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. Lnurvncin pinnutil'uliu.

. Pulysphnnln parasilim.

.
2
3. Ulm lm’ Hum.
4

. Ilhudymvniu Incinzna.

PLATE V.

5. Gracimviu cunfcrvuhlcs.

n. Cudium hursn.
T. h‘idzt‘a (:dulis.

 

S. Znnm'iu purvuhl.
f). Ecmmrpus (omnmmui.
)0. Comlliua ofl‘Mnalis.

 

OCEAN AND RIVER GARDENS:

31mm; 01‘ the maxim: mm mesh-3131211127: gtquarin,

WITH

THE BEST METHODS FOR THEIR ESTABLISHMENT AND PRESERVATION.

WITH TWENTY COLOURED PLATES FROM LIFE.

BY

H. NOEL HUMPHREYS,

AUTHOR OF “INSECT CHANGES,” “BRITISH BUTTERFLIES AND THEIR TRANSFORMATIONS,”
ETC” ETC.

PART I.—OCEAN GARDENS.
PART II.-RIVER GARDENS.

LOND ON:
SAMPSON LOW, SON, AND 00., 47 LUDGATE HILL.

MD CCCLVII.

CONTENTS.

CHAPTER I.
PAGE

INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . 1

CHAPTER II.

THE FLOOR OF THE OCEAN .

Q

CHAPTER III.

THE AQUARIUM . . . . . . . . . 20
CHAPTER IV.

THE VEGETATION OF THE MARINE AQUARIUM . . . 40
CHAPTER V.

THE ZOO'PIIITES . . . . . . . . . 53

CHAPTER VI.

THE MOLLUSCS, ETC. . . . . . . . . 67

iv CONTENTS.

CHAPTER VII.

THE ASCIDIANS, BARNACLES, SEA-CUCUMBERS, NAKED MOL-
LUSCS, SEA-“T031118, ETC. . . . . . . 89 '

CHAPTER VIII.

TH}: F1511 AND CRUSTACEANS OF THE AQUARIUM . . . 98

CHAPTER IX.

CONCLUSION . . . . . . . . . . 110

-—e—:94Jé(-‘-&7€-

LIST OF PLATES.

__+_.__

PLATE I.

SEA-WEEDS.
No. mm:
1. Delessem'a sanguz'nea . . The Crimson Delossoria . . . 46
2. Puncta/rz'a latz'folz'a . . . The Broad-leaved Punctaria . 46
3. C’hordwrz'aflagellz'formis . The Whip-like Chordaria . . 46
4. Vauclzem’a submam’na . . The Submarine Vaucheria . . 47
5. E'ldenbmndfla rubm . . The Red Hildenbrandtia . . 46

PLATE II.

SEA-WEEDS.
1. Bangz'afusco-pmpurea . . The Dark-purple Bangia . . 47
2. Codz'um tomentosum . . . The Closely—haired Codium . 47
3. Bryopsz'splumosa . . . The Feathery Bryopsis . 42, 47
4. Callz'tlzammbn wrbusoula . The Tree-like Callithamnion . 47
5. Leathesz'a Berkley/5 . . . Berkley’s Leathesia. . . . . 47
6. Lamina/rm pkg/Hitch . . . The Leafy Laminaria . . . 47

PLATE III.

1. Porpkg/m vulgam's . . . The Common Porphyra . . . 47 '
2. Dumantz'afilzformz’s . . . The Slender Dumontia . . . 48
3. Asperococcus Turnem' . . Turner’s Asperococcus . . . 48
4. Rytz'plzcea pinastm's . . . The Pine-like Rytiphaea . . 48

vi

No.
. Chrysemenia rosea

10.

pa

oo-qczcnypooyo

10.

LIST OF PLAT ES.

. Peyssonetz'a Dubyi
. Chordarm da'rarz'cata

. Ectocarpus sz'liculosus
. Nemaleon multzfida .
Nytoylzyllum punctatmn

. Clwndrus crz'spus

Gigartz‘na acicularis .

. Ceramz'um strictum .
. Taom'a atomam’a
. Plocamz'um coccineum

. Laurencz’a pinnatz'fulz'a .

Polyspkom'a parasitz'ca .
. Ulva latissinm

. Rhodymem’a lacz'nata
. Gracz'lm'z'a confervoz'dcs .
. Codium bursa

. Iridwa edulz's .

. Zonan'a parvula .
Ectocarpus tomcntosus .

Corallz'na oflicz'nalis .

. The Rose-coloured Chrysemenie
. Duby’s Peyssonetia . .
The Minutely-bmnching Chor-
{daria.. ....}

. The Podded Eetocarpus .
. The Many-cleft Nemaleon .
. The Spotted Nytophyllum .

PLATE IV.

SEA-WEEDS.
. The Curly Chond1us
j The Needle— shaped or Pointed }
. ( Gigm tma . .
. The Pink Cemmium .
. The Speckled Taonia
. The Scarlet Plocamium .

PLATE V.

SE A-WEEDS.

{The Pinnnte-leaved Lauren— } 43

01a
. The Parasitic P013:sphonia .
. The B1oad—1eaved Ulv a .

. The Lace—edged Bhodymenia 43,

. The Sponge-like Gracilaria.
. The Purse-like Codium .

. The Eatable Iridea

. The Lesser Zonaria . .

. The Hairy Ectocarpus

. The Common Corallina .

PAGE

48
48

42
49

49
48
48

LIST OF PLATES. vii

PLATE VI.
SEA-ANEMONIES, STAR-FISH, ETC.
No. PAGE
1. Gem'aster equestms . . . The Small Scarlet Star-fish . 104
2. Astem'na gz’bbosa. . . . The Gibbons Star-fish . . . 104
3. Palmzlnes membranaoeus . The Bird’s-foot Star . . . 104
4. Crz'bella oculata . . . The Eyed Star-fish . . . . 104
5. Palwmon scrmtus . . . The Common Prawn . . . 102
6. Edwardsz'a oestitw . . . The Clothed Sea-Anemone. . 56
PLATE VII.
1. Actim'a Clavata . . . . The Nailed Sea-Anemone . . 57
2. Pennatula pkospkorea . . The Phosphoric Sea-pen . . 63
3. A Group of Ascz’dz'ans . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
4. A Shell of the Common
Whelk, on which are two The Acorn-shell . . . . . 91
specimens of Balanus
PLATE VIII.
1 8: 2. Actim'w mesembrycm- {The Carnation-like Sea-Ane-
. 59
them-um mone of difi‘erent colours }
3. Actz'm'a gemmacew . . . The Gemmed Sea-Anemone . 57
4. Lemma/rid auricula . . The Aurieula-like Luoernaria. . 61
5. Vz'rgulam'a mzb‘abz'h's . . The Rod-like Sea-Pen . . . 65
PLATE IX.
1. Actz'm'a anguz‘coma . . ' {The Serpent-haired Sea-Amy} 59
mone . . . . . . . .

2. Algoom'um dzyz'tatum . . The Many-fingered Alyconium 63
. Eckzhus sp/zcem . . . . The Common Sea-Egg . . . 107
4. 0’me Izyalz'nus . . . The Glassy Sea-Cucumber. . 92

GO

viii LIST OF PLATES.

PLATE X.
m A fS ulac :6 “GE
1' gm“? 0 ”1’ 0” 0”}The Twisted Serpula . . . 90
tuplwata . .
. . . . The Thick—horned Sea-Ane-
2. Actzma orasswwms . . } 59
mone . . .
PLATE XI.
A Design for a Mainly-mounted Aquzirium . . . . . . . 35.

PLATE XII.

A Design for an' Aquarium mounted in handsome Rustic-work 35

OCEAN GARDENS;

0R,

GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

 

CHAPTER I.

INTRODUCTION.

1 {W
Kr “W" HAT the vast majority of our migra-

  

." """" .' V [WP
; q (if; tory flocks of summer and autumnal
$1?sz " idlers generally do and think at the

sea-side, cannot be better exempli-
fied than by reference to the clever
sketches Which ale found occupying entire
2%)} 4 pages of our illustrated periodicals and news-
; papers, during the season of marine migra-
, tion. But the habits and customs of the
annual shoal of Visitors to our watering-places may be
still more intimately comprehended through the me-
dium of the sprightly essays which generally accom-
pany those truly artistic delineations.

And is there really nothing better to do—no
. B

a?

OCEAN GARDENS ;

better regime to go through, than the daily repetition
of the monotonous programme of entertainment thus
playfully described and ridiculed?

Surely the visitor at the sea-side is in reach of
something more pleasant and profitable than such a
routine !

Do not the sublime aspects of the ocean—the
sound of its deep ceaseless voice—the eternal on-
coming of its waves, now in calm undulations, and
now in hurtling wildness against the base of those
cliffs whose white brows are wreathed with perennial
flowers—suggest other matters both for reflection
and amusement? Surely the very whispering of
the breeze that has travelled so far over that vast
moving surface of the fathomless deep, and which
seems muttering of its mysteries, while laden with
its sweet saline odour—~“ ce pmfum were de la mer,”
as Dumas has termed it—might lead us towards
other and higher trains of thought. Surely those
voices in the wind, mingling with the strange mur-
mur of the waves as they break in cadenced regu-
larity upon the shore, ought to arouse, in the feelings
of those who hear them for the first time, or after a
long absence, strange sensations of admiration, and
curiosity, and wonder. But no; to most of the

idle crowd those sights and sounds are invisible and
2

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

unheard. Their ears have not been tutored to
understand the word-music of Nature’s language,
nor to read the brightly written signs on its glorious
page.

To appreciate either Nature or Art, the mind
requires a special education, without which the eye
and the ear perceive but little of the miracles
passing before them. To the eye of the common
observer, the farthest field in a landscape is as
green as the nearest, in the scene outspread before
him; while to the practised glance of the accom-
plished artist, every yard of distance lends its new
tone of colour to the tints of the herbage, till,
through a thousand delicate gradations, the brightest
verdure at last mingles with the atmospheric hue,
and is eventually lost in the pervading azure. If,
then, the ordinary aspects of Nature may not be fully
interpreted by the untutored eye, how should her
more hidden mysteries be felt or understood, or even
guessed at? And, in fact, they are not, or the
visitor to the sea-side, looking over that wide tremu—
lous expanse of water that covers so many mysteries,
would feel, like the child taken for the first time
Within the walls of a theatre, an intense anxiety to
raise the dark green curtain which conceals the
scene of fairy wonders he is greedily longing to

’.
g.

OCEAN GARDENS ;

behold and enjoy. But the lounger at the, sea-Side
does not guess at the wonders concealed by the
dark green curtain of the ocean, and, consequently,
never dreams of wishing to peep beneath its waving
folds, to gratify a curiosity which, in fact, he does
not feel.

When, however, the language of Nature is
learnt, and her voice is no longer a confused mur-
mur to the ear, but becomes a brilliant series of
eloquent words, full of deep and exquisite meaning,
then the student will see as well as [war ; but till
then, in his intercourse with Nature, he is both deaf
and blind. “ Speak,” said- Socrates to a youth; “ say
something, that I may see you.” Socrates could
not see a silent man; and those who do not hear
and understand Nature’s language, cannot see her
wondrous beauty.

The mill-like repetition of worldly affairs brings
on a torpor of mind, in regard to all without the
narrow circle of selfish interests and easily pur-
chased pleasures, which it is very difficult to wake
up from. But I would warn the suffering victims
of that baneful, though secret, presence; for with the
consciousness of its existence, the first step will have
been taken towards its eradication.

I would remind all those thus suffering from inac-
4

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

tivity of mind, of the wholesome dread of that kind
of mental torpor entertained by the Gymnosophists;
who, as Apuleius tells us, when they met at meals,
required that each should be able to narrate the
particulars of some discovery, or original thought, or
good action, in default of which, it was deemed that
he did not exhibit a sufficient claim for being allowed
to consume a share of the Viands, and he was conse-
quently excluded from the repast. Were each of our
most idle sea-side loungers to impose upon himself
the necessity of a discovery, or an original thought,
before he considered himself entitled to dine, that
torpor, so deadening to the natural capacities of his
mind, would soon give way to a state of activity,
which, were it only from the brightness of the con-
trast, would be found highly agreeable, to say nothing
of its advantages, or of the elevating and refining
trains of thought to which it would necessarily give
rise.

I know of nothing more likely to stimulate the
mind to healthy exertion, and take it out of the
immediate track of commonplace interests and plea-
sures, the monotony of which is so oppressive, than
the study of natural history in some of its least ex-
plored fields; especially those which recent discovery

and investigation have rendered so attractive in
‘ 5

OCEAN GARDENS;

connection with the waters of the ocean. And yet,
how few there are who seek that charming mode of
dissipating the dreary monotony of social life, such
as it is made by the routine of fashion or habit! A
popular love of natural history, even in its best
known divisions, is, in fact, of quite recent growth.
Indeed, the very existence of such a science has been,
till recently, altogether ignored in our great national
seats of learning. The earnest investigators, who
have done so much to lay bare its wonders, were
either openly ridiculed, or treated with but small
respect—as useless dreamers upon very small and
insignificant matters. The very names of such true
labourers in the mine of science as our glorious old
naturalist Ray, or his follower Pulteney, or the
indefatigable Ellis, the first detector of the true
nature of Zoophytes, who measured pens" with the
giant Linnzeus, received no academic honour; and
those of their yet undiscouraged successors were
rarely heard, either in our universities or among
our general public, till the vast discoveries of geo-
logy and other allied branches of science, in our own
times, at last aroused attention to the importance of
their investigations.

A popular knowledge of that branch of natural

history which especially concerns our seas and
6

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

shores, is indeed of very recent date. The subject,
in fact, is but even now beginning to develope itself
beneath the pens of an enterprising band of marine
naturalists, with such leaders as Johnston, Harvey,
John Edward Gray, 'the indefatigable Gosse, and the
revered shade of the lamented Forbes at their head.

A truly pOpular knowledge even of the more
accessible regions of our woods and fields, is but
little more ancient; for, till Gilbert White had
made the story of such knowledge as attractive as
romance, in his “ Natural History of Selborne,” few
guessed what an arena of ever new interests and
discoveries it presented.

Through the fascinating interpretation of the
good Gilbert, many now understand the attraction of
those branches of natural history which he so curi-
ously investigated ; but few are willing to admit that
it is as easy to make the natural features of some
obscure fishing village, with no herbage on its bare
rocks, and no bush, no blade of grass, no bird to be
seen or heard, equally interesting; yet I can assure
them, that by lifting even the mere border of that
great green curtain of the ocean, or by awaiting its
unveilings, as therretiring tide bears back its folds9
a host of wonders will be revealed, sufficient to

stir the most torpid mind of the most inactive idler
7

OCEAN GARDENS, ETC.

to earnest and deeply inquiring contemplation, and
arouse him to their devout admiration, as among the
most exquisite miracles of that creative and sustaining
Power which is the source of their existence.

  
              

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CHAPTER II.

THE FLOOR OF THE OCEAN.

THE wonders of the ocean floor do not reveal them-
selves to vulgar eyes. As the oracle was inaudible
to sacrilegious listeners, and as none but poetic ears
heard the cadenced beating of the feet that danced
to unearthly music, near the fountain haunted by the
Muses of classic fable—so, none but the initiated can
see the myriad miracles that each receding tide reveals
on the ocean floor. The initiation, however, is not
mysterious; there are no dark rites to observe—no
Herculean labours to accomplish, as I have said,
before entering upon the noviciate, which at once
Opens a large area of unexpected pleasures, and an
ample field for admiration and investigation. A few
elementary works carefully studied, or even this
present little book attentively perused, would supply
the first helps towards seeing, at all events, a portion
of the “ wonders of the shore,” as the brilliant author
of “ Glaucus” has eloquently termed those revelations
of the retiring deep.

It is the seeing that is everything. But let none
‘ 9

OCEAN GARDENS ;

despair of acquiring that power. “ The name of
the Devonshire squire, Colonel George Montague”
(thus wrote the late Professor Edward Forbes),
“ might have become one of the greatest in the whole
range of British science, had his whole career been
devoted to marine physiology ;” and that mainly be-
cause, from a sincere devotion to a favourite pursuit
of his leisure, he acquired the art of seeing—an art
sought by so few, though open to all who will
earnestly seek it.

Each department of science requires a separate and
distinct kind of sight. The astute merchant deciphers
at a glance the precise state of the most intricate
accounts, in the midst of thousands of seemingly con-
flicting figures; but of the thousand interesting and
wonderful things connected with the existence of the
little beetle that crosses his path in his country
walk, he is incapable of seeing any single particle.
But the despised entomologist, whom he has con-
temptuously observed turning over the stones at the
road side, and peering curiously beneath them, could
tell him a tale of wonder, could preach him a sermon
upon that tiny type, such as would assuredly de-
velope many latent and unsuspected powers in his
mind, that would enable him to see wonders where
all had previously been blank, and teach him that

10

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

there are things well worthy of investigation beyond
the region of money-making, and the attractive but
narrow circle distinguished by the fascinating cha-
racters, £ 8. d.

Those who cannot .966 Nature, who cannot see
more than an unclean thing in the little creeping
beetle, are like one gazing at the carved record of an
obelisk, who perceives, in the hieroglyphic scarabaeus,
simply the sculptured figure of a beetle, and no
more—they are in a state of “ Egyptian darkness”
as regards one of the highest and most enchanting
fields of human research. But to those who have
acquired this rare though easy art, and learned to
see Nature, even to a moderate extent (for in that
art are an infinite number of degrees and grada-
tions), the aspect of the ocean floor must present an
appearance as beautiful and strange, and seemingly
as supernatural, as the wildest imagination could
depicture.

When poets would travel, in their inventive
flights, to other floating and revolving worlds than
ours, they describe rosy skies, instead of azure, and
trees like branching crystals, with jewel-like fruits
glittering on every stem. They present us with
pictures, in short, in which all the ordinary aspects

of our planet are reversed, or metamorphosed, in the
11

OCEAN GARDENS ;

region of their invention; yet in their wildest and
most fanciful pictures they do not surpass in strange-
ness the wonders of the world beneath the sea.

On the land, we have, as the ordinary aspect of
Nature, the green herbaceous mantle of the earth
below the eye, and the azure sky above; while a
spectator, standing beneath the water on the ocean
floor, would see these features more than reversed: he
would see above him a liquid atmosphere of green,
and below, an herbage of red or of purple hue,
exhibiting strange yet exquisite forms, such as no
terrestrial vegetation displays. Roseate shrubs of
jointed stone, and arborets of filmy glass, and crea-
tures full of active, energetic life, whose forms are
stranger still, both in structure and in appearance;
mere worms, whose colours are gorgeous as the tints
of the butterfly’s wing, or the peacock’s tail, or the
humming-bird’s breast.

