then with
a. dip-net he fished up a big white Ash.
badly affected with fungus, and hand
ed it over to the doctor, who Laid it in
the stretcher. . s{tgs
Holding it firmly by the head, he
bathed the unfortunate patient thor.
oughly with strong brine To Judge
by the contortions Of the fish, the sal.
must have caused some smarting.
The process over, the physician slipped
the exhausted fish back into the tank,
where it promptly turned wrong side
up and sank to the bottom.
'He's very weak, that fellow" said
the doctor, gravely shaking his head.
Only three of the patients had to be
treated with salt water that day, the
rest being on the high road to recov-
cry. The hospital held at that time
but one incurable case, rainbow
trout afflicted with cancer. Unless a
surgical operation should save him
he was beyond hope. The doctor sell
dom resorts to the knife. For or
binary cases salt is sufficient, but in
severe ones alcohol, or even a weak So
luton Of carbolic acid, is necessary.