St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1902-04-19
DULLES AMONG THE FISHES.
Scenes ut the Aquarium That Re-
mind One of the BOssy Ways
Of BOyhOOd.

| When, at the aquarium, they get to-
gether a tank of fishes that live in
peace and harmony, they neither take
away from nor add to it carelessly, but
keep it together, and in that comfort.
| able state as long as they can, says the
New York Sun.
| Not that fishes are any more quar-
relsome than many other living crea.
lures, but they are just about the same
as other creatures. 1t is a common
thing for one fish to nag another, as
one boy in school might nag another
boy.
Out of dozen fishes in a tank there
might be one of nagging disposition,
that would be forever picking at some
other one fish, as big as itself, or it
might be one bigger or smaller. The
rest of the fishes in the tank. very like
ly, would take no part in his hectoring
at all.
As sometimes, the gentle boy at
school. long-pursued, says to himself,
finally, that the next time that ruffian
touches him, he's going to lick him or
die in the attempt, and then when the
time comes, pitches in and ticks the
bully clean out of his boots, to the
delight and applause of the whole
school, so, sometimes, does a gentle
or timid fish turn on the hector of
the tank here and give it battle, and
down it for good and all, and becomes
itself, it may be, the boss there for
a time, the tank then, with the bully
squelched. settling down for time
in peace and quiet.
Still, the bully remains bully at
heart and will attack and poster and
worry any new fish put into the tank;
SO that finally it may be necessary to
take the bully out and put him some
where else to give that tank peace.
At the same time it is a common
thing for all or any of the fishes in a
tank to attack newcomers that are put
In to share the tank with them. But
this more or less general resentment
OF an intrusion, if SO it may be regard
ed, is likely soon to subside, the new
fishes being then received into the tank
family.
But there may still be in the tank
some fish that is fighter; and it may
single out some other fish as the OBJ
ject of its pursuit, and harry and wor-
ry and attack it until they have to
take the harried fish out of the tank
to save its life. One case of this sort,
at the aquarium, with it's sequel,
seemed to show that fishes have men,
DRY.
A fish that had been persistently
harried and attacked in one of the
tanks, and that had upon it's boy
various marks and scratches made by
it's barrier, was taken out of that tank
and put in a reserve tank, to give it
rest and let it get into condition again.
At the end of three months, bright and
clipper, this fish was put back in the
same tank whence it had been taken.
But the fish that practically had
driven it out before wouldn't let it stay.
This fish appeared to know the re-
turned fish, and soon it singled it out
and looked it over, with look that
seemed to say: ~.
"What! Didn't you get enough the
last time you were here?'
And it hectored the returned fish so
that they finally had to take it out of
the tank again and keep it out.
The middle one in size of three
fishes in one tank at the aquarium took
it into its head to boss the other two
around, which it proceeded to do; the
one bigger than it, as well as the one
submitting for time without