What scenery is formed by those miniature forests
of Delesseria snguinea, so lovely in their tones of
soft rich crimson; and those fan-like shrubs, the
crisply graceful tufts of the brightly tinted and sin-
gularly formed Padimo 1960730727366 : the tree-like masses
of Oallz'thammon arbusc'ula, the delicate Ptilota
plumosa, and the purple-tinted Corallmes, forming

themselves into those
12

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

“ Arborets of jointed stone,”

so exquisitely described by a recent poet. And then
there are the high waving fronds of the grandly
graceful Porplzg/rco vulgcwis, the deep carmine of the
Iridma edulis, the nacreous tinges of the Chondrus
07°ispus, and the blood-red of the splendid Rhody-
mania lacinata, with its embroidered and lace-like
edges; these, with the gorgeous tufts of the rich
purple Bangico, and other objects which form the
elements of still life in a submarine landscape, surely
cannot be surpassed, either for magnificence of colour
or variety of structure.

But to these features must be added others more
extraordinary—forms that the elder naturalists ima-
gined to be links between the animal and vegetable
creation, but which are now known to have no affinity
whatever with plants, though they exhibit, under
many aspects, all the appearance of expanded flowers
of various hues, displaying the forms of the Carnation,
the Anemone, the Mesembryanthemum, and the blos-
soms of other beautiful flowers Whose names they
bear. These curiously beautiful Zoophytes, the won-
derful Actim’a’, exhibit every tone of colour, from
purple and scarlet, to green and white, and might be
taken in their picturesquely placed groups for rare

exotic flowers, planted among the rosy-tinted shrubs
13

OCEAN GARDENS 5

expressly to add the last touch of richness and effect
to the scenery of an ocean flower-show.

Yet they are not flowers, but animals—sea mon-
sters, whose seeming delicate petals are but their
thousand Briarean arms, disguised as the petals of a
flower, and expanded to seize the unconscious victim
as he passes near the beautiful form—fatal to him as
the crater of a volcano ; in which he is soon engulphed
by the closing tentacles of his unsuspected enemy.
And if he pass not near enough for that deadly floral
embrace, and escape the fatally beautiful petals, those
pretty crimson tubercles that dot so gracefully the
seeming stalk, beneath the seeming flower, can shoot
forth a thread, armed, like the fisher’s line, with a
barbed hook, which strikes and secures the distant
prey; and so the unwary Annelid or In usory is
captured and devoured. In this capacity the Syren
actinea has been compared to Pope’s spider, who

“Feels at each thread, and lives along the line.”

But then the living thread of the Actinia (or of the
Oirm'ped, which has a similar power) is a fact, while
the sensitive gossamer of the poet is a fiction.

But notwithstanding these ogre-like attributes,
the lovely Actim‘a long deceived even our naturalists

as to its true nature—and of course the poets—from
14

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

whom his flower-like disc and petaloid tentacles
completely concealed his grosser nature. Then, as
the tide recedes, he so meekly closes his beautiful
oubliette, with so much grace, and looking so much
like those shrinking flowers that close at eve, as
though they dared not to look on the black darkness
of the night, that it is no wonder poets were beguiled,
and that the romantic Southey sings of the Actimla
as of some lily of the deep that, on the retiring of the

ocean,
“ Sinks down within its purple stem to sleep.”

To add to the wonders of this strange landscape
come the creeping Nudibmmchs and Tectibmncks,
gliding over the gracefully Waving Alyce ; their ele-
gant forms decorated with their external breathing
apparatus, so delicate and fragile, that it looks like a
spectral star gliding above them, or like the pale
, Vskeleton of some delicate flower, so fine are its milk-
White filaments, arranged nearly always in a sym-
metrical and star-like form. And then there are the
singular and shadowy Medusw floating past, in the
form of parachutes, with low suspended cars, just as
though the science of ballooning had been carried to
perfection under the sea; and that they were made
of elastic glass, instead of silk, though richly flushed

With iridescent and varying tinges, sometimes of
15.

OCEAN GARDENS ;

metallic azure, and anon of emerald green; hues that
seem added by some delicate process which the glass-
blowers above the water have not yet discovered.
Some of these creatures are fragile as a soap-bubble,
to which their transparency and prismatic flashes of
colour give them a curious resemblance; and their
ephemeral existence, dependent upon the will of even
an angry ripple of the element in which they live, is
doubtless as brief.

The deep has even its butterflies, as well as the
land: for the fluttering of the fins of some small and
brightly coloured fish has been compared to the action
of the wings of moths—as have also the locomotive
membranes of some of the animals of the univalve
shells. Then there are minute phosphorescent animals,
which represent the fire-flies of the south, pouring
a living flood of light through the water as they
glide along—some emitting silvery, and others golden
flashes, like floating lamps that seem hurrying to light
up the darkness of the far ocean depths.

Even the worms are gorgeous and wonderful in
this subaqueous world. The Serpulaz, with their
radiating coronets of crimson branchzke ; the Pecti-
7zarz'a, with its golden comb, glittering in burnished
brightness; and the Nereis, with white and crimson

stripes—arc all wonderful as well as beautiful objects.
16

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

But the Haliflzea, or sea-goddess, as Lamarck has
named it, from the extraordinary beauty and the
gorgeous colours that radiate from the silky hairs
With Which it is clothed, surpasses them all.

These, and other wonders of still greater beauty,
' Will reward the persevering student Who learns to see
them ; but then he must learn. Even the intellectual
giant, Shakspeare, could not see clearly many of the
minuter things of Nature. In his line upon the
slow-worm, for instance, vulgarly called the blind-
Worm, which he describes as

“The eyeless, venomed worm,”

are concentrated two mistakes: in the first place, the
minute eyes of this little creature are brilliant in the
extreme, and not very difficult to discover, to the
naturalist Who has learnt to observe Nature; and, in
the second place, it has no venom, its tiny bite being
perfectly harmless. In another place he speaks of

“The blind-worm’s sting.”

But it is useless to multiply examples of the phy-
siological errors of great men Who had not learned
to see Nature; or Milton’s errors in regard to the
leaf of the Banyan-tree, and many others, might be
readily Cited. ‘

17 C

OCEAN GARDENS ;

There are, as I have endeavoured to show, many
glorious things to be seen in the ocean, but we have
to learn to see them; and those who find they cannot
see with their own eyes, must do so through the more
gifted sense of others. To many—how many, un-
guided by an able cicerone——the fields round Selborne
would appear common and uninteresting enough; but
guided by a Gilbert White, whose searching eye knew
where to seek the hidden forms of plants, whose
car at once distinguished and classified the song of
birds, and even the buzz of insects—guided by
him, things assume a far different aspect; like another
Prospero, he waves his wand, and every object begins
to brighten, and a thousand new and beautiful fea-
tures develope themselves under the magic of his
descriptions; crowds of marvels springing up around,
as from enchanted ground. In like manner, guided
by the fascinating science of a Johnston or a Harvey,
or the persuasive industry of a Gosse, or the elo-
quently glowing descriptions of a Kingsley, students,
who have not the energy or leisure to work for them-
selves, will find the dark ocean glow with an unex-
pected light; and the charmed explorer will long for
the power to renew the impressions of his sea-side
rambles after his return to his inland home, perhaps
in the heart of a densely populated city. Even this

18

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

he may now do through the medium of the marine
Aquarium, within the narrow boundaries of which he
may, with a little care and experience, establish in
healthy existence some of the most beautiful of the
animal and vegetable forms that people the caves and
depths of the ocean, making its watery world a
region of wonders.

”~41?”

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19

CHAPTER III.

THE AQUARIUM.

. '_ HE successful treatment of aquatic plants
' and animals, in the confined space of a glass
_ _ Aquarium, depends entirely upon the dis-
covery that there exists in Nature a self-adjusting
balance between the supply of oxygen created in
water with the quantity consumed by aquatic animals.
Without the knowledge of these facts, and the prin-
ciples by which they are regulated, it would have
been impossible to establish such a marine Aquarium
as that we may now any day examine in the Regent’s
Park; where, in a few glass tanks of very moderate
size, we may see examples of some of the most curious
forms of animal and vegetable life peculiar to the
depths of the ocean—forms so singular, that their
first exhibition created a sense of wonder little less
intense than that which must have been caused,
long years ago, by the first public display of the
mountain form of the elephant to the people of cold
northern countries; and much more so than the recent

introduction of the giraffe or hippopotamus, although,
20

 

OCEAN GARDENS, ETC.

till the beginning of the present century, they had
never been seen in Europe since the days of the
Romans.

Those principles, the knowledge of which was
requisite to enable us thus to view the wonders of
the ocean in their living state in an Aquarium, were
not mastered at once, or by one man, or in one
generation. The nature of certain relations between
animal and vegetable life, upon which they are
founded, was first advanced by Priestley, towards
the close of the last century, who proved that plants
give forth the oxygen necessary to animal life. The
learned Ingenhauss, a native of Breda, but who prin-
cipally resided in England, defined this principle still
mere clearly, in a work the title of which pretty fully
explains the entire nature of his discovery. It was
published in French, at Leyden, in 1778, and in
London, in English, in 1779. The French edition
is before me, the title of which may be thus trans-
lated, “ Experiments upon Plants, which prove their
important influence in the purification of the atmo-
spheric air when they are exposed to the rays of the
sun, and the contrary results which ensue when they
are placed in the shade, or during the night.” The
action of the sun’s rays in disengaging the oxygen

generated in plants is thus clearly announced, and
' 21

OCEAN GARDENS ;

the knowledge of this principle is one of those which
have mainly conduced, as I have said, to the successful
establishment of Aquaria.

In the course of his essay Ingenhauss states, still
more directly, that plants “immersed in water,” when
exposed to the action of light, emit an air which he
announces as oxygen gas; and this idea is the key-
stone of the Aquarium.

But, although the discovery of Ingenhauss at
once rendered the thing practicable, Aquaria did
not then come into fashion. The science of natural
history was not at that time sufficiently advanced;
for the specimens, even in public museums, were
merely heterogeneous collections, aSsembled without
the slightest regard to classification, or any other
useful purpose. A stuffed cat with nine legs, stood,
perhaps, next to a bottled snake, followed by the
skin of a crocodile, to be succeeded in turn by a very
moth-eaten specimen of a King Charles spaniel, “ sup-
posed, upon good authority, to have belonged to Nell
Gwynne.” A few scores of such objects, with the
addition of an ostrich egg and a few sea-shells,
without any attempt at name or description, formed,
with a few striking exceptions, a very respectable
museum in those times; and we may therefore easily

conceive that (in so far as experiments illustrative of
22

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

natural science were concerned) the suggestions of
Ingenhauss remained tolerably dormant.

It was not till the year 1833 that Professor
Daubeny communicated, to the British Association at
Cambridge, a paper concerning some new researches
prosecuted in the same direction; and not till 1837
that Mr. Ward became the first to apply the prin-
ciple to any purpose analogous to that of the Aqua-
rium. In that year he made a report to the British
Association, on the hermetically closed glass cases in
which he had succeeded in growing many classes of
plants, and keeping them in a healthy state without
any fresh supply of air. He stated, at the same time,
his belief that certain classes of animals would live
and thrive under similar circumstances. This was
the first direct hint towards the formation of a closed
Vivarium, whether atmospheric or aquatic.

In 1842, Dr. Johnston satisfactorily proved the
true vegetable nature of Oorallines, by observing
their. growth in a vessel containing sea-water ; and
thus was established the first true Aquarium. With
the experimental tuft of C’orallme was a small frond
of a green Ulva, and numerous Rissoae, etc., and
several Annelids afterwards appeared, having been,
no doubt, attached to the branches of the Coralline,
or the fronds of the Ulva. At the end of four weeks

23

OCEAN GARDENS ;

the water was still pure, the Molluscs and other
animals alive, and the Confervae grown; the Coral-
line itself having thrown out several additional articu-
lations. After eight weeks, the water still remained
sweet. But had any animal, of even the lowest
order, been so confined, without the accompanying
presence of vegetables giving off oxygen, all of that
vital gas contained in so small a quantity of water
would have been quickly exhausted, and the water
would have become corrupt, ammoniacal, and poison-
ous to the life of any living thing. But the author
of this experiment had not in View the testing of the
possibility of preserving the forms of ocean life in a
healthy state in confinement; his business had been
to settle an important point connected with the
classification of the Corallines ; and having success-
fully decided that question, the embryo Aquarium
was abandoned.

In 1849 Mr. Ward stated, at a meeting of the
British Association at Oxford, that he had succeeded,
not only in growing sea-weeds in sea-water, but in
sea-water artificially made. On the 4th of June,
1850, Mr. R. VVarrington communicated to the
Chemical Society a series of observations on the
adjustment of certain relations between the animal

and vegetable kingdoms, still more important to our
24.

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

present purpose. Two small gold-fish were placed
in a glass receiver, a small plant of Valisneréa
spiralis being planted at the same time in some
earth, beneath a layer of sand in the same vessel.
All went on well by this arrangement, without
any necessity for changing the water; the oxygen
given off by the plant proving itself sufficient for
the supply of its animal co-tenants, and the water
therefore remaining clean and pure, until some de-
caying leaves of the Valisneria caused turbidity, and
confervoid growth began to accumulate on the sides
of the vessel. To remedy this evil, Mr. Warring-
ton brought to bear the results of previous obser-
vations on water in natural ponds under analogous
circumstances; and, guided by these observations and
their results, he placed a few common pond-snails in
the vessel containing his gold-fish and plant of Valis-
neria. ' ‘

The new inmates, immediately upon their intro-
duction, began to feed greedjly upon the decaying
vegetable matter, and all was quickly restored to
a healthy state. They proved, indeed, of still further
advantage, for the masses of eggs which they de-
posited evidently presented a kind of food natural
to the fishes, which . was eagerly devoured by them,

so that the snails became not only the scavengers
25

OCEAN GARDENS ;

but also the feeders of the little colony. And so this
first of true Aquaria prospered; the animals and
plants proving of mutual value and support to each
other. The snails disposed of the decaying leaves,
which would have tainted the water and rendered
it unfit for the healthy existence of the plant, and
the plant in turn gave forth, under the rays of sun-
light, the supply of oxygen necessary to both fish and
snails.

In January, 1852, Mr. VVarrington commenced a
series of similar experiments with sea-water; which
were, at first, not so satisfactory, but in the end
proved as entirely successful. In the course of his
experiments, he found the red and brown Algae, or
sea-weed, less proper for the formation of oxygen
than the green. Of the latter class he procured spe-
cimens of Enteromorplm compressa and Ulva latic-
sima, which he chiselled from the rocks about Broad-
stairs, along with the pieces of chalk or flint to
which they were attached; and, when he placed them
in his own marine Aquarium, he put in along with
them, to represent the pond-snails in the fresh-
water tank, some of the common sea-snail, better
known as the Periwinkle (I/ittorma littorea). These
proved, it appears, insufficient for the destruction of

the mucous and gelatinous matter that arose from
26

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

the rapid decay of nearly all the red sea-weeds, which,
however, I have no doubt may yet be cultivated with
equal success with the green; this has, indeed, been
subsequently proved by their successful culture by
Mr. Alford Lloyd. Under the then existing difficulty,
however, it was found necessary to aerate the water
by other means, many processes being equally avail-
able; such as injecting fresh Water from a syringe,
or establishing a drip, of some height, from a vessel
containing a supply of entirely fresh water. Mr.
Warrington also discovered, in the course of these
experiments, the necessity that the light should
pass directly through the surface of the water to
the plants, as in natural ponds and seas—a very im-
portant step in the successful management of Aquaria ;
and he therefore had a slab of slate adjusted to the
side of his tank which stood next to the light, to pre-
vent the sun-rays from penetrating to the plants in a
lateral direction.

These successful experiments, both in fresh-water
and marine Aquaria, assign to Mr. Warrington,
beyond dispute, the credit of being the practical
originator, or inventor, if the term may be so used,
of these charming additions to our conservatories,
corridors, and even living-rooms, to which they are

certainly a much more attractive and instructive
27

OCEAN GARDENS ;

addition than the old globe of blank water, with its
pair of gold-fish swimming round and round in
ceaseless gyrations, tiresome to behold, in the vain
hope of escaping from their glaring and incon-
venient prison ; in which they would inevitably have
perished very shortly but for the daily change of
water, which, previous to onr knowledge of air-
emitting plants and their use, was absolutely neces-
sary.

But another experimentalist was now in the
field. Mr. Gosse, whose charming works upon
Aquaria, and other subjects connected with natural
science, have perhaps made his name more widely
known than that of his predecessor, Mr. \Varrington,
commenced a series of experiments on the subject
of the marine Aquarium, about the same time as the
last-named gentleman, in the beginning of January,
1852. His attempts were crowned with such com-
plete success, that he was induced to put himself
in communication with Mr. David Mitchell, the
enterprising Secretary of the Zoological Society, the
result of which was the removal of the collection
of Annelids and ZOOpkg/L‘es which Mr. Gosse had
formed, to the gardens of the Society in the Re-
gent’s Park, where it formed the nucleus from

which has grown the magnificent series of Aquaria
28

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

in the building recently constructed for their recep-
tion. These marine Aquaria at once became a
subject of public as well as private interest, and the
Aquarium house was so crowded daily with its curious
visitors, that it became difficult to get a glimpse of
'the wonders of the “ ocean floor,” and its zoophytic
denizens, which were so successfully exhibited there ;
principally through the skilful aid and untiring in-
dustry of Mr. Gosse, through whose hands above five
thousand specimens passed at the time, collected at
the request of the Zoological Society.

In his interesting record of his early essays,
Mr. Gosse gives us many valuable particulars con-
cerning his successive experiments, and the various
disappointments to which he was at first subjected;
many of them from causes now too well understood
to require repetition. His principal difficulty arose
from over-crowding, although his tank did not appear,
as he states, too much filled. Another disappoint-
ment was caused by putting in animals before the
smell of the putty, with which the glass sides were
fixed, had sufficiently gone off.

Mr. Gosse’s tank was made with a slate bottom,
and birch pillars, in which were grooves to receive
the glass; and its dimensions were, two feet long by

one foot six wide, the depth not being mentioned.
29

OCEAN GARDENS ;

Taking these dimensions into consideration, it
will be easy to conceive, when the following list of
specimens which Mr. Gosse introduced into his
Aquarium is examined, that his population was too
dense for the extent of his province, although the
space might not have appeared too much filled for
picturesque effect. Of vegetable specimens, he in-
troduced at once the following :—

1. A tuft of Eweellaria fasti- 7. Several masses of Corallz'na
giata. qflt‘cinalis.

2. Two of Rhodymeniw palmata. 8. One Grg'flitlzsia setacea.

3. One of Dictyoz‘a dicizoto-ma. 9. One Delesseria alata.

4:. A small Facets serratu-s. 10. One Plocamium coccineum.

