Evening Republican, Volume 14, Number 243, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 12 October 1910 — The Care Of gold fish [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

The Care Of gold fish

BY ELLEN WISE

There ts nothing prettier in a room |Uian a bowl of gold fish. The bright [colored, lively little creatures darting iln and out of the green vegetation in the bowl makes a picture that one never tires of studying. But gold fish «re delicate things and it is depressing, when one has left them full of life Innd energy the previous night, to disIcover them dead in the morning. I find that many novices have trouble in the same direction and in some instances have given up the attempt to keep fish in the bowl. So I decided to jget expert information on the subject (for the benefit of the readers of this •column. In the first place,” said the expert, |“don’t make the mistake that one [woman did who came complaining to ane today. I questioned her concerning the food she had given the fish •nd found that she had fed them nothing but bread. That is a sure way •to kill the fish, for the bread contains yeast and this sours the water and it [would be necessary to change it every naif hour or so to keep the fish alive. ( “If you will watch a fish that is fed with bread you will see him eat it (for a little time, but as the bread gets #our from the action of the water he (will take it in his mouth and cough It Kt very quickly. Common sense ght to teach one that when the fish limits out the bread It is not the right jfood for him. Oatmeal makes good ifish food, but the prepared food make lespecially for the purpose is the best [thing to feed them with. ‘ "Don’t overfeed the fish. They don’t '.require a lot of food. Give them •enough to have a good bite or two all •around, but don’t keep the fish food [floating all the time on the surface of (the water. It fouls the water and the ifish will overfeed themselves and (probably die. “When you see the fish seeking the top it Is a sure sign that the water is getting stale and should be changed. The fish will naturally stay near the bottom and as long as the water has sufficient oxygen for their needs they will swim around in any part of the bowl. But when the oxygen is getting low and the water used up you will •see the fish crowd to the top and begin to gasp. When they do this, thrusting their heads half out of the water land gulping In the air you will know |tl»at they need fresh water, and if you 4o not give it to them quickly you will find your fish floating at the top, dead. “Don’t keep the fish bowl In a dark corner. The fish require sunlight, and If they are given plenty of light and Hr, the water will not need to be •changed so frequently. Remember that the fish are accustomed In their native habitat to sunlight and air all around them. Prom this, they are taken and confined in a small bowl, and this bowl is kept in a close room, Into which the sun seldom or never ifenetrates, and the consequence is the ■oxygen in the water is used up rapidly and the fish die for want of air.” -—Chicago Inter Ocean.