Evening star., 1915-05-16

6NHE published announcement that
one of the most interesting gov
ernment exhibits at the Panama
Pacific exposition is that of the United
States bureau of fisheries calls to mind
that a good deal of effort has been put
forth toward the establishment in
Washington Of national aquarium
which would illustrate the valuable
work of the bureau of fisheries, put on
exhibition a large number Of the fish
families or fish tribes and constitute
an additional attraction to the National
Capital. The project has often been
urged, but thus far without much sue
cess.
The aquarium which the fisheries bu-
reau has set up in a corner of the
palace of food products at the Panama
Pacific exposition comprises twenty
nine tanks of fish and three circular
pools for fish too large for display in
the tanks and for seals and turtles. In
connection with the aquarium is an ex-
hibit of the fish-cultural appliances of
the bureau, consisting of trout troughs
Of the standard size and type. sal
mon-hatching trough. shad table
equipped with that type of Matching
jar known to experts as the Mcdonald
Matching jar. battery of those jars
for the Matching Of whitetish eggs
known as Downing Jars. and tidal
box Of the character used in cod work
It has been written that the series OF
Matching apparatus is the most COM
prehensive ever shown at an exposi-
ton and illustrates all the principal
methods used. Eggs of different species
of fish will be hatched during the eN-
position The processes may be OBJ
served because the development of the
eggs and the first movements of the
fish take place in glass-bottomed
trough lighted from beneath
Though there is not in Washington
an aquarium in a national sense. there
is an interesting aquarium in sub
terranean gallery in the fisheres bu-
reau building or the old fish commits
sion building. or the old Armory build
Ing in Armory Square 1t is admitted
by everybody familiar with the matter
that this building is ill-suited for the
purpose for which 1t Is used and Its
location is off the usual currents OF
travel. But a good many tourists hnd
their way there after straying east
from the Smithsonian Institution. the
old National Museum and the Army
Medical Museum.
The aquarium of the fisheries bureau
is in the basement of the building.
Along the sides of the room are fifteen
plate glass windows behind which
bubbles clear water This water is
brilliantly lighted by sunshine. which
enters these tanks from above. and
makes plain to people visiting there
hundreds of fish. swimming, feeding or
at rest in this water. AS general
thing the floors of the tanks are white
sand and pebbles. but some of the
tanks are fitted with that kind of bot
tom or scenic surroundings calculated
to make the fish feel at home. 1t has
been said that the aquarium OF the
fisheries bureau is not 30 much of
public exhibit as 1t is a place for the
close and critical observation of flsh
habits by students.
When The Star man strayed into the
aquarium there were in these tanks
many specimens of the large and small
mouth black bass, the crappie. beauti-
fully colored blue, black and silver:
yellow perch with their vertical
stripes and garpike suggestive of small
torpedoes. Sometimes these hsh are
swimming within an inch of ones eye
and every movement may be plainly
seen. One may stand by the tanks