5. One Laminm'ia digitam. 11. One Plzylopizom Tubens.

6. Two tufts of Padinapavonia. 12. One Zostera marina.

 

In a few days the water in which these specimens
were placed became clear as pale green crystal, the
pale green tinge being too slight to obscure the colour
of any object seen through its medium.

From these weeds alone, before any supply of
Z00phytes or Molluscs were intentionally added, a
whole host of minute animal life swarmed forth;
some, doubtless, issuing from eggs newly hatched;
others from the shelter of the matted ramifications
of some of the sea-weeds, in which they had been

taken, as in a net. Among these swarming crea-
3O

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

tures were Annelids of the genus Syllis, Rissom, and
other minute shell-fish, but principally Isopodous
and Entomostmcous Crustacean, many of them being
so minute as not to be perceived without the use of a
powerful lens.

Of the animals next placed in this tank, of only
two feet by one foot six inches, the following is the

topogcboxgpgomr—I

list given :—
FISH.
1. Fifteen, Spined Stickleback . . Gasterosteus spinacln'a.
2. Seven, Grey Mullet (young) . . Mugil capito.
3. One, Black Goby . . . . . . Gobious Myer.
4. One, Corkwing. . . . . Orem'labrus cornubz'cus.
5. One, Five- bearded Rockling . . Motella 5-02'7'mta.
6. One, Great Pipe- fish (young) . . Syngnatkus wow.
7. One, Worm Pipe . . . . . . Syngnatkus lumbrg'fm'mis.
SHELLS, MOLLUSCS, ETC.

. Two, Ashy Top . . . . . . . Troclms cinemm'us.

. One, Navel Top . . . . . . Trookus mnbih'catus.
Three, Common Periwinkle . . . Littom'na littorea.
Three, Yellow Periwinkle . . . Littorina Zittomlz's.

. One, Purple . . . . . . . . Purpum lapz'llus.

. One, Scrobicularia.

One, Anomia.
Two, Common Cockle . . . . Cardium edule.
. Two, Ascidia.
CRUSTACEA, ETC.
1. Two, Hermit Crab . . ' . . . . Pagurus Bernhardus.
2. One, ditto . . . . . . Pagums Prideauxiz’.

31

came-co

03.5”!“

Oil-P

OCEAN GARDENS ;

. Four, Sand Shrimp

One Prawn .

. Three, Crown \Vorm
. Three, \Vhite-line Worm

ZOOPHYTES.
Two, Thick-horned Anemone
Three, Weymouth Anemone
. Two, Parasitic Anemone
. Six, Plumose Anemone

. Five, Daisy Anemone

Cragnon vulgar-2’s.
Palwmon serratus.
Scrpula triguetm.
Nereis bilineata.

Actinia crassicorm's.
Actinia clamm.
Actinia pm'asitica.
Actim'a, dianflms.
Actinia bellis.

There were thus above seventy specimens, animal

and vegetable, already in the tank, Without counting

the swarms of smaller creatures, some the young of
large species, daily increasing in size; yet our bold
experimentalist, anxious, like another Napoleon, to

conquer his “ Russia” at one grand invasion, still

poured in fresh specimens.

carol-l

@fisvcwe

FISH.

One, JEquorial Pipe-fish

These consisted of :—

Syngnaflms (eguoreus.

MOLLUSCS, CRUSTACEANS, ETC.

One, Rough Doris

TWO, Magus Top .

. One, Nerit .
. One, Squin
. One, Pholas

One, Pisa

One, Cleanser Crab .

One, Ebalia

Doris pilosa.
T/roclms mayus.
JVat'ica Alde/ri.
Pecten opercularz's.
Pkolas [Jam-cc.

Pisa tetraodon.
Portmms (Zepumz‘or.
Ebalia Pemzantii.

PLATE XI.

 

.......uun .1 AnLv in V kiUd NOISHCI V

 

'
’ Hi, ‘ ‘
111‘ “
+,?,.!i!iéfi5539' "w

 

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

9. One, Hermit (small) . . . . . Paguru-s.
10. Three, Lobster Prawn . . . . . Athanas nilescens.

STAR-FISH, ETC.

1. One, Brittle Star . . . . . . Opkiocoma msula.

2. One, Eyed Cribella . . . . . . Or-ibella oculata.

3. Two, Scarlet Sun-Star . . . . . Solaster papposa.

4:. One Bird’s-foot Star . . . . . Palmipes membranaccus.
5. Three, Gibbons Starlet . . . . Asterina gibbosa.

6. One,_;_Purple-tipped Urchin . . . Echinus miliaris.

7. Seven, Scarlet Madrepore . . . Balanopkz'llia reg/id.

8. Three, Cloak Anemone. . . . . Admnsia palliam.

These additions brought the collection up to above
a hundred specimens, and no doubt the tank made
a glorious show; but Mr. Gosse, though the Napo-
leon of his specialty, was forced to acknowledge that
there was an “impossible.” Although his collection
was superb, and his interesting tank did not look
over-crowded, yet he soon discovered that a forbidden
limit had been passed, and that the creatures of the
ocean that have yards—fathoms—of their native ele-
ment to their own separate share, cannot accommodate
themselves to the allotment system, in the proportion
of a square inch to each individual.

To remedy this state of things, the evil effects of
Which soon became apparent, artificial aeration was

resorted to, by means of another vessel, which kept up
33 D

OCEAN GARDENS ;

a continuous supply of dripping fresh water. But
even this assistance did not enable the crowded
colony to exist more than ten days. In the first
place, there were many predatory species, which
destroyed their associates; these kinds must, there-
fore, be excluded from an Aquarium, or kept in a
separate tank. But, after all, the impossibility of
providing a sufficient supply of oxygen was evi-
dently the great and principal cause of failure.
The Univalves and smaller Crustacea disappeared
first, a disagreeable smell giving intimation that
decay was going on; the creatures that had
perished having, many of them, died in concealment,
under the stones, weeds, etc., at the bottom of the
Aquarium. The first signs of unpleasant efHuvia
rising from the tank must, therefore, be carefully
attended to ; and, in such cases, the Aquarium ought
to be immediately searched for the cause; which,
when discovered, should be carefully removed.

Mr. Gosse having taken out the whole of the
specimens, dead and alive, and carefully cleansed the
tank, a much smaller number was put in, which,
being well selected, and having sufficient space, throve
abundantly well; and the ingenious experimentalist
was at last amply rewarded for all his persevering

exertions. This result benefited others as well as
31'

 

PLATE. XII.

 

A DESIGN FOR AN AQUARIUM MOUNTED IN HANDSOMN IU'S’I‘ICJVORK.

 

 

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

himself, for a general taste suddenly arose for this
kind of pursuit, arising mainly from the various works
which soon appeared on the subject; and, to gratify
the new taste, a host of dealers in Aquaria also sprung
up, who are all of them driving a brisk and profitable
trade.

The first experiments of Mr. Gosse sufficiently point
out the kind of cautions to be observed in the formation
of a marine Aquarium. The vessel itself may be
either quite plain in its framework, as shown in Plate
XL, or made more or less ornamental, to assimilate,
if necessary, with surrounding objects or furniture.
The rustic style of frame designed in Plate XII. has
been found to accord well with the general character
of the Aquarium itself, and it produces an agreeable
contrast with the usual forms of the furniture of our
ordinary sitting-rooms.

Those made by the dealers are generally formed
with slate floors and backs, and zinc columns and
mountings ; the smallest and most simple, about fifteen
inches long by ten inches broad, costing from a guinea
to twenty-five shillings, and those of the proportion of
two feet by one f00t six, costing from two pounds
ten to three pounds. A small syphon will be found
useful, in order to remove a portion of the water, if

required, without disturbance; and also a syringe, in
35

OCEAN GARDENS;

order to aerate the water when necessary, if a second
reservoir of fresh water, in a suitable position, should
not be convenient. A miniature landing-net is also
useful for the removal of decaying matter, or occa.
sionally the living specimens, when any change may be
required.

A layer of sand and pebbles, about three inches
deep, placed upon the slate floo1in g, is the first step
towards arranging the inte1io1 of the tank. Upon
this beginning, removing portions of the sand and
stones, where required in places, to procure a firm
basis, the rockwork may be built; which should be
picturesque and fanciful in character, as partially sug-
gested in the two Plates, leaving miniature archways
and caves for the shelter of such creatures as shun the
light, either constantly or occasionally. Such a dispo-
sition of the rock imparts, at the same time, many
pleasing effects to the pictorial composition. These
matters are not, however, much attended to by dealers,
whose arrangements of the Aquaria they offer for sale
are generally tasteless enough. But that is perhaps
all the better, as it entails upon the amateur the neces-
sity of providing his own taste, instead of purchasing
it, which is at all times both a useful and pleasant
effort of mind, and which, moreover, leaves, after each

period of exertion, a permanent trace of an increased
36

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

refinement, which inevitably influences the whole
character.

In the distribution of the rocks, I would always
allow at least one point to project above the water,
in order to afford the opportunity to those animals
whose instincts lead them to seek occasional exposure
to the air the means of gratifying it by that contriv-
ance. I have thought, indeed, of constructing a kind
of double Aquarium, and perfecting an arrangement
by means of which a large portion of water should flow
gradually from one tank to the other at fixed periods,
in imitation of the ebb and flow of the tide. Many
interesting phenomena would be exhibited in this
manner, such as the closing of the Actimae as the
water receded, and their expansion as it covered them
on its return ; accompanied by a host of other effects
full of interest and instruction. This alternation, too,
might be found highly advantageous to the health
and development of the animals whose natural habitat
lies between high and low water-mark, and whose
constitution is therefore framed to require entire or
partial exposure to the air at certain intervals of time.
I also prefer, as preserving a similar set of analogies,
a sloping bottom, similar to that of the coast. For
instance, if the slate back of the Aquarium be placed
next the light, which is its proper position, as the light

37

OCEAN GARDENS ;

ought to penetrate the water entirely through its upper
or horizontal surface, then I would fill the side next
the slate back nearly to the top with pieces of rock,
gradually reducing their height, till, at the other side,
they should hardly rise above the floor of sand and
pebbles, leaving, at last, a flat portion of the pebbly
or sandy bottom quite level.

When this form of rockwork is decided upon, the
Aquarium should be of rather wider proportions than
usual, in order to allow. of the slope being pretty
gradual. Supposing the tank to fill entirely the recess
of a spare Window, which is a position in which it
looks exceedingly well, a solid slate back may be
found to darken the vessel or the room too much ; in
such a case, a glass back must be preferred, which
can be shaded from the direct influence of the light
by a blue or green shade of calico neatly fitted to
the frame; and it must be borne in mind, as essen-
tial, that the Aquarium must be so placed as to
receive the direct rays of light during some part of
the day, being slightly screened when the sun is
too powerful; as, should the water become tepid,
it would be fatal to many of the inhabitants of the
miniature sea.

With due observance of these precautions, the

amateur may hope to frame and establish an Aqua-
38

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

rium in a suitable form, and in a suitable position for
the reception of its inmates ; an account of which, and
of the manner of their introduction Will form the sub-
ject of the ensuing chapters.

 

39

CHAPTER IV.

THE VEGETATION OF THE MARINE AQUARIUM.

 
  
  
  

zens can luxuriate in its shades, so

' the submarine shrubbery of the
Aquarium must be perfected before
the aquatic animals can be introduced.
For it has been shown, in tracing the his-
. tory of the experiments which resulted in
o the establishment of ”the principles that regu-
late the formation of Aquaria, that it is by
plants only that a supply of oxygen can be kept
up, sufficient for the health and existence of all
forms of animal life beneath the water.* It is
necessary, also, that the rays of sunlight should fall
upon the foliage directly through the surface of the
water; and when an Aquarium, with its plants, is
placed in a position to receive the light in this
manner, their fronds may be observed giving forth

3* Analogous principles are at work in our fields and forests,
but we have now only to do with the submarine production of

oxygen.
40

OCEAN GARDENS, ETC.

the gas in small silvery bubbles and coruscations,
which have a brilliant and gem-like appearance.

Some marine plants appear to succeed much
better than others, but I believe that happens only
from their treatment being imperfectly understood;
and I believe not only that all the exquisitely
beautiful marine Algfi of our own shores may be
successfully grown, but also that the more splendid
varieties of the tropical seas may be made to thrive
in properly heated Aquaria, and thus form one of
the most attractive features of our hothouses—one
that has not yetbeen dreamed of.

In ordinary Aquaria, such as I am now treat-
ing of, I shall name first those species of sea-weed
recommended by Mr. Gosse and others as most
easily cultivated, but I shall also point out many
other species, which I feel convinced may be suc-
cessfully grown under proper management; and
they certainly deserve every effort that can be made
to establish them in Aquaria, as they are among
the most beautiful of their tribe.”

Most of the plants named may be purchased of
dealers, but if collected by the amateur himself, care
must be taken to detach a portion of the substance
to which they are growing, and they must be very

carefully packed in damp refuse sea-weed, and kept
41

OCEAN GARDENS ;

out of their native element as short a time as pos-
sible.

The plants in most flourishing condition in the
marine tanks of the Zoological Gardens, were at
first those of the Chlorospermatous order, but
others have since succeeded nearly as well. Plants
. of Ulva and Conferva have always done very well;
but the most successful growth has been that of a
plant of the genus Bryopsis, which entirely envelop-
ing a large stone in its mossy and almost feather-
like foliage, produces a very beautiful appearance.
Those unlearned in scientific names will be glad,
perhaps, to learn that beautiful Algae of this last-
named genus derive their title from two Greek words,
Bryon (,Bpuov), a moss, and Opsis (031m), a resem-
blance, from their likeness to some of the most deli-
cate and feather-like mosses of our woods. The
delineation of Bryopsis plumosa in Plate II., on the
extreme left near the lower part of the Plate, will
convey some idea of these elegant sea-weeds.

Chondms crispus is a beautiful plant, and well
suited to the Aquarium. It will often be found
under ledges of rock, completely concealed by a
pendent veil of Fucus, commonly known as the
olive weed; and, on lifting the tangled mass of its

rank growth, many beautiful and unexpected plants
42

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

are frequently found, but none strike the explorer
more than the Chandrus. Its nacreous tints, like
those of a pearl shell, varying wonderfully according
to situation, being very remarkable. It is the
Carrageen Moss of the herb market. This plant
forms the principal object 1n the lower part of Plate
IV., to the right.

Laurencz'a pinnatifolia is a pretty branching
plant, also varying in hue according to the aspect
in which it grows. In the shade, it is purple; but
When receiving the full influence of the sun’s rays,
it assumes a light yellow tone; just as the 121/00-
podz'um, known as Fortune’s Moss, is purple when
grown in the darkest part of a room, but becomes of
an ordinary green tone when placed for some time
near the light. The Laurencia is shown at the upper
part of Plate V., coloured pale violet.

The splendid plant Rhodymema palmata, with
its finely coloured, semi-transparent fronds, is also
recommended. It is the Dulse or Dellis, eaten by
the inhabitants of our northern coasts as a delicacy.
Another species, B. lacinata, forms the specimen to
the left of Plate V. Its light crimson fronds, which
are semi-transparent, produce a very pleasing effect.
Mr. Gosse tells us that the Rhodymem’a palm‘ata is

not suited to an Aquarium, because it appears to
4:3

OCEAN GARDENS;

require the motion of the sea, and soon begins to
decay in still water. If that be the case, let us
attempt to provide a remedy, for this beautiful Algw
is one of the most beautiful among all its lovely
congeners. When a plant of the gigantic lily of
the Amazon river was first introduced, it refused
to flower in the tank provided for its northern
home, at the Duke of Devonshire’s residence at
Chatsworth. But Sir Joseph Paxton, who then
directed the floricultural operations of that magni-
ficent abode, was not discouraged; and seeking to
impart to the still water of the reservoir something
of the motion of a deep and majestic river, he con-
trived that a small but continuous stream of supply
should, as it entered, turn a small paddle-wheel, the
action of which imparted a gentle, undulating mo-
tion to the water- of the whole tank. The device
was triumphant, and the glorious Victoria regéa,
formed and expanded its giant flowers in the elegant
house which its curator had constructed for it, the
graceful plan of which eventually suggested the
creation of the “ Crystal Palace.” Let us not
despair, therefore, of cultivating successfully the
beautiful Rhodymem’a palmata in our Aquaria.
The construction of a suitable apparatus for impart-

ing motion to the too still waters will form a plea-
4:4

PLATE 1.

 

l. Delcssm'iu sanguinon. 2. Puncmrin lszolia. 3. Chul‘duriu flagellifurmis.

4. Vuucherin Submarinn. 5. lliMrnhrundtiu lubru.

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

sant passetemps for some of our fair admirers of the
pursuits of the Aquarium; and their success would
be a signal triumph, But at present the beautiful
red weeds, in general, are difficult of cultivation,
and when they begin to exhibit spots of orange——-a
vegetable plague-spot not to be mistaken—it is a
symptom of decay which should at once cause their
removal from the Aquarium, before their decomposi-
tion leads to further mischief.

The common Coralline, Oomllz'am aficmalis, of
which a small spray is represented in the extreme
lower part of Plate V., near the centre, is the
“arboret of jointed stone,” alluded to by the poet,
and is well suited to Aquaria, thriving with little
trouble. The smaller and slenderer kind is also
suitable; but care must be taken, in collecting,
not to choose the detached white fragments, which
are washed up with every tide, for they are only
the skeletons of the plant. It is the rosy-tinted
specimens, verging to violet and purple, and still
attached to pieces of rock, that are alone in a living
state, and fit to remove to the Aquarium.

The Oladopkorw are also stated to be very suit-
able, 0. rupestm's being a very useful plant for the
purpose. It is of a bluish green, that harmonizes

well with the tone of the sea-water, and fills up
4.5

OCEAN GARDENS ;

little chasms in the artificial rocks with very good
effect, especially in contrast with the reddish purple
tufts of Poly/siphonia arceolata, which do well in an
Aquarium, and are a great aid to the foliage of the
little marine landscape. The elegant, fan-formed,
and brightly radiated Padina pavom’a is likewise
mentioned, and should at all events he tried, as the
tufts of that graceful marine plant form very singular
as well as beautiful objects in the tank.*

I would also recommend the trial of all the plants
delineated in the five Plates devoted to the sea-weeds
in this little book.

