Evening Republican, Volume 21, Number 247, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 2 November 1917 — GOLDFISH THRIVE IN OPEN [ARTICLE]

GOLDFISH THRIVE IN OPEN

Grow to Lenjj'.h of, From Ten to Fourteen Inches When Allowed to Live In Natural State. Most of*, us are bo accustomed to seeing goldfish swimming around, apparently contented, in a glass bowl that we somehow have the Idea that they would be utterly lost if they were to be placed in a pond or lake. But as a matter of writes George F. Paul in St. Nicholas, goldfish are just like other flsh in that they enjoy freedom. When they are allowed to L live tn the natural state, they often grow to a length of froaa ten to fourteen Inches. What is, perhaps, the largest goldfish hatchery in the United States is near Thornburg, in Keokuk county, la. Here several acres are covered with ponds in which the goldfish acquire the desired sheen and brilliancy. There are, in all. 17 of these ponds, so that the fish of different varieties and sizes can be kept separate. Oatmeal, is the great staple tn the feeding of these finny beauties. Every day more than a hundred pounds of It are cooked and fed to them. Whenever they want a little vegetable food, they nibble dt the abundant mosses. ; Pure water is one of the prime necessities. This has been abundantly provided. Windmills are kept busy pumping fresh water up from deep wells. The frogs also do their share In keeping- the ponds—free froni iinpurities. Should the water become impure, the goldfish would not acquire such brilliant coloring.