In Plate I., the first, occupying the upper part,
with leaf-like fronds of transparent crimson, is the
beautiful and not uncommon sea-weed, Delesseria
sanguinea. The delicate pale plant below, to the
right, is Punctam'a latifolia, thin as tissue paper, and
speckled over its pale buff surface with bright but
minute grains of black. To the left is a branch of
Chordaria fiagelléformis, the rich olive of which
contrasts well with the red kinds of Algae. In the
front, growing on a detached pebble, is the Lichen-
like Hildenbmndtia rubra, rich with tinges of deep
carmine, which might be made to form an exquisite

* Alist of the plants with which Mr. Gosse furnished his first
Aquarium is given in Chapter III.
46

 

l. llnnzin fusco-purpurm. 3. Bryop>is plunmsn. 5. Loalhcsia Berkley-i.
'2. Codium tnmcmosum. 4. Cullithumnion nrhusuuln. n. Laminnria phyllins.

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

touch of colour, if tastefully placed in the Aquarium ;
and to the extreme right is a small tuft of Vauckeria
. submarine».

In Plate 11., the principal object, near the top of
the Plate, is a bush of Callitkammon arbuscula,
which receives its specific name from the tree-like
aspect which it assumes more distinctly than any other
of the marine Algw. Behind it, to the right, are the
tall and graceful forms, with their crimped edges,
of the slender Laminarm phyllitis. Below, still
to the right, is a branch of Oodium tomentosum,
distinguished by its light, vivid green, and the
edging of delicate ciliae, which have the appearance
of a border of paler green, to every branchlet. Still
to the right, in the extreme foreground, is a broken
piece of rock, on which plants of the curious Lea-
thesia Berkleyi have grown, like convex kernels
of bronze. T o the left, are the red violet tufts of the
Bang/5a fusco-pwpurea, and behind them a branch
of Bryopsis plumosw.

1n Plate 111., the bright green feathery plant in
the extreme background is Ectocarjms siliculosus ;
and behind it, the violet-toned, antler-like fronds of
Nema‘leon multifida. The large, gracefully bending
frond of rich purple, with narrower and younger

fronds springing from the same root, is Porphym
47

OCEAN GARDENS ;

vulgaris, one of the commonest, but most splendid
of our sea-weeds, with which, in combination with
other plants of suitable contrast, the vegetation of
the Aquarium may be rendered truly splendid, if
it can be successfully cultivated; of which I have no
doubt, when its natural wants are sufficiently studied,
and ingeniously supplied. The finely marked plant
to the right, with its black maculations and richly
frilled edge, is Nitopkg/llum pmzctatum, one of our
most elegant species, in front of which is the curious
pale buff, tubular plant Asperococcus Tumeri. Near
the foot of the Nitaphg/llum is a little tuft of the deli-
cate Dumonfia filt’jbrmis ; and, to the extreme left, a
branch of the brown-fronded Rytipkwa pinastris,
which receives its specific name from the somewhat
Pine-like growth it frequently assumes. Immediately
beneath it, on the extreme right, is a little cluster of
Ckorclam'co divaricata ; and below, in the left fore-
ground, are a few pink fronds of the curious Alga,
Ok7°ysemema rosea ; while, in the foreground, to the
right, on a detached pebble, is a small mass of the pale
crimson Peyssonetia Dubyz'.

In Plate IV. the principal object is a fasciculus of
Taomla atomam’a, rising behind the point of rock at
the tOp of the Plate, behind which are two long fronds
of the spotted Asperococcus ; to the left is the horn-.

48

PLATE II I.

 

A. Porphyru vulgaris. 5. Chu‘symcniu row-.1. .5. Eczocurpus silicuh-sus.
'2. Dumontia filifnrmis‘ :7. IN; ~.>-mc:i.|1)ubyi, 9. Ncnnlcm mulzifidn
3. Asperococcu; Turnm'i. 7. Cimrd‘lria dimriculm 1‘". Staphyllum puuclzuum.

4. Rytiphlma pinnitris.

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

like Gigartma acicularis ; and in the front, to the left,
the crimson tufts of a prettyweed ( Ceramium strictum ),
which our engraver has made too like the Bang/6a
fusco-purpwea.

In Plate V. the violet-toned Laurencia pinnati—
foliw is grouped behind the solid, deep crimson fronds
of .073an edulis, which are often perfectly pear-
shaped, somewhat resembling pieces of crimson leather
neatly cut in that form; but the action of tides in
rough weather often tears the edges, and wears holes
through the texture of the plant, as shown in the prin-
cipal frond. To the left is the bright crimson Rhody-
men/75a lacinata—one of the most exquisitely beautiful
of our marine Algae. The fronds are as thin as the
finest conceivable tissue, and beautifully transparent,
which is shown wherever the lacinations of the edge
overlap each other, in which places the double thick-
ness of the texture doubles, at the same time, the in-
tensity of the colour, as indicated, in the representa-
tion. On the same level, to the right, is a small
group of the delicate green Ulva latissimw—«a plant
which has proved useful beyond all others in Aquaria,
as throwing off, under the action of the light, a much
greater profusion of silvery globules of oxygen than
any other species yet known. At the same level still,

on the extreme right, is a sprig of the delicately
49 E

OCEAN GARDENS ;

branched parasite, Polysphomla parasitica, growing
on a small mass of pale sulphur-coloured Melobesia
lichenoides, the Lichen-like Melobesia. To the ex-
treme left, under the beautiful Rhodymemla, is a small
branch of the olive-tinted Ectocarpus tomentosus,
looking much like a spray of wild Broom, and imme-
diately below it, a few purple branchlets of Gracilaria
confervoides ; while in the left foreground lies a peb-
ble, partly covered by a small plant of Zonariaparvula,
from beneath which straggles a little branch of the
common but pretty Coralline, the Corallina ofiicinalis ;
and, to the right, a globe of the curious Ooclium bursa,
of the French coast, which might easily be added to
our native species in the Aquarium.

Such are a few of our beautiful coast Algw, all of
which I would advise the admirers of the beauties of
the marine Aquarium to try; and if some refuse, in
the present state of our knowledge of their habits and
requirements, to make themselves happy in their
pretty “ crystal palace,” choosing rather to consider
it a “ prison of glass,” still a good number of them,
I am persuaded, may be coaxed into displaying their
beauties very genially within its transparent walls,
which admit the bright sun rays as freely as the
pale green liquid glass which forms their native

element.
' 50

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

Many have indeed been added, since the former
edition of this work, to those at first successfully
treated. The following being a list containing several
red species, all successfully cultivated at the present
time by Mr. Alford Lloyd :—

Entermorpka compressa. Delessem'a alata (even more
Entermorpha intestinalis. beautiful).
Oladopkom arcta. Gracilamia confervoicles.
Oladopkom rupestris. Gelidium corneum.
Iridcea edulz's. Chanel/ms crispus.
Delesseria sanguinea (one of the Pkg/llopkom rubens.

most beautiful red weeds). Ceramium rubrum.

 

The best time for making collections at the sea-
side is a day or two after the full moon, when the
tide recedes to its greatest extent, and parts of the
shore become exposed, where some of the finest
species grow, which cannot be conveniently ap-
proached at any other time. It must be borne in
mind, also, that few of the floating pieces will grow,
however fresh and seemingly washed off with their
root. Certain success is only to be secured by chisel-
ling off a portion of the substance on which the weed
is growing—thus transplanting it with its own soil, as
it were, about its roots, into the ocean garden of the
Aquarium. It may here be remarked that those

plants and animals found between high and low water-
51

OCEAN GARDENS, ETC.

mark, or the very next zone of depth, are the most
adapted for healthy preservation in the Aquarium;
such as belong to the deeper water being found almost
invariably unfitted for such a purpose.

 

52

CHAPTER V.

THE ZOOPHYTES.

  
   
  

,HE Aquarium having been furnished
' with its vegetation, and rendered as
picturesque as possible by the well-
: arranged juxtaposition of felicitously
.. """ l ‘ contrasting forms and colours, the water
.. must be allowed to settle for some days, until
_, it is as clear as pale green crystal, before the
{i animals are introduced to their new home.
‘Vhen the Alpine scenery of the submarine landscape
appears perfectly settled, and all its colours and forms
are seen With beautiful distinctness through the
clarified waters, then the still life is ready to be asso-
ciated With the more active organizations of animated
creatures. Before speaking of Molluscs, or Crustacea,
or of Fish, suitable to the Aquarium, let us first devote
all our attention 'to our Zoopkytes, those singular
creatures Whose strange instincts and anomalous forms
have been mainly instrumental in attracting the atten-

tion of many classes of the public to that curious in-
53

OCEAN GARDENS ;

terest in Aquaria, which is fast spreading into a mania,
threatening to absorb all others in its vortex, like
Infusorim drawn within the fatal tentacles of the
Actim’a.

First, of these Actiniw, or Sea-Anemones. These
flower-shaped animals were once thought to form an
anomalous link between the animal and vegetable
world. Many curious speculations, based upon that
idea, were put forth, among which the gradations sup-
posed to exist between man and the inferior animals,
and between quadrupeds and. fishes, were asserted in
further illustration of the former theory. But the
deceptiveness of superficial knowledge, based upon
imperfect observations, was never more strikingly
exemplified than in those speculations. It was thought
that because these creatures were found attached to
rocks, they necessarily drew their nourishment prin-
cipally through the medium of roots, as all true plants
do; more accurate observation, however, has shown
that they are not permanently fixed to the rocks, and
that they have the power of moving from one place to
another, and attaching themselves anew, whenever a
sufficiently disturbing ’cause renders such removal
desirable. Again, oysters and mussels remain fixed to
rocks without being considered allied to plants on that

account; and even some fish have the power of at-
64

 

l’LA'I‘l-z VI I.

 

1‘ Actinia cluvmu. IS. l‘l'nnululu phmlulmx'm. :3. A gmup n! An 1'”le

4, A Shell oft)": Cuummn Wholk, nu which are Um wt rum-“KM “IIIIUIHM

 

 

 

 

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

taching themselves to similar substances by means of
curiously formed ventral fins, peculiarly fitted for the
purpose. The pretty little two-spotted sucker, Lapi-
dogaster bimaculatus, possesses this faculty.

But the flower-like form into which the arms, or
food-seizers, of the Actimlw are spread, radiating from
a centre, like the petals of a flower, was the main
reason for supposing a close analogy between these
strange creatures and plants—a fancy now utterly
abandoned, as it is quite evident that they are fur-
nished with a mouth and stomach, like all true
animals, and with a set of arms called tentacles, for
seizing their prey; and perhaps, at the same time,
through the medium of delicate ciliae with which the
tentacles are connected, with a breathing apparatus,
through which a current of water is taken in, and
discharged after its oxygen has been abstracted.

The discovery of the true nature of these singular
creatures, however, still leaves their flower-like appear-
ance very remarkable, and to a superficial observer
is as deceptive as ever; and few (not professed natu-
ralists), meeting with these singular Zoopkytes for the
first time, would hesitate to pronounce them a kind of
sea-plant.

Let us turn, for example, to Plate VIII, and note

the appearance of the two varieties of Actmia dicmthus
55

OCEAN GARDENS ;

—-the carnation-like Actima, as its name imports——
and we shall easily excuse our early naturalists their
pretty but erroneous fancies concerning them. This
species is more subject than many others to vary in
colour, like the flower after which it is named, being
found of every tone between snow-white, orange, pale
scarlet, and blood-red—while some specimens take
duskier tints, from a dull brown to a kind of orange-
green. But we will describe our illustrations of this
curious family in regular succession, noting what is
most peculiar in the subject of each Plate.

Plate VI. contains a representation of one of the
last discovered species of Actim’a—one which displays
a habit that distinguishes it from all its congeners
hitherto described by naturalists, and which has en-
titled it to be classed in a separate genus, and distin-
guished as Edwardsia vestita. The generic designation
is from that of a well-known naturalist, and the specific
name, vestita, from its habit of forming for itself a shell,
or clothing, into which it has the faculty of retiring at
pleasure; or, if an inhabitant of the shallow water,
when the tide recedes, and leaves it inconveniently
exposed to the air. This species, unless it have the
power of quitting its shell, like some Molluscs, is of
necessity permanently fixed and confined to the posi-

tion in which the egg from which it was hatched was
56

 

L Aumm grlmnuuu.

1‘ LA'I‘IC V] I I.

 

l: A l. Amnm lm-wminymlm mum. J. I,u(c1n:n]u uunguld.

4;. \‘zuzulux m mirubllh.

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

placed by the instinct of the parent or the caprice of
the waves. The other objects in Plate VI. will be
described in another place.

In Plate VII. we have two remarkable species of
Actinia ; the one with drooping tentacles of dull brick-
red being a very curious variety, resembling Anthea
cereus, which never withdraws those filament-like
appendages within its body like the other species.
The species below is Actimla clwvata, one of the most
delicately beautiful kind, which, from its brilliant
whiteness, at once attracts the attention.

In Plate VIII. are two varieties, previously de-
scribed, of Actimw diam/ms, commonly called the
plumose, or feather-like, Anemone. In front, below
them, is the representation of one of the most splendid
of all the species, which has received the specific name
gemmacea from the gem-like appearance produced
by the touches of colour—blue, buff, and brown—
about the orifice of the mouth or stomach, and about
its sharply pointed tentacles. Brightly tinted tuber-
cles are arranged in rows upon the stem or body, the
whole surface of which is clouded with pale iridescent,
or rather nacreous, tones of pink and azure, varied
with occasional flushes of orange. All the species are
furnished with tubercles of a similar description about

the stem, but in many they are not so conspicuous,
57

OCEAN GARDENS ;

and in others almost imperceptible; yet they no doubt
exist in all,_as they are not merely ornamental, but
essential organs, peculiar to this class of creatures;
being reservoirs from which they can shoot forth a
thread, furnished with a barbed and poisoned dart, by
means of which they are able to attain an enemy, or
victim, far beyond the reach of their tentacles. Mr.
Gosse very graphically describes the death of a small
fish struck by one of these thread-borne poisoned
arrows, at some distance from the offended Actim'a,
who launched his dart, as it seemed, for no greater
provocation than a slight disturbance of the water
rather nearer to his retreat than was agreeable.

The Actimia gemmacea, it would appear, is a more
voracious creature than most of his congeners, for
Dr. Johnston, in his splendid work on the British
Zoophytes, describes one of this species that had
managed to swallow a shell of P6025672 m-aximus as
large as a common saucer, its own natural diameter
not exceeding two inches. It managed, however, to
distend its elastic form sufficiently to receive the enor-
mous prey; but the shell divided the stomach into two
completely separate departments, the lower one being
thus perfectly shut off from its usual supplies. To
meet this difficulty, the organic economy of the crea-

ture adapted itself in a most extraordinary manner; a
58

PLATE IX.

 

 

 

 

 

 

1- Actinia anguiCuma. ‘2‘ Cucumis hyaliuus. 3. Echinus splnum. 4. Alyconium digimtum.

 

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

new mouth was opened below the division, furnished
with two rows of new tentacles, and thus the lower
portion becomes provided with a means of taking in
nourishment, the whole creature forming a singular
double monster, that, not contented with its one giant
mouth, surrounded with its hundred arms to supply
its voracious appetite, had actually succeeded in sup-
plying itself with a second, equally furnished with its
formidable feeding apparatus.

In Plate IX. a beautifully distinct form of this
singular race of animals is very carefully delineated
——Actim§a anguicoma—which seems to be shaking
loose a mass of serpent-formed hair, like another
Medusa; from which appearance, its specific name,
anguicomco, signifying snake-haired, has doubtless
been given.

The tentacles of the Actmm mesembryanthemum
are generally of a beautiful rosy pink, and the body
of a rich warm brown. But of all the species,
A. crassicornis—represented in the lower part {of
Plate X.—is, perhaps, the handsomest, the orifice or
mouth being of a delicate straw tone, the tentacles
white, variegated with bands of delicate pink, and
the body, or stem, a rich orange-brown, thickly
sprinkled with tubercles of bright yellow. This fine

species sometimes measures five inches across, when
59

OCEAN GARDENS ;

the tentacles are fully expanded. Actimla coriacea
is also a fine species, which thrives well in the
Aquaria of the Zoological Gardens.

When the Actiniae are in a state of repose or
sleep, the tentacles are entirely drawn in, and the
stem or body closes over the orifice, leaving only a
slight indent to mark its existence. In this state,
they might be mistaken for short-stemmed fungi, the
pale-bodied species being very much like a half-
grown mushroom, if one can imagine it placed close
to the ground, without any visible stem.

Most of the species can be easily detached from
the rocks to which they are found adhering ; yet, in
some cases, it is found necessary to cut out the
portion to which they cling by means of a hammer
and chisel. But when this is done, and they are
placed in the Aquarium, they often willingly leave
the stone to which they are attached, which they
would not do by gentle persuasion, or any moderate
amount of force; and they then take up their station
on some suitable portion of the artificial rockwork,
just as those do that have been originally detached
from their native rocks. Above twenty species of
Actiniae and their allies are known to British na-
turalists.

The Imcemarm are another class of Zoophytes,
60

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

or plant-like creatures, as the term Zoophyte implies,
being formed of the Greek Word Z0672- (é’wou), sig-
nifying a thing possessed of animal life, and phyton
(@7012), a plant. This general term is applied to
all the creatures—some of them of very distinct
character—that belong to this class, which forms a
separate division of natural science known as
Zoophytology.

The species of Imcemaria, which has received
the specific denomination of auricula, from its slight
resemblance in form to the flower of that name, is de-
lineated in Plate VIII., attached to a slender branch
of sea-weed, just above the two large Sea-Anemones.
This species of Lucemwm’a is generally of a light
pinkish colour, and is, in general form, perhaps
more like a convolvulus than an auricula. Two
species have been most beautifully delineated in all
their details by Mrs. Johnston, in her husband’s
magnificent work on British Zoophytes. These
drawings are, in fact, so charmingly and, at the
same time, accurately executed, that it would seem
that the pencil ought to be guided by delicate female
fingers when portraying these minutely intricate
and unusual forms of animal life. The exquisite
drawings by Mrs. J. E.‘ Gray, in her work on the

curious molluscous animals—whose habitations alone,
61

OCEAN GARDENS;

the beautiful sea-shells of our cabinets, were, till
recently, all that was known of them—afford further
evidence, if it were needed, of the aptitude of the
more finely-strung female capacity for this depart-
ment of scientific portraiture. The name of Mrs.
Griffiths is also honourably associated with the
study of natural science, especially that connected
with our marine Algw—a beautiful division of
sea-weeds having received its name, Gmfiiths’ia, in
honour of the esteemed services of that accomplished
lady.

The Lucemmria cmnpcmulata, which is of a some-
what more bell-shaped form than the preceding, is
of an uniform liver colour; and in the hollow of
the flower-like cup the “ mouth” projects, in a square
form, in the centre. There are three known species
of British Lucemzariw, which would all form highly
curious objects in the Aquarium; but they are ex-
cessively delicate and fragile creatures, hanging sus-
pended from the object to which they are attached,
like a mere lump of jelly, when taken out of
the water, and would doubtless be very difficult
of transport, and probably not capable of retaining
life in a state of confinement, except for a short
time.

62

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE \YATERS.

The “compound Zoophytes,” or, more properly,
Polyps, as being, as it were, many creatures in
one, are still more curious than the two classes just
described. A common example of this class is the
Alyconium digitatum (Plate IX., No. 4.), looking
like a mass of short fingers, when the final florets
are closed, as its specific name imports. Its popular
name has also a somewhat similar signification, being
sometimes called, by the fishermen of our northern
coasts, Dead Men’s Toes. Each finger-like cell of the
general structure contains a separate creature, of
which the tentacles, when expanded, form the floret,
somewhat analogous to those of the Sea-Anemones.
But the most singular character of this organization,
or masses of organization, is that each separate
creature is vitally attached to a central polypidom,
or spine, which binds the whole group into one
' existence.

Of this class are the curious Pennatulz’dae, one
of which is commonly known as the Sea-Pen. The
three species of this class of Polyps known to in-
habit the British seas are so distinct from each other,
that they form at the same time three distinct genera.
The most beautiful of the three is the Pennatula

phosphorea, the Sea-Pen, which is not uncommon
63

OCEAN GARDENS ;

on some parts of our northern coasts. It is
represented in Plate VII. The purple branches,
or pinnae, of the upper portion form the feathered
part of the pen to which it‘ is likened; the bare
portion of the polypidom below having certainly
some resemblance to the quill. This curious
zoophytic form is often seen in an erect position,
planted, as it were, in the mud, like a miniature
purple pine, though it is capable of motion through
the water from place to place, by some action
of its organs which has not been accurately de-
tected. It is one of the handsomest of our British
Zoophytes. The polypidom, or trunk, is three
or four inches long, fleshy, and of a purplish red.
It is naked at the lower end, and feathered above
with long, closely set pinnae, along the margins
of which the polyp-cells are placed. The pinnae
are curved backward, and capable of either separate
or united motion. They are supposed by some
to be capable of the action of regular oars; but
this is very doubtful, though their bearing on the
polypidom, which is strengthened by an internal
column of calcareous or bony matter, would give
them considerable power for that purpose. The
creature’s specific name, phosphorea, must not lead

to the supposition that it always emits a phospho-
64

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

rescent light, for it is only when irritated that this is
produced. If plunged into fresh water, it scatters
a shower of phosphoric sparks in all directions,
which forms a magnificent and curious spectacle, far
more brilliant, no doubt, than the fabled hues of the
dying dolphin.

The Virgularia mimbilis is another of this class
of creatures, almost as elegant as the Sea-Pen, but
more slender, and in the form of a branching rod, as
its name imports. (See Plate VIII.)

The Sponges form a curious class of Z00phytes,
which have perhaps a much closer affinity to plants
than any other. They are occasionally very singular
in their forms; and Dr. Johnston enumerates fifty-six
species belonging to our coasts; they are, however,
unsuited to the Aquarium in the present state of

our knowledge; and when portions of rock are
- collected on the shore, for the tank, care should be
taken to clear off any Sponge formations that are
perceived, as their certain and rapid decay would be
liable to injure the condition of the Whole colony of
the Aquarium.

When the collector resorts to the sea-shore in
search of subjects for his Aquarium, he should avoid
sandy beaches. It is on the rocky shores alone that

Adi/nice, Madmpores, Serpulaz, or other specimens
65 F

OCEAN GARDENS, ETC.

of ocean life, desirable for the Aquarium, are to be
found. The noble rocks of some parts of the Devon-
Shire coast are the most favourable localities; but
even 011 the chalk rocks of Ramsgate and Margate
many kinds are to be found.

 

66

CHAPTER VI.

THE MOLLUscs, ETC.

 
  
   
   
 

HE curious floral similitudes of the

Ii Zoophytes have as yet attracted the
“ greatest degree of attention among
the constructors of marine Aquaria; yet
other forms of ocean life offer equal, if
not superior, opportunities for curious obser
, i vation, and are equally well calculated to bear
the confinement of the tank. Among them
all, none more than the Molluscs, especially the shell-
' bearing division, which merits the careful attention
of the student of Nature, as containing some of her
most singular manifestations.

The knowledge of the structure and habits of
many of the most curious shell-bearing Molluscs is
of very recent date, with the exception of those which
possess obvious qualities which have fitted them for
articles of diet or commerce; such as the Oyster,
Mussel, Cockle, etc., as eatable species—and the

Purples, Sepias, and Cuttle-fish, as containing valu-
G7

OCEAN GARDENS ;

able dyes. “With the exception of such as these, the
pearl-yielding Bivalves, and a few others, nothing
was known of the animals that create and inhabit the
beautiful shells that have so long been ranked among
the most elegant objects of the cabinets of the curi-
ous. Many of these were, in fact, scientifically classi-
fied by learned naturalists before the nature of the
animal, of which they formed the mere senseless
husk, was even guessed at. The ordinary col-
lector did not even desire to know anything of
the creature which produced the shell he so much
prized; it was sufficient for him that it was esti-
mated as “rare” by his brother collectors—rarity
being a quality more highly prized than even beauty.
With this feeling, prices as great were given for
single shells as ever enthusiastic Hollander paid
for a coveted bulb during the height of the Tulipo-
mania. N 0 amount of guineas was too much, at a
sale of shells, for such a contested prize as a
Many-ribbed harp, a Gloria maris, a Cedo nulli, or
a Voluta Junonia. But that race of idle shell-
fanciers has given place to a race of true concholo-
gists, who are investigators as well as collectors, and
whose labours are daily develoPing unexpected and
valuable knowledge from those long obscure pages
of the great book of Nature.

68

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

The marine Aquarium may be made the means
of many curious discoveries regarding the habits and
organization of the shell-bearing Molluscs; and, with
this feeling, I may direct the attention to several of
their singular characteristics, in order that they may
serve as clues to the deteCtion of others.

The term Mollusc, from mollis, soft, is intended
to express that the Whole class are invertebrate; that
is, entirely without spine, or any bony support to
their curious fleshy forms. The term was invented
by the illustrious Cuvier, but is objectionable as a
distinctive one, the characteristic on which it is
founded being shared by other distinct classes of
animals. When, however, the application of a term
is well understood, its inner signification becomes un-
important; it is, therefore, now too late to criticise
the one invented and applied by the prince of modern
naturalists.

Among the interesting facts detected by recent
science, it has been shown that many of the seemingly
shapeless masses of soft substance, scarcely to be
termed flesh, possess all the senses of the higher
animals. In the Cephalopoda, the organs of sight
' and hearing are both well developed; and. Professor
Owen considers that the Nautilus possesses even an

organ of passive smell. The Gasteropoda too, are
69

OCEAN GARDENS ;

according to Siebold, nearly all furnished with ears
and eyes, the former organs being described as forming
round capsules, conspicuously visible near the roots
of the tentacles.

Some of the Conch/(fem, also, are furnished with
numerous eyes, which, like those of the Scallops and
( 71ams of our own shores, are also placed among their
tentacula.

It appears probable, says Dr. Johnston, that many
have also the sense of taste, as they are observed to.
select 1')articular articles of food in preference to others,
and there. is no other sense that appears fitted to
regulate the choice. The mouth, as it is termed, of
many of the niolluscous tribe is furnished, as among
the Oastcmpoda, with a. fringe formed of filaments,
which may be organs of touch, and they have also a
complicated breathing apparatus.

The strength of these boneless creatures is some-
thing very extraordinary, and almost incomprehen-
sible. The Strombus gigas, for instance, a soft, snail-
like creature, carries a shell which Often weighs more.
than five. pounds; the (708858 tuberosa supports one
nearly as heavy, and many naked Molluscs, that have
no shell to carry, have other modes of exhibiting
strength of a very extraordinary character.

The shells of the clothed Molluscs are senseless,
70

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

being permeated by no vessels, and are formed by the
animal itself from a secretion with which its outer
integuments are invested, and which may be described
as lime in a state of solution. The thickened edge of
the mantle, by means of which the form is given to
the shell, and the general manipulation effected, is
furnished, as may be seen with the aid of a moderate
lens, with a minute and highly sensitive fringe, the
cilia of which are of various colours, corresponding in
tone and position to the tints which decorate the eX-
terior of the shell. The coloured cilia or fringes have
doubtless a dyeing power, which colours the calca-
reous solution at the time it is added to the shell by
their plastic instinct. The solution becomes a hard
testaceous substance so soon as it leaves the body of
the animal, and is duly deposited, in architectural
layers, upon the beautiful structure of the shell, by
‘ the “trowel” and “brushes” of the edge of the
mantle.

This process is beautifully described in Jones’s
“ Animal Kingdom,” with all the details relating to

the successive ridges on the shell, by means of which

the age of the animal may be defined since its birth ;
it having been ascertained what time is required for
the completion of each story of the edifice.

The power of locomotion is one of the most curious
71

OCEAN GARDENS

subjects for observation in the structure of shell-coated
Molluscs, and for this purpose the marine Aquarium
offers many advantages. Other classes of animals
have been distinguished by the number of their feet
‘—we have, for instance, a tribe of worms termed
centipedes, or hundred-footed creatures—and, to pass
over many gradations, to the superior grass-feeding
and carnivorous animals, we find them termed quad-
rupeds, or four-footed creatures—while the human
race, along with birds, has been termed biped. Why,
therefore, may we not coin a word for our present
purpose, and call these curious Molluscs unopeds, or
monopods, as being single-footed creatures l—for they
walk with a solitary foot, being compelled to do so by
the very simple fact that they have no other. This
limb, or foot, when about to be used, is gradually pro-
truded, and its bearing against some substance forces ,
the animal forward. When the foot has attained its
full distension it is drawn in, and a new bearing ob-
tained, and by the repetition of this process, a certain
amount of locomotion is effected. Some species float
on the surface of the water by means of this member;
a feat which is performed in the following manner :—
Having crawled up a rock to the height of the surface
of the water, the foot is protruded and exposed to the

air, when it soon becomes suddenly dried, and in that
72

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

state serves as a cork, which enables the animal to
float away close under the surface of the water. But
if any agitation should cause a ripple to wet this
floating apparatus, or the animal should choose to
Withdraw it voluntarily beneath the water for that
purpose, the shell and its inmate immediately sink to
the bottom.

The swimming power of this race of creatures is
as curious as the contrivance for floating. The 06-
phalopoda, by the ejection of a jet of water, propel
themselves rapidly in the opposite direction to that of
the jet, and by the repetition of this singular motive
power at equal intervals, a beautifully steady motion
is obtained with much less labour than that produced
by ordinary swimming, by means of the action of fins
or other oar-like limbs adapted to the purposefi‘e Some
Molluscs are, nevertheless, furnished with a kind of
fin; the Pteropoda, in their little shells, translucent
as glass, swimming by the action of small fin-like
paddles placed near the head.

The Bévalves do not make so clever a use of their
single foot as the Univwlves. The foot in this tribe

* Some species efi'ect leaps by an analogous contrivance—col-
lecting water within the. closed mouth, and then emitting it at a.
gush from a small portion of the aperture, suddenly opened, which
propels the creature to a considerable distance at a single bound.

73

OCEAN GARDENS ;

appears to be furnished with a terminal hook, which,
when the foot is protruded, clings to some substance,
and the animal is drawn up to that point, when the
operation has to be repeated. This would appear likely
to produce but a slow rate of progress, and yet some
of the sand-boring Bioalves manage, when alarmed,
to retreat and conceal themselves with great rapidity
by that means.

The Mollusca, as feeders, are divided into three
classes—those which take only liquid food, the vege-
table feeders, and the carnivorous species.

Those which are only able to take food in a liquid
form, are such as have no means of seizing prey, their
food consisting of the countless myriads of infusorial
animalcules which float in the sea-water, and which
are carried into the orifice of the stomach or mouth
by the current. Of these, the Demicam, Brachio-
poda, and Comical/("era are examples.

The liquid feeders exhibit a very low form of
molluscous life, but other classes are furnished with
means of defence and aggression, equal to those of
terrestrial quadrupeds, and much more extraordinary
in their form. Some of the carnivorous Univalves,
for instance, feed upon the Bivalves by drilling a hole
through the solid shell, and withdrawing the animal

piecemeal, as required.
74

‘ OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

The Eolis papillosa has been observed tearing
away the tentacles of different species of Sea-Anemone
with extraordinary veracity, and that tribe must there-
fore very evidently be excluded from the Aquarium.
The Cuttles, also, are to be avoided from the same
cause; they are fierce tyrants of the deep, that would
make sad havoc among the delicate creatures with
which we delight to furnish our tanks of glass. The
curious substance termed Sea-Grapes, which are the
eggs of this c1eatu1e, might, however, be placed in
the tank, and the p1ogress of development watched,
without fear of injury to the other inmates.

Even the full-grown Cuttle is so curious a creature
that, in a tank prepared with that special view, his
habits might furnish food for much curious observa-
tion—indeed, carefully fed up, he might form very
excellent food himself. His German name, Kuttel,
signifies tripe, the flavour of which his flesh is said to
resemble; and the common Squid, which is eaten by
the poor of our coasts, and is a kindred species, is also
said to have a similar flavour. Molluscs of this class,
as well as the disgusting-looking Poulp, or Many-feet,
are seen in profusion in the markets of the south of
EurOpe, and are as highly prized as the Oyster with
us. The ancients ca1ried their taste for them so far

as to feed them up artificially; and at the nuptial
75

OCEAN GARDENS ;

feast of Iphicrates, one hundred Polypi and 36197363, as
we are informed, were disguised with different sauces
so as to impart to each a different flavour. The land
Molluscs were also much sought as a table delicacy, a
species of the large Garden-Snail being bred in large
quantities for that purpose ; and fed upon a prepared
paste, which so accelerated their growth, that we learn
from the industrious Pliny many particulars concern-
ing their enormous dimensions; the shells of some of
the finest being capable of holding eighty measures of
water, called quadrants. But, in speaking of Molluscs,
I must principally confine myself to such as are suit-
able for an Aquarium.

Among the Sea-Snails of our own coast, which
are still eaten by the lower orders, is the Periwinkle,
considered by some superior in flavour to the Oyster
or Shrimp. This creature, the I/ittorina littorea, is
one of the most useful creatures in an Aquarium, by
cleansing it from all decaying vegetation, which is its
natural food. The Periwinkle varies much both in
size and colour, the ground tone of the shell being
sometimes red, orange, or even scarlet, occasion-
ally with handsome black bands. Such as are coloured
in this attractive manner should obviously be selected
as inmates of the Aquarium, in preference to the dull-

coloured varieties. A few of the small yellow kind,
76

OR, GLIMPSES BENEA’I‘H TEE WATERS.

I/ittorma littoralis, may be added by way of variety,
though they do not succeed so well in confinement as
the other species.

The Whelk (Buccimom undatum), another of the
snail-like Molluscs of our coasts, which is considered
good eating by the lower orders, and often seen on
fish-stalls at particular seasons, is well worthy a place
in our miniature sea ; especially under certain circum-
stances, when the shell of this creature assumes a most
singular aspect, well calculated to excite the wonder
of the young naturalist. It is sometimes found sur-
mounted by a mass of living substance, which might
be taken for the body of the creature, residing in pre-
ference on the roof of its dwelling during the summer
months, where it may be observed spreading a set of
tentacles, from a mouth-like orifice for the collection
of food. Within, however, a pair of protruding eyes
~ are seen glaringly on the watch for prey, and another
set of food-clutching machines may be noticed beneath
them, ready for their work, and only awaiting the 0p-
portunity. They look much like the claws of a lob-
ster, and if any suitable object comes within their
reach, it is seized by one or both of these two-fingered
hands, and carried towards the yawning mouth be-
neath; but before it reaches that evidently impatient

receptacle, a brightly shining crimson finger, orna-
77

OCEAN GARDENS ;

mented with two white stripes, darts from under those
claws and mouth, and, snatching away the rich morsel,
disappears as suddenly as it came, leaving the ex-
pectant mouth and astonished claws both empty. The
mystery of this seemingly compound creature having,
as it were, a first self living outside the house and
getting a separate living, a second self located in the
from parlour, and prevented from eating its own
dinner by a third self residing in the back parlour,
may be easily explained, now that the persevering
observations of our naturalists have solved it. It is as
follows 1—— V

The internal dweller in the front parlour is the
Hermit Crab (Pagwrus Pridemwii), a creature which,
having a less solid shell than his brother crabs, is
seldom contented with its own habitation, but ever seek-
ing some further protection, which it generally finds in
an empty \Vhelk-shell. It is, moreover, very particular
as to fit, and other details; for it has been observed,
when looking out for a house, to try and reject many
before finally adopting an abode. The inhabitant of
the baa/c parlour is the Sea-\Vorm (1Vereis bilincata),
a creature which, instinctively knowing the voracious
propensities of the Crab, and determining to share his
abundant feasts, seizes his Opportunity, when mine
host of the \Vhelk-shell is pretty well surfeited and in

78

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

a semi-dormant state, to sneak past the dangerous
claws into the “ back parlour,” which is the interior of
the narrow spiral of the shell—a form of apartment
which affords him a most comfortable and convenient
home, established in which, by the superfluous vora-
city of the Crab, he is furnished with board as well as
lodging. The external tenant of the Whelk-shell is a
parasitic Sea-Anemone, known as the Cloak-Anemone,
‘ from its power of nearly enveloping the object to which
it attaches itself, by means of the extension of its stem
or body. It is known in scientific classification as
Adamsia palliata, having been made a separate genus,
and its specific name is ingeniously taken from that
of the Roman cloak, the well-known pallium of the
classical writers.

Almost invariably, when the Hermit Crab is dis-
covered inside the VVhelk-shell, the Adamsia is found
_ outside; and the Hermit is seldom without his dinner
assistant, the prettily striped Nerez’s. This fact is so
well known to fishermen, that when in search of this
worm, which is an excellent bait, they never fail to
break the shells tenanted by the Hermit Crab, and are
seldom disappointed in finding the object of their
search in his company.

Another parasitic Anemone, still more fond of tra-

velling, the Act/£92m parasitica, often selects the back
79

OCEAN GARDENS ;

of a Crab itself (generally Pagm'us Bernlzardus), and
in that position is hurried along, in the sidling gallop
of his steed, in a way that must often prove inconve-
nient; for in passing under ledges of rock, the Crab,
doubtless, only takes his own measure. Yet, in such
cases, the Anemone probably knows 110w to take care
of himself; and when Bernhard/us becomes skittish
and adventurous, “ draws in his horns,” as many other
bold spirits are obliged to do at certain crises of their
career; and in this state, presenting only a semi-
spherical mass of tough leathery substance, he can
fearlessly allow himself to be driven beneath stony
archways, or under impending branches of the marine
forests, by his ferocious Jehu, with less chance of in-
jury than that which used in the good old times to
threaten the outside passenger of a terrestrial stage-
coach passing beneath the low gateway of some inn-
yard.

Our largest native shell of the Whelk tribe is
the Fusus antiquus, often used by the Shetland
islanders as a lamp; for which purpose it is sus-
pended horizontally, the cavity holding the oil, and
the wick projecting from the canal.

The Whelks belong to the interesting family
Muficidw, some of which, natives of our own coasts,
are very pretty objects for the Aquarium. It was

80

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

one of them, the Mama," trunculus, which yielded
the Tyrian purple, different species affording distinct
tones of colour. In form, these shells are somewhat
like our Common Whelk, but finely marked with
broad, dark, spiral stripes. The ancient mode of
extracting the dye, as described by Pliny, was verified
by Mr. Wild, in 1838, in a very interesting manner
In the neighbourhood of the site of the ancient
Tyre, he found, in the rocks on the sea-shore, a vast
number of round cavities, evidently the work of the
hammers and chisels of generations long past away.
These cavities varied in size, from that of a small
flower-pot to that of a cauldron, and round about them
still lay scattered immense masses of the remains of
the shells and bodies of the easily distinguished Murex,
in many instances aggluminated together. The shells
with their inmates had evidently been pounded in those
cavities, exactly as stated by Pliny, and the dye ex-
tracted according to the formulae so graphically
detailed by the ancient naturalist.

The Purpura lapillus of our own shores yields a
similar dye, and might be kept in our Aquaria as a
reserve bottle of “ marking-ink ;” for the ingenious
Mr. Gosse has shown how its dye may be thus used
for household purposes. The shell is a small white

univalve, with one or more bands of pale brown. It
81 G

OCEAN GARDENS ;

perishes on being immersed in fresh water, when the
dye may be extracted from a thick vein of yellowish
white, near the head; it is a liquid of a creamy thick-
ness and of pale indistinct colour. But if it be
painted in the forms required, as a cypher, or any
other ornament, on linen, or any other textile fabric,
with a camel’s-hair pencil, and exposed to the air, it
rapidly assumes a rich yellow tone. This first changes
to green, then blue, till at last it becomes a full strong
indigo, exhibiting plainly all the forms that have been
traced. A crimson-red change next ensues, and the
final colour, which is indelibly permanent, is a red-
dish purple.

There is also a large naked Mollusc, one of the
Aplysia, that pours forth, under excitement, a secre-
tion of rich purple hue; but the colour is considered
valueless as a dye, from its extreme volatility, though
it is stated that it may be rendered permanent by
means of nitric acid. The common Planm'bis 007'-
neus, a shell coiled in the form of a ram’s horn, has a
similar property; but the colour of the fluid is still
more volatile. The purple liquid, however, contained
in another of our native shells (Scalaria) is very per-
manent.

It is well known that the ink of the Chinese,

which we term Indian ink, is prepared from the
82

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

Cuttle, and the Cuttles of the Mediterranean Sea
furnished the principal black inks and dyes of the
Greeks and. Romans. It is a kind of Sepia, in fact,
that still furnishes the rich brown colour which
bears the name of the animal from which it is
derived.

The common Sepia oulgam's might be introduced
to the marine Aquarium, many of its habits being
singular; and its power of enveloping itself in a
cloud of its own rich dye might often be observed
when it became irritated by the presence of a real or
fancied danger. It has the faculty of propelling
itself hither or thither by the emission of a jet of
water, as described in speaking of the locomotive
power of other Molluscs, with the additional faculty
of guiding its motions by the rapid movement of two
‘fin-like paddles, which, when in agitation, produce an
effect not unlike the fluttering action of the wings of
a moth. This little C’epkalopod has large projecting
eyes, and a group of arms, that hang listlessly down
when the fins are in motion. It changes colour fita
fully and beautifully, exhibiting in the course of such
changes pretty metallic spots and rings, which appear
and disappear, now like gold, now like silver, as seen
through a semi-opaque substance. The whole crea-

ture is at one moment of a dusky grey tone, but fit-
83

OCEAN GARDENS ;

fully changes to white or deep brown when alarmed.
These Sepias are exceedingly voracious, not even
sparing their own kind; and when one was observed
by Mr. Gosse to seize another, of its own species, the
victim shot out its defence of dark black fluid.

Some of the Track/us tribe of shells look pretty
in an Aquarium, but at present their treatment is so
imperfectly understood, that they do not seem to thrive
well. The specimens can, however, be renewed as
required.

Troclms zizipkinus, the pearly Troclms, the animal
of which is of a rich orange colour striped with black,
moves freely about, and forms a very attractive object.
The animal of T. granulatus is larger and handsomer,
but shy, and displays little activity in confinement.
The small Troohus, T. cinemrius, if placed in an
Aquarium, may often be observed rasping down
the minute Confervae that grow on the inside of the
glass; and the curious method of the operation, and
the singular instruments with which it is performed,
may be plainly distinguished by the aid of a small
pocket lens.

fimpets—those curious bonnet-shells, as they are
termed in some places, which are found in the form of
a flattened and inverted funnel, adhering closely to the

flat rocks of the sea-shore in all the European seas—are
84

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

more curious than they appear at a first glance, and
have characteristics that well repay the labour of per-
severing observation. I should always place a few in
an Aquarium.

The Common Limpet (Patellw vulgatco) has a
power, which appears extraordinary when the soft
substance of its body is considered, of excavating,
more or less deeply, a portion of the rock which it
makes its home. It is supposed to leave its hollow
in the night, returning infallibly to its home in the
morning. This habit might be watched in an Aqua-
rium, and, if verified, a very interesting fact would be
established, which at present remains somewhat
doubtful, although Mr. Lukis, of Guernsey, is said to
have marked a Limpet, and found it return to its
haunt. These creatures belong to the order named
» Cyclobranchiata, from the breathing apparatus being
arranged in a circle round the body.

The pretty British shell, vulgarly called the Ark
of Noah, should be tried in Aquaria, as well as the
elegant Heart-shell of the beautiful genus Isocardz'a ;
the movements and habits of the latter, as described
by the Rev. J . Bulwer, being very curious and in-
teresting. »

The pretty little Cowry is an object that must not

be passed over in silence, when treating of objects
85

OCEAN GARDENS ;

fitted for the marine Aquarium, although, in a little
book of this extent, many others must of necessity be
omitted. This beautiful little creature, prmea
Europwa, carrying its porcelain-like dwelling on its
back, is enabled to move steadily along by the action
of its single foot. When in action, the mantle, as it
is termed, which is the general covering of the body,
is greatly distended, and protrudes from the shell,
which it perfectly encloses, folding up at the sides, and
meeting at the top, where the joining is scarcely per-
ceptible, and the whole surface fits so tightly to the
shell that the little ribbings are seen distinctly
through it. It is exceedingly curious to observe the
act of respiration, and all the associated phenomena of
this wonderful little animal. The foot is pale orange,
the mantle delicate olive, spotted with black and
studded with protruding glands of yellow. It is, in
short, when in a state of activity, a most singular
and beautiful creature, of whose appearance and
habits thousands, who only know and admire the de-
serted shell, can have no idea.

The bivalves, of which all are acquainted with
at least one kind—the delicious edible Oyster—offer
many animals suited to Aquaria. The curious Razor-
shell, but for its habit of burrowing, would form a

very curious object; and the Cockles, from the rich
86

PLATE X.

 

 

. A group of Serpulu coutortuplicum.

>7

Actinin crassicornis.

 

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

colour of their beautiful fringes when the shells are
partially opened for feeding and breathing, are very
beautiful additions to the collection.

The means of movement of the common Scallop,
.or Cockle, and other bivalves, by means of a single
fleshy “ foot,” have been described in speaking of
Molluscs in general; but the spinous Cockles, Oordium
aculeatum and 0. tubercutum, have been termed the
aristocracy of the Scallop tribe. The valves of the
largest open three-quarters of an inch, exhibiting a
portion of the spongy-looking fleshy mantle, which is
of a pellucid orange colour. At the end is protruded
a double tube, thick and short, enveloped in a fringe
of cirrhi or tentacles. The foot, which has been
compared to a tongue, is smooth, glossy, and semi-
transparent, like scarlet cornelian, and its use is so
well understood by its possessor that its motions are
very rapid. It moves about with great activity in an
Aquarium, insomuch that some specimens sent by
the Rev. C. Kingsley to Mr. Gosse, startled that gen-
tleman one morning by the noise they were creating,
among the pebbles and other objects of his tank, by
their violent movements.

Many other kinds of shells might be mentioned if
space permitted, but I must content myself with men-

tioning, en passant, the polished Donax, which, when
87

OCEAN GARDENS, ETC.

the animal displays itself, exhibiting its bright yellow
colouring, with its curious stripes and gay pink
fringes, would form a real ornament to the drawing-
room sea. I must just hint, also, the introduction of a
specimen of the Tritoma Hombergi, remarkable for a
power of producing an audible sound like the click of
.a steel wire.

The pretty little bivalve, the Lima Mans, is also.
a very attractive addition to the Aquarium, especially
in motion, when its long orange fringes shape them-
selves into a train, or tail, like that of a “ fiery comet,”
as Dr. Landsborough has observed, while it glides
along, propelled by the discharge of a jet of water,
the mechanism for the pr0pulsion of which forms its

swimming apparatus.

 

88

CHAPTER VII.

THE ASCIDIANS, BARNACLES, SEA-CUCUMBERS,
NAKED MOLLUSCS, SEA-WORMS, ETC.

\W: GROUP of Ascidians forms a very curious

A . .

“M e object for the Aquarium, the1r
.. J\\ . shapes being singular, and some-
11> w \5 v jg times delicate as a transparent egg-

shell. Those delineated in Plate VII. Will

‘ ‘ convey some idea of the general appearance
of these creatures, Whose habitations might

be taken for a store of fairy pitchers, placed

snugly in their submarine china-closet for

extra safety, and partially covered With sea-weed
‘ as a further means of conceahnent. There are above
fifty native species, varying greatly in appearance.
They may be found at the extreme verge of low
water, many having the aspect of pellucid bags,
formed of a substance between jelly and leather;
While others present a far more robust and rugged
appearance, both inform and texture. Some are
very dingy in colour, but a few species—more

rarely found—are very attractive, and sometimes
89

 

a
.10..
50

OCEAN GARDENS ;

brilliant in their hues. Ascidia mentula is a kind
which may generally be procured of any of the
dealers.

The Barnacles must not be omitted in furnishing
an Aquarium, nor the fable connected with the
Common Barnacle (Pentelasmis anatéfera), in which
it is affirmed that the Barnacle Geese were their
offspring. Our old naturalist Gerard not only
gives a detailed account of the transformation by
which this wonder of the good old times was accom-
plished, but positively illustrates his description
with an engraving, in which the metamorphosis is
seen in progress. Mr. Lloyd has generally in stock
Balonus belanoidcs and Dyrgoma anglicum.

The tube-like cells of the Serpulaz have some
resemblance to the cells of the Common Barnacle,
but that of the solitary Serpula, Serpula tub-Maria,
is much taller, often rising a foot from the substance
it adheres to. The fan-like feathers, forming the
feeding, and perhaps also the breathing apparatus,
of Serpzola contortuplicata, are exceedingly rich in
colour, as is also the member which acts as a “ cork”
to the tube when the feather-like tentacles are with-
drawn, and which is familiarly termed the “ stopper ;”
for when, on alarm, the feathers are suddenly drawn

in, the “ stopper” immediately follows, shutting up
'90

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

the opening of the tube in a very perfect manner.
This organ is often of a rich orange, and the feathers
a brilliant scarlet, though they are sometimes pale,
or nearly white, as shown in Plate X. These fan-
like organs, termed feathers, appear to act as
breathing organs, by separating the oxygen from
the currents of water which pass between their
fibres. The Sabellae, an allied tribe, form their tube
of mud; While that of the Serjmla is always of hard
shell. The golden-combed worm, Amphitrite auri-
coma, another singular creature of this class, may be
best alluded to in this place. Just below the cork-
like head, when it leaves its tubular shell, are the
scarlet gills, slightly resembling those of fishes, and
across the head the golden comb-like appendage is
expanded, from which it derives its p0pular name.
_ When the animal retires within its tube, the upper
part of the head has, like the Serpulw, all the ap-
pearance of a cork or small stopper. This creature
is one of the most curious of its class.

The Balaml, or Acorn-shells, which are generally
parasitic, fixing themselves to the shell of the
Whelk or some other univalve, spread their crimson
tentacles, when seeking food, exactly in the manner
of the Sew/um, the feathery filaments forming a

kind of living casting-net, as it has been observed,
91

OCEAN GARDENS ; '

in which the minute Annelid or Infusory is en-
tangled and devoured. Two Balcmi are represented
in Plate VII. on the shell of a Common Whelk.

The Holoflmm’adw, or Sea-Cucumbers, are very
singular creatures; their form, as it floats in the
waters, exhibiting as good a miniature representa-
tion of a small pickled Gherkin as can be conceived,
except in colour, the shells or cases of these ani-
mals being generally white. One of the species,
Hyalma, has a case which seems formed of crisp
rice-paper, and is covered with spines of the same
colour and texture. The tentacula, or breathing
apparatus, eight in number, are curiously branched,
and, when expanded, have the appearance of a
skeleton flower, of which the figure in Plate IX.
will convey a tolerable idea. The functions of this
flower-like set of organs are probably the same as
those of the Nudibmnch class of Molluscs, which,
though generally considered as being a breathing
apparatus, are, probably, at the same time food-
collecting organs, as all the creatures thus furnished
are liquid feeders.

Thy/07w papillosa, one species of Sea-Cucumber,
has ten branches to this set of organs, which it sel-
dom displays when in captivity; but a little gentle

motion artificially imparted to the water, as sug-
92

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

gested in another place, would probably produce the
kind of excitement requisite for their expansion, as
the introduction of fresh water to the tank seldom
fails to produce this effect for a time. When irri-
tated, these creatures have the capacity of committing
self-destruction in a most determined and complete
manner, by expectorating the whole of the intestines,
and leaving their case or shell bare and empty. But
Sir J. Dalzell has observed that the shell, thus deprived
of its living inmate, must be much more intimately
connected with its life and organization than the
shells of the Molluscs; for, after a considerable lapse
of time, he observed that the rejected parts have been
renewed by gradual growth. The introduction of a
single drop of fresh water will at once drive the
creature to this summary mode of putting an end to
p the inconvenience. Mr. Lloyd has generally two spe-
cies of Sea-Cucumber on sale, which he describes in
his list as Pentactes pentacta and Ocnus brunneus.

OF THE NAKED OR SHELL-LESS MOLLUSCS.

The Sea-Lemon, Doris tuberculwta, is one of the
most attractive. It derives its popular name from
its peculiar form, which is like that of half a Lemon
cut longitudinally. It is generally of a yellow tone

of colour also, which greatly adds to the fancied re-
93

OCEAN GARDENS ;

semblance. It has its breathing apparatus exposed
externally, like other N udibranchs, spreading over the
mantle, near the head, in a flower-like shape; and, as
it moves slowly round the Aquarium, forms a very
singular object.

The Doris pilosco is a pretty white species of the
same order; and the little black shining N udibranch,
Runcina Hancocz', is a pretty and interesting creature.
But the handsomest of the N udibranch, or naked-
gilled tribe, as the term might be Englished, is the
Eolis cowmzata, which forms certainly a splendid
ornament to the Aquarium. Its general colour is a
pellucid indistinct tone, of pinkish hue ; the papillae or
branchiae are in clusters, and the central canal is of a
rich crimson. Different parts of the surface reflect
the brightest metallic colours, and the whole creature
has a very gem-like appearance. In captivity it is
very active. Another species of E01229 has the power
of making a singular clicking noise, like the Tritomla.

The Aplysiw, or Sea-Hares, have been unenviably
celebrated among their congeners as containing a
virulent poison. The species common in the Medi-
terranean, A. Lepom'nm, furnished the venom with
which the infamous Locasta destroyed the enemies of
Nero; and with which she eventually prepared, at
the tyrant’s request, a draught for himself, that he

94

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

had not the courage to swallow. The British species,
A. Izybrida, might probably be kept in confinement.

Many of the Sea-Worms are very beautiful. The
Nereis bilineata, is very brilliant, its crimson body
being brightly marked by two white longitudinal
stripes.

The Phyllodoce are a class of Sea-Worms, some-
what resembling the land Centipede, which form cu-
rious objects of observation when they are in search
of food. Instead of spreading a set of tentacles, like
some of the Zoophytes and Molluscs previously de-
scribed, they have the faculty of turning the cavity
which forms the stomach inside out, like a stocking,
the inverted organ protruding from its mouth to a
considerable distance. When it becomes sufficiently
covered with the minute Infusoriae which form its
- food, it is drawn in, assuming gradually its natural
position, where it remains till the nutriment so in-
troduced has been absorbed, when the operation is
repeated.

The Sea-Mouse, one of the largest and commonest
of our marine worms, is of a flattened and somewhat
oval form, pointed at each end, its general colour
being pale brown. The clothing of silky hairs, how-
ever, with which it is invested, is so splendid, glit-

tering in iridescent colours like the plumage of a
95

OCEAN GARDENS ;

humming-bird, that Lamarck has apprOpriately named
it Halithea, or Sea-Goddess—Linnaeus having pre-
viously given it the name of Aphrodite, the Marine
Venus. When, indeed, it receives the rays of light,
and reflects them from the depths of the sea, rich
with prismatic hues, the effect has been. compared in
splendour to that of the peacock’s tail when outspread
in the sunshine. In the Aquarium it crawls rest-
lessly to and fro, as though anxious to exhibit its
splendours in every possible point of View. The me-
tallic tinges, which change with every position, are
by far most magnificent by candlelight, when red and
orange hues predominate, while by daylight pearly
greens and blues are most frequent.

The bodies of many of the Euricidce and Nereidce
exhibit changing colours of similar character, though
less splendid; but many of them possess an opal-like
tenderness and delicacy of tone in their hues which is
almost equally attractive.

The little Sea-Slug, fli’gmes punctiluceus, is a
brilliant little creature, well worthy the trouble of
being permanently established in our Aquaria. Its
general colour is pale reddish-brown; but, with the
aid of a moderate lens, it exhibits a number of small
black tubercles, in the centre of each of which is a

speck of resplendent blue or green, forming a suc-
96

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH TEE WATERS.

'cession of gem-like ornaments that have been com-
pared, by enthusiastic naturalists, to sapphires and
emeralds; but, without exaggeration, the jewelry of
this little creature may be said to surpass that of the
Diamond Beetle, notwithstanding his superior repu-
tation.

A few Okitons—a sort of Sea Wood-Louse—would
do well in a tank; and a specimen of Gastrophwna
modolma is said to have thriven well during many
months.

 

97 H

CHAPTER VIII.

THE FISH AND CRUSTACEANS OF THE AQUARIUM.

MARINE Aquarium may be rendered
,___ ; ,. very interesting without the introduction
- of fish; but as their presence requires that
the tank should be aerated once each day by means of
additional water, introduced by the syringe or by a
drip from another vessel, many may prefer the lovely
Sea-VVeeds, curious Zoophytes, and beautiful Molluscs,
alone. In which case, if the balance between the
amount of animal and vegetable life be felicitously
balanced, and the natural scavengers, in the shape of '
Periwinkles and other Sea-Snails, for the consump-
tion of decaying vegetable matter, and a few Prawns
to perform a similar office for perishing Infusoriw, or
any other animal matter, be properly supplied—the

 

tank may remain for a long time undisturbed; the
supply of oxygen being ample for the lower classes of
animal life alluded to. The beautiful Actimlw, in-
deed, will exist in apparent health for a considerable
time in water in which no vegetable growth has been

introduced. Mr. Gosse describes instances in which
98

OCEAN GARDENS, ETC.

the water in glass Aquaria, containing Sea-Anemo-
nies, has remained perfectly pure for more than a
year.

The addition of fish, however, undoubtedly en--
livens the general aspect of an Aquarium very con-
siderably ; and many may not grudge the task of daily
aerating the water, in order to enjoy the cheerful
spectacle of their agreeable and ever-active move-
ments. One or two young F lounders, very small, and
the young of other species of flat fish, add, indeed,
very much interest to an Aquarium ; partly in conse—
quence of their mode of swimming being so different
to that of the class of fishes with whose movements the '
eye is more familiar.

Among the fish mentioned by the most expe-
‘ rienced 1n the keeping of Sea Aquaria as best suited
to that purpose, the first is the pretty little Tansy,
Blenmlus 191101738, with its bright scarlet eyes, and the
many changing hues of its body. This little fellow
will live and flourish in a tank with a poorer supply
of oxygen than any other fish yet tried. I

The fifteen-spined Stickleback, Gasterosteus spi-
naclzia, does well, and 1s very cheerful and brisk in
his movements. Three or four would be an improve-
ment to any tank, as with proper management they

would doubtless construct their nest, a detailed ac-
99

OCEAN GARDENS;

count of which I have given in my “ River Gardens.”
Other species of Stickleback might also be introduced,
as the whole of the genus has the faculty of living
either in salt, brackish, or fresh water.

Young of the grey Mullet, too, do well, even with-
out artificial aeration, for, if the supply of oxygen be
rather inadequate, they are observed to put their
heads partly above the surface of the water, and ob-
tain a supply in that surreptitious manner. The black
Goby, Gobius Myer, has also been tried with success;
but his voracious character— devouring without
scruple even his own congeners—renders him on the
whole not a very desirable tenant; and yet it is a fine
sight to see the little warrior turn black with the ex-
citement when he seizes his prey, his turquois-coloured
eyes dilating with fury.

Several other kinds are mentioned, in a previous
page, in the list of animals placed by Mr. Gosse in his
first experimental Aquarium.

The Pogge, Aspidopkoms catapkra'ctus, is a
singularly formed fish that might be added by way of
experiment. The plate armour in which his body is
clothed is arranged in regular longitudinal lines,
showing eight sharp ridges, running from head to tail,
that have a singular and unfish-like appearanCe. In

confinement, however, he does not display himself to
100

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

advantage, generally lying near the bottom of the
Aquarium.

The beautiful crimson maculations of the Ancient
Wrasse, Labms maculat‘us, render him a very de-
sirable tenant; but his size—small specimens being
eight or nine inches long—causes him to be inconve-
nient ; and, moreover, he is difficult to manage, and
would probably require altogether a special treatment.
One of the smaller W rasses, however, Orenilabms 007°-
mobicus, is a desirable guest; his minute size, and
varying and often gay colours, rendering him very
attractive. He is an active and eager searcher for
food, but never takes any loosely floating object, only
darting at and detaching such atoms as are attached

to the different species of Algae.
‘ The Pipe-Fish, Syngnathus acne, is interesting in
the tank, and also the two-spotted sucker, Lepido-
gaster bimaculatus, a prettily-coloured and curious
little fish, which has the faculty of attaching itself to
the side of the tank, or any other hard flat surface, by
means of two singularly-formed ventral fins, which
act like those leather suckers by means of which
boys enjoy the sport of lifting heavy stones at the end
of a string. The spawn of this fish is like tiny amber
beads, and is attached to shells and other sub-

stances.
101

OCEAN GARDENS ;

Among the Crustacea fitted for an Aquarium, the
Common Prawn, Palaemon serratus, holds the first
rank. In the first place, his cleansing properties, in
devouring all decaying animal matter, are most im-
portant. But not less interesting are his graceful
movements: Now, he steals stealthily over the peb-
bles or the fronds of the Algae, with his long, slender,
hair-like horns in gentle motion, with all the seeming
wariness of a cat (the resemblance being increased, at
candle-light, by the fiery glare of the eye); next,
leaving his walking apparatus, or legs, inactive, he
uses only the swimming members, which arelarger
and flatter, and bordered with a compact fringe; agi-
tating these instruments with beautiful regularity,
he rises in the water with graceful ease (see Plate
V1,), his semi-transparent body, as he ascends, giving
to his appearance a strange and somewhat apparition-
like aspect, which has caused him to be compared to a
marine spectre. '

The Prawn takes its food with its second feet,
which are, in fact, two-fingered hands or claws, and
carries it to its mouth. The hands of the first pair
of legs are only rudimental in appearance, but-are
precisely fitted to their special purpose: they are his
cleansing apparatus; and it is most interesting to

watch the operations of his toilet when he uses these
102

PLATE VI.

1. Edwardsia vnsum. 4. Cribclla oculam.
'.‘ S' 3. UNILIHU‘!‘(‘qLIL‘sU'Cm .3. Asmrnm gibbosa.

 

Ii. l‘ulmipos mrvmhrnnnccus.
7. I‘alzl‘mun sormtus.

on, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

fringes as brushes, with which he cleanses his whole
person most thoroughly, being almost unmerciful in
the amount of severe scrubbing to which he subjects
himself.

An allied species, P. sqm'lla, is scarcely distin-

guishable from P. sewer/tats ; but the handsome
scarlet-striped Prawn, Pardulus anmwicornis, about
the size of a Shrimp, is quite distinct, and would
make a valuable addition to the collection. The
Lobster Prawn, also, Aflwmas nilescens, has like-
wise been tried. The proper management of Shrimps
and Prawns in the tank has not, however, as yet been
discovered; for they do not live long in a healthy
state, and it is, therefore, necessary to procure fresh
specimens very frequently.
‘ Some kinds of Crabs may be admitted, but not
many; for several are extremely voracious, and
would soon clear off all the naked Zoophytes and
most of the Mollusc‘s. _

The Climbing Crab, Mrynome aspem, is inte-
resting in .a tank from his habits. His climbing is
as graceful and skilful as that of a monkey, and when
he has succeeded in perching himself upon the
highest point in the tank, he forms a picturesque
object.

Crabs, like Prawns, are sea-scavengers, and the
103

OCEAN GARDENS ;

kinds that do not attack living creatures as well as
dead are consequently useful in a tank. The great
Fiddler Crab, Partmws 197.6667", is remarkably hand-
some. He is clothed, in part, with a velvety brown
fur, and the bare places of his shell are of a shining
black. His eyes are marked with scarlet, and there
are a few touches of bright blue about the head.
If introduced, however, his proceedings should be
carefully watched, as it is possible he might prove
very destructive.

There should certainly be a specimen of the
Hermit Crab in a Whelk-shell; and the Cleanser
Crab, Portumos depumtor, has been tried, but these
active and greedy Sea-Spiders must, as I have said, be
closely looked after.

It remains to speak of the Star-Fish tribe, which
affords some of the most beautiful and easily ma-
naged subjects for the Aquarium.

In the centre of the lower part of Plate VI. are
a large and a small specimen of the beautiful scarlet
species, Gem'aster equestres ; just above, to the
right, the graceful pink Cribella oculata ; further
to the right, Asteria gibbosa ; and immediately
above the Crébella, the thin leathery species, the
bird’s-foot Sea-Star, Palmipes membranaceus. All

these species are small, easily managed, and especially
104

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

suited to the Aquarium; as is also the finely-marked
and long-rayed Ophicoma rosula, his deep scarlet,
with bright black marks, and his slender limbs or
rays, rendering him a conspicuous object. These .
Star-Fish glide round the Aquarium, by the aid of
their thousand sucker-like feet, in a very interesting
manner.

All the true Star-Fishes, the Asteréw, have the
body divided into rays, like a star, and are furnished
With sucking feet, or cirrhi, which are tubular,
and filled with water. The internal structure of
'these creatures is very intricate and beautiful, and
the skeleton of almost any kind offers the appear-
ance of that of some exquisitely symmetrical flower.
There are fourteen British species of Star-Fish, the
finest being the Sun-Star, Solaster papposa, the
disk surrounded with twelve or thirteen rays varying
in colour from scarlet to deep purple, the rays being
sometimes of a different colour.

The Luidz’w fragilissima is also a large kind,
sometimes two feet across, which is peculiar to the
British shores. It possesses the singular faculty
of breaking itself into fragments when enraged
or captured; and, in a work by the lamented Pro-
- fessor Forbes, there is a very graphic and facetious

account of a specimen that escaped him in a very
105

OCEAN GARDENS ;

determined way by a suicide committed in that
manner.

Stars of this class, having the power to dislo-
cate their structure, are popularly known as brittle
Stars. Some affect to consider this faculty not so
very wonderful; but let such suppose for a moment
some higher animal—a man, for instance—gifted
with a capacity for exploding his trunk and limbs
into moderately-sized fragments—into joints, as a
butcher would say—at any slight provocation, and
then the character of such a power would appear
very sufficiently extraordinary. It is possible that
the fragments of the disruptured Star-Fish have the
power, in each separate fragment, of renewing the
absent portions, and that each remnant may become
a perfect fish, the dissevered portions having been
noticed to retain their vitality long after their sepa-
ration. lVe know that the little Garden Lizard has
thepower of dislocating his tail without effort, and
leaving it between the thumb and finger, when
he is playfully caught by that appendage; and, also,
that he has the power of renewing his caudal extre-
mity within a very short period. It is thought
therefore not impossible, reasoning by analogy,
that the Star-Fish may possess powers of a similar

kind, though of a somewhat more extensive character.
106

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

The Amnion Star-Fish, called sometimes F ive—
fingered (Asterias rubens), belongs to the division
Echinodermata, that is, skinned like the Hedge-
hog.

The Sea-Egg, Sea-Urchin, or Egg-Urchins, as they
are sometimes called, belong also to the Echinoder-
mata, or Hedgehog-skinned class, and form interesting
objects in the Aquarium ; the flat species exhibiting
much more evidently their close affinity to the Star-
Fish tribe, than those of the more common spherical
form. Mr. Lloyd has generally two species, Eclzimos
miliaris and Echinus 3191mm, on sale at his reposi-
tory for marine plants and animals.

To revert to other classes that occur to me as
suitable objects for an Aquarium, I may mention the
“ Red-noses," as they are graphically termed (Sawi-
cava mogosa), a colony of which, peeping out of their
holes in the cliff, would form a very striking object;
and if a piece of their native rock could be detached
of sufficient depth not to disturb them in the recesses
of their tube-like burrows, their removal “ en blogue”
would not be difficult. When touched, the Red-nose
squirts a stream of water at you in defiance, before
he darts back into his cavern. He is a small bivalve,
having his inner or immediate home within two rough
brown shells. The double-tubed proboscis with which

107

OCEAN GARDENS ;

he is furnished is extended, when in search of food,
to the mouth of his cave, in which position the ap-
pearance of its ruddy terminus has given to this tribe
the characteristic name of “ Red-noses.” How he
contrives to bore a hole in the solid rock, with any of
the soft pulpy members with which he is furnished,
appears a mystery. Other Conchifers have, however,
similarcapabilities, their ingenuity not being confined
to rocks, and their industry not being always harmless.
Such, for instance, is that of the Teredo, or Ship-
worm, a species of which has long proved so inimical
to the formation of a Russian fleet in the Black Sea—
the late war having, however, proved a far more
serious impediment to the development of that portion
of the Russian navy.

The Sea-Leaf, formed of twenty thousand, or
more, cradles for young Polypes, is also a curious
object. It is the Polyzoon, sometimes called the
Hornwrack.

A few of the translucent Medusae, in a young
stage of their existence, might be procured and tried,
though their transport would be difficult; and a
group of creatures, of the genus Zoo'tlzammmn, form-
ing, as they do, an object like a little tree of glass,
covered with trumpet-shaped bells, of the same crys-

talline aspect, each exhibiting its rotating circle of
108

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

minute cilia in rapid motion Within, would form a
singular and beautiful complement to the wonders of
the Aquarium, if its removal from its native depths,
and its location in its new home, could be successfully
managed.

 
 

  
     

 
 

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109

CHAPTER IX.
CONCLUSION.

N conclusion, a few general remarks may be
made, the observance of which will usually
ensure success in the formation of an Aqua-
rium. In the first place, if the vessel in which
the Aquarium is to be established be home-made, care
must be taken not to use any cement that has a dis-
agreeable smell—-—which would be very soon fatal to
creatures accustomed to the pure waters of the ocean.
Scott’s cement is said to be better than putty, for
fixing in the glass to the columns at the angles.

If cement be used to fiX the rock-work of the
miniature marine landscape, let it be the best Port-
land cement, which, when dry, must be soaked by
filling the vessel with water, and the water changed
several times before the tank will be fit for use.

The best sand for the artificial beach, or bottom,
is the Thames’ sand, used by builders; but this must
be washed several times, till the water runs off quite
clear, before it is fit for use—any other kind of sand,
if that cannot be procured, must be submitted to

similar washings. Sea-water can be procured by fur-
110

 

OCEAN GARDENS, ETC.

nishing the steward or captain of any Thames steamer,
or the guard of a railway in connection with the
coast, with a clean barrel; the charge, in either case,
for carriage and trouble, would not exceed two or
three shillings.

The artificial salt-water has been found sufficient
for Zoophytes, but not for fish and other of the
higher class of marine animals, except for a certain
given time. .

The composition for artificial sea-water is as
follows _:——

Common salt . . . . 3% oz.
Epsom salts . . . . . i oz.
Chloride of magnesium . 200 grs. } troy. *
Chloride of potassium . . 4O grs.

* Another formula, as given by Dr. Lankester :—

Oz. Grs.
Chloride of sodium . . . . 43% 0
- Chloride of magnesia . . . 6 0
Chloride of calcium . . . . l}: O
Bromide of magnesia . . . 0 21
Sulphate of magnesia . . . 7% O
Sulphate of lime . . . . 2-15 0

Such are the proportions in which the saline constituents of sea-
water e‘xist in 100 lbs. of the water ; that is to say, the water of a
special locality, for the proportions vary in difi'erent situations,
other distinct substances being held in solution in the sea on

some parts of the coast which are not found in other places.
- 111

OCEAN GARDENS ;

T 0 these are added four quarts of water, and
when the salts are thoroughly dissolved, say on the
following day, the liquid must be filtered through a
sponge; it is then fit for use.

Care must be taken to observe whether, when the
sun shines and the light is bright, the silvery bubbles
of oxygen are prOperly formed upon the fronds of the
sea-weeds; and if not, it is certain that the marine
plants are not in a healthy state, and must be re-
newed.

Mr. Gosse gives the following final directions as
to the class of animals and plants that should be se-
lected in preference for the experiments of beginners.

‘Vith regard to sea-weed, he observes, do not take
Oar-weeds or Tangle; all the Fuci are of a slimy
nature, which it is difficult to manage, and as their
size is inconvenient, and they have but little beauty,
their absence is not to be regretted.

Of animals, he says, take z—Of Fisk—Blemies,
Gobies, VVrasses. OfMollusca—Aplysia, Periwinkle,
Chitons, Scallops, and Burrowing Bivalves, such as
Venus, Pullastra, etc. Of Crustacew—Eurynome,
Portunus puber, Carcinus maenas, Ebalia, Corystes,
the Paguri, Porcellana platycheles, and the Cran-
gones, and Palaemones, that is, Shrimps and Prawns.
OfAnnelids—select Pectenaria, the Sabellae, and the

112

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

Serpulae. 0f ZoopkytesT-the Madrepores, and all
the Actiniae. *

Few will establish an Aquarium without deriving
great mental improvement, and the enlargement of
their circle of acquirements, in a direction highly
calculated to develop some- of the best and highest
feelings of our nature. Even the scientific cannot
fail greatly to enlarge their sphere of knowledge in
this new, and almost untrodden, field of research.
Even entomologists, sighing that there are no new
Tiniae to add to the already enormous list, no new
Curculios with which to form another volume to the
already portly series—these and other physiological
Alexanders, weeping for new regions to subdue, may
hail the Aquarium as a fertile source of further con-
quests; for, notwithstanding the numerous and curious
discoveries of recent investigators, the depths of the
ocean are as yet, comparatively speaking, one of the
untrodden fields of science; and a glorious arena it
presents—the Aquarium being one of the fairest
channels for the detection of its myriads of yet hidden
mysteries.

The marine Aquarium is, however, as yet a play-
thing, a mere toy; but it is destined to become a far
more important means of advancing science, and

ministering to popular instruction, amusement, and
113 I

OCEAN GARDENS ;

wonder, than is yet dreamt of. It has yet to do for
the ocean that which our menageries and vast gar-
dens, devoted to the service of natural history, have
done for the forests and mountains of the terrestrial
portion of our planet.

We shall yet have tropical Aquaria, in which the
temperature and qualities of the sea between the
tropics will be so successfully imitated, that the glo-
rious shells of those regions will be exhibited in living
motion to our greedily-curious gaze; and intertropical
fish gleaming with unusual dyes—metallic azure, and
silvery crimson—will dart and glide in tanks arti-
ficially warmed, as in their own tropic ocean, for our
delight and gratification. Through the medium of
Aquaria, we are now entitled to expect from science
that it shall exhibit to us the wonders of the tropic
deeps, as it has shown us the glorious plumage and
velvet-spotted furs of the denizens of its terrestrial
forests.

This is, in fact, the only thing that still remains
for us to do, in making a fitting popular display of
the wonders of Nature, such as may surpass the
doings of the ancients in that field of instruction
and gratification, in which their efforts were framed
upon a scale of magnificence that we have not yet
approached. ‘

114

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

Even in the days of ' Cyrus, we learn from the
graphic Xenophon and other sources, that every
eastern satrap had his “ paradisus,” in which the most
curious animals of distant regions were preserved in
a state of liberty, and in a manner suited to their
natures, either for the sport of hunting, or for the
curious gratification of the eye.

The Romans, long before they had attained to the
material wealth of the modern nations of Europe,
had exhibited to the people of their capital all the
noblest animals of Asia and Africa. Even the Giraffe
and the Hippopotamus were familiar forms to the
Roman populace; while, with the great modern na-
tions of the west, the sight of these wonderful
creatures is but quite a recent gratification. It only
remained to the ancients to have exhibited a Titanic
Aquarium, to render our triumph over their labours
in the field of popularized natural history impossible.
Had but a Roman Warrington or Gosse developed
the germ of such an idea, and an Osler existed, to
furnish the glass—the Pompey, or Caesar, or Crassus,
would not have been wanting to feast the eyes, both
of patrician and plebeian Rome, with an Aquarium
containing hundreds of fathoms of sea-water, inwhich
the monsters of the deep would have been exhibited

in deadly conflict, and human divers, armed with net
115

OCEAN GARDENS;

and trident, like the retiariae of their gladiatorial
combats, would have encountered beneath the waters
the Shark, the Whale, or the Torpedo, encouraged
by the shouts of crowded circuses, the centre of which
would have been a glass-walled ocean.

But a gigantic Aquarium is, fortunately, a feat
that yet remains for modern science to achieve, and
which it will doubtless accomplish. The day will
arrive when we shall see the living Behemoth—the
Titan of the deep—rolling majestic in waves of his
native element, perhaps pursued by his cruel enemy
the Sword-Fish, or harried by a shoal of Herrings.
Or we may see the dreaded Shark float round and
round the vast glass prison seeking his prey, and the
Shark-hunter of the South Seas may be imported to
exhibit his skill in a bloodless conflict—mocking the
attempts of the sea monster to seize him, as the
Spanish matador plays long with the infuriated bull;
but without necessitating the same catastrophe to the
animal, defenceless against the specially-trained skill
of his human antagonist. \Ve have already had our
crystal palaces, covering their acres, and filled with
objects of art and wealth from every quarter of the
globe; it is not impossible, therefore, that we may
have crystal-walled seas, in which aquatic menageries

will form the last new object of fashion and wonder.
116

OR, GLIMPSES BENEATH THE WATERS.

For the present, however, the Aquarium is, as I
have said, but a toy, yet one full of pleasant in-
struction ; and it doubtless contains the germs of a
development, the precise direction of Which it is at
present difficult to guess.

THE END.

 

London: Thomas Harrild, Printer, 11, Salisbury Square, Fleet Street.

 

 

 

 

 

I .\ 3. Hm (‘umxnun Nivklxlluu-ln Jun/Muslims Irmiusrm uml [mun-us).

."L 'Hw (":uldis \\ur1u. 1 Thu Mnnh Mulil, 71, 'l'hr \VHIL‘K‘ Scwrpitvn.

RIVER GARDENS;

BEING

3n gamut 0f the “£231 3112mm

OF

CULTIVATING FRESH—WATER PLANTS 1N AQUARIA,

IN SUCH A MANNER AS TO AFFORD SUITABLE ABODES TO ORNAMENTAL
FISH, AND MANY INTERESTING KINDS OF AQUATIC ANIMALS.

BY
H. NOEL HUMPHREYS,
AUTHOR 0!“ “OCEAN GARDENS ;” “INSECT CHANGES ;” “BRITISH BUTTERFLIES

AND THEIR TRANSFORMATIONS ;” ETC.

 

L O N D O N:
SAMPSON LOW, SON, AND 00., 47, LUDGATE HILL.

MDCCCLVII.

LONDON :

THOMAS HABRILD, PRINTER, SALISBURY SQUARE, FLEET STREET.

CONTENTS.

CHAPTER I.

PAGE
INTRODUCTION

CHAPTER II.

DISCOVERY OF THE PRINCIPLES OF THE AQUARIUM, AND THE
BEST MODE OF CONSTRUCTING ONE

9
CHAPTER III.
PLANTING THE RIVER GARDEN IN THE AQUARIUM 19
CHAPTER IV.
CONCERNING THE CHARACTERISTICS I OF TILE PLANTS SELECTED
FOB TEE AQUARIUM . 30

CHAPTER V.
THE MOLLUSCA AND THE FISH 46

CHAPTER VI.

STICKLEBACKS AND THEIR NEST-BUILDING 66

iv CONTENTS.

CHAPTER VII.

GOLD-FISH .

CHAPTER VIII.

REPTILES FOR THE AQUARIUM

CHAPTER IX.

AQUATIC INSECTS, ETC.

PAGE

80

92

. 101

LIST OF PLATES.

PLATE I.

A GLASS AQUARIUM.
PAGE

Design for Planting a Circular Aquarium With Arum, SundeW,
Forget-me-not, etc.. . . . . . . . . . . . 21

PLATE II.

WATER LILIES.

Nb.

1 8c 2. The Water Lily . . . Nymphwa albw . . . . 25
3. The Yellow Water Lily . . Nwha/r lutea . . . . . 25
4. The Small Yellow Water Lily Nupha/r pumfla . . . . 25

PLATE III.
AQUATIC PLANTS, ETC.

. Forget-me-not . . . . . Myosotz's palustm's . . . 26
. Frogbit . . . . . . . Eydrocha/m's morsus mm' . 32
The Water Beetle . . . . Dytz'ous ma/rginah's . . . 101
The Larva of the Dyticus. . . . . . . . . . . 102
. The Lesser Water Beetle . . . . . . . . . . 102
. The Lesser Water Beetle in its Larva state . . . . 102

@OVPPOMH

vi LIST OT PLATES.

PLATE IV.
FISH.
No.
1 & 2. Minnows
3. The Perch
4. The Tench
5. The Roach
6. The Pike .
PLATE V.

STICKLEBACKS AND THEIR anrs, ETC.
(FRONTISPIECE.)
1 & 2. The Common Sticklebacks Gasterosteus, Trackums,
and their Nests . {
. The Water Scorpion
. The Marsh Snail
. The Caddis Worm .

and Lemma

Chi-{>03

PLATE VI.

GOLD-FISH, WATER SNAILS, AND VALISNERIA.

1. Gold-Fish . . . . . . Cyprmus auratus
2. Valisneria . . . . . . Valisnem'a spiralis
PLATE VII.

AQUATIC REPTILES.

1 & 2. The Smooth Newt . . Lz'ssotm'ton punctwtus
3 & 4. The Large Smooth Newt . . . .
5. The Water Persicaria . . . Polygonum amlw'bz'um

PAGE

64
49
56
58
59

}67

. 105
. 47
. 105

. 83
.' 4O

94
94
33

LIST OF PLATES.

PLATE VIII.

AQUATIC PLANTS, ETC.
Nb.
1. The Arrowhead . . . . . Saggz'ta/m'a sagz'ttz'folz'a
2. The. Yellow Water Iris . . Im's Pseudacoms .
3. The Water Soldier . . . . Stratz'otz's aloz'des .
4. The Water Spider . . . . Amy/renew aquatiow .
5. The Crayfish. . ' . . . Astacusflum'atzlz's
6. The Tree Frog . . . . . Rama a/rborea .

 

vii

PAGE '

32
24
31

. 105
. 106

97

RIVER GARDENS.

  

CHAPTER I.
INTRODUCTION.
-‘ Y the culture of some of our most beautiful

fresh-water plants, in glass Aquaria, many
_ ; of the Wild beauties of Nature, 1n some of
her most pleasing and interesting aspects, may be
wrought into attractive decorations for our ordinary
living rooms, With very little trouble or expense.
But this is not the chief object of such Aquaria.
Their formation has been suggested by the dis-
covery that the growth of aquatic plants will main-
tain the water, contained in such a vessel, in a
state of purity sufficient for the healthful existence
of all kinds of animal life of Which water is the
natural element. By means of an Aquarium, there?
fore, the forms and habits of fish, reptiles, and

aquatic insects may be made to develop themselves
1 B

RIVER GARDENS ;

under our eyes, undisturbed by the continual neces-
sity of changing the water; thus affording us the
curious spectacle of many phases of animal life that
have hitherto lain concealed in depths inaccessible
to the observation of the most curious observer.

I can well recollect my first longings, as a
young naturalist, to unravel the mystery of the
teeming world of life beneath the waters. The
Pictures of those days are still vivid as things of
yesterday. Perhaps more so; for later sensations
are faint in comparison to those keen first impres-
sions of nature in the days of early youth. I re-
member the eager, straining curiosity with which
I endeavoured to look down into the transparent
depths of the brooks and ponds of my native War-
wickshire, seeking to trace the outline and move- .
ments of dim forms that I could imperfectly per-
ceive gliding among the tangle of rushes and Algae
far beneath the surface. But one favourite fish-
pond, in the orchard of an old house, the residence
of a distant relative, riveted more than any other
my greedy curiosity. I have lain for hours on the
grassy border of that weed-grown water, peering
between the floating leaves of the Frogbit, or
Water Plantain, into the clear brown depths be-

neath. It seemed a world full of wonders. I saw
2

OR, THE HOME-CULTURE 0F FRESH-WATER PLANTS.

the great Water-beetle row himself swiftly past with
his fin-like legs far below the surface—now darting
through a clear open space, and now disappearing
in the deeper shadows, or gliding away among the
undulating stems of the water weeds. I saw the
strange form of the same creature in its larva state,
but did not know it then; indeed what could lead
me to guess that it was the infant shape of the same
insect P

As I lay there in the early summer sun,
gathering the pink-tinged ears of the Soft-grass—of
which I afterwards learned that the botanical name
was IIolcus lanata—the woolly Holcus, from the
white and downy surface of its blade-like foliage—
I turned again and again from my grassy bouquet
to my world of mystery, deep in the water; con-
tinually catching glimpses of some moving thing
that increased my curiosity to the highest pitch.
There was a certain exciting charm to a young
lad, already an expert angler, in detecting the form
of a great Jack lying suspended in midwater, en-
joying his warm noon siesta ; or in seeing a noble
Perch glide majestically past, urged forward by a dig-
nified wave of his graceful tail—and with his great
dorsal fin nobly erect, bristling with a defiant fringe

of spears, which even the voracious Pike generally
3

RIVER GARDENS ;

considers an effectual defence. There is, as I have
said, a certain indefinable charm, especially to a
young angler, in watching these larger and better
known denizens of the water; but how much more
eager is the stirred curiosity to define the stranger
forms of creatures unknown, or much less fre-
quently observed, such as the larvae of many semi-
aquatic insects, or the early stages of the Newt,
during which his external breathing apparatus, those
mysterious branchiae, appear like some parasitic
plant springing from his head. How much more
eagerly the eye follows the gem-like gleam, as it
passes, which is emitted from the air-filled globule
of the Water-spider, shooting past like an aquatic
firefly, but bearing a flame of silver instead of gold;
and then the mysteriously moving mass that con-
tains the Caddis-worm, or the strange antics of the
larva of the Gnat. These are the moving things, with
hundreds of other kindred shapes, which fill the
young imagination with elfin pictures, dream-like
as those it might embody in some dark chamber of
romance. How often did I try, frequently at the
risk of falling headlong into the deep pond, to
fish up some of the dimly-seen creatures which so
strongly excited my curiosity ! But they generally

escaped through the meshes of the little net I had
4

OR, THE HOME-CULTURE OF FRESH-WATER PLANTS.

contrived; and one which I afterwards constructed
of muslin was far too conspicuous in the water to
afford me many chances of capturing the objects of
my pursuit. Even when I was successful, and had
the good fortune to see one or more of these curious
inhabitants of the world of waters safely deposited in
some earthen pan or bottle, I was seldom able to
keep them many days. The young larva, disturbed
by the continual changing of the water, to keep it
fresh, died; or, when I attempted to clean it un-
disturbed, the water itself became putrid, and had
to be cast away, along with the miniature monsters I
had hoped to make my pets, and preserve for a
long time, observing and studying their evidently
curious habits and instincts. I had one triumph,
however. A strange scorpion-like creature, after
exercising its voracious appetite upon every other
living thing in the vessel in which I had placed it,
seemed suddenly to lose all taste for the luxuries
of the palate, notwithstanding a copious supply of
the living delicacies it was most fond of, and with
which I had taken -. care to furnish it at regular
intervals. It became restless, and apparently dis-
eased, and I concluded that I was about to lose
this favourite specimen as I had lost so many others.

Its uneasiness, however, took quite a different turn
5

RIVER GARDENS ;

to the one I expected, ending in nothing less than
a determination to leave its native element. Had I
seen a Carp or a Tench quietly walk out of the fish-
pond and climb a tree, I could not have been more
astonished than when I saw this creature of the
water—which, with its fin-like tail and other ap-
pendages, was evidently intended for a denizen of
that element, , quietly crawl up a stick which was
standing in the vessel, and emerging from the
water, remain quietly attached to the support it
had selected, at some inches above the surface of the
element it thus so strangely and suddenly quitted.
Its determination appeared the more astonishing, as
I soon perceived that its finny tail, its legs, and at
last the whole of its skin gradually hardened and
blackened, and it appeared to have shared the natu-
ral fate of “a fish out of water.” After watching
it for some days, without perceiving any further
change, other matters occupied my attention and
I entirely forgot the fate of my voracious pet, which
had met such an untimely end in consequence of
rashly leaving the proper sphere of its existence.
Some little time afterwards, I was about to
empty the jar, and throw away the stick to which
the dried and hardened form of the victim to getting
out of bounds was still attached, when I thought I

6

OR, THE HOME-CULTURE OF FRESH-W'ATER PLANTS.

perceived a division in the blackened skin of the
back. As I saw that the opening widened, my
curiosity became again excited, and I determined to
watch and see if any other change would follow.
Taking a book, therefore, I sat down near the object
of my attention. I had not read many pages, turn-
ing frequently towards the remains upon the stick,
when suddenly—I shall never forget the surprise of
that moment—when suddenly, the opening of the
back was much widened, as by some sudden effort,
and the greater part of a glittering Dragon-fly be-
came plainly visible; very quickly the whole insect
emerged from the blackened shell, spreading its
great gossamer wings to the sun, which was shining
brightly through the window.

I had, by a lucky accident—for I can hardly call
it the result of a course of observation—witnessed
one of the most extraordinary and complete of the
metamorphoses that occur in the whole range of
insect life, and was all anxiety to pursue my dis-
coveries. I was, however, baffled in all future
attempts, at that time, to extend my knowledge of
the mysterious creatures of the world of waters, and
it was not till recent discoverers have shown how
the Aquarium may be made the means of facilitating

studies of that class, combined with an elegant and
7

RIVER GARDENS, ETC.

delightful mode of amusement, that I resumed the
course of observation which had been so long inter-.-
rupted by difliculties that appeared insurmountable.

Now, however, that so much has been done to-
wards smoothing the way, I have been again at-
tracted to the long neglected aquatic studies, and
snatch every moment I can spare from the literary
labours which have carried my pursuits in a very
different direction, to renew my old and ever plea-
santly remembered acquaintance with the interest-
ing inhabitants of our ponds and streams.

 

CHAPTER II.

   
 
 

I DISCOVERY OF THE PRINCIPLES OF THE
AQUARIUM, AND THE BEST MODE OF
““6323: CONSTRUCTING ONE.

' s I stated in my little essay on the
" formation of a marine Vivarium (en-
titled “ Ocean Gardens”), the first
/: clearly defined views upon the subject

\ -. of the mutual interchanges of gases

"‘QN‘ going on between vegetable and animal

life, by means of which the vital prin-
ciple in each was sustained, were put forth by
Lavoisier, Priestley, and Ingenhauss, towards the
close of the last century. The theories of Ingen-
hauss, especially those concerning the functions of
aquatic plants, were announced in greater detail
than those of Lavoisier and Priestley, the following
passage being found in his last essay :——“ Plants
immersed in water, when exposed to the action of
light, emit an air known as oxygen.” The know-
ledge Of this principle is the keystone in the con-
struction of the Aquarium.

The first successful Aquaria were, nevertheless,
9

RIVER GARDENS ;

the result of accident rather than scientific experi-
ment, as neither the establishment of Aquaria nor
the illustration of the principles announced by
Priestley and Ingenhauss were sought, when it was
first found that fish would live longer and more
healthily in vessels in which aquatic plants were
growing, and also that the water, under such con-
ditions, remained clear without artificial aeration,
or the addition of fresh water.

Nevertheless, it is interesting to know who were
the ingenious and philos0phical experimentalists
who first, while in pursuit of other results, became
the means of demonstrating that a miniature “lake”
or “ocean” could be constructed in a glass tank little
more than a foot square, exhibiting the plants and
animals peculiar to each, all maintaining themselves
in a healthy condition, as in real lakes or oceans,
without any further care being bestowed upon the
little world after its first creation.

Mr. Ward, in 1837, threw out, incidentally, the
first practical hints towards the formation of glass
vessels, whether for terrestrial or aquatic plants, in
describing the success of his attempts to grow ferns
in closed glass cases. Dr. Johnston, in 1842,
proved that sea water containing marine Algae in a

growing state, would remain pure for almost any
10

' OR, THE HOME-CULTURE OF FRESH-WATER PLANTS.

length of time, though the experiment he was pro"-
secuting was for another and perfectly distinct
purpose—that of ascertaining the true vegetable
nature of corallines. Dr. Lankester, in his capital
treatise on the Aquarium, states that he kept Stickle-
backs in a glass vessel with a plant of Valisneria, in
.1849, which was, in fact, a true Aquavivarium upon
principles now adOpted; but he did not then an-
nounce it as a discovery, nor probably consider it as
such. Mr. R. Warrington was, in fact, the first
(in 1850) to publish, in a paper communicated to
the Chemical Society, a series of observations upon
the subject. In that essay he entered, with some
detail, into the functions assigned to plants for the
conversion of carbonic acid gas into oxygen, and the
consequent necessity of their presence for the pre-
servation of animal life, which would otherwise, by
the quantity of carbonic acid which it throws off,
become poisoned by its own secretions. He further
stated clearly that a third, or cleansing agency,
was absolutely necessary, inasmuch as certain por-
tions of plants, or the whole, having arrived at ex-
treme maturity, naturally perished, and that the de-
caying matter so produced was calculated to cause
as much injury as the superabundance of carbonic

acid, or the absence of oxygen. In fact, parts of
11

RIVER GARDENS ;

the aquatic plants of his tank having so perished,
he found the water become suddenly impure, and
his fish die. In this state of affairs he had direct
recourse to the book of Nature for further informa-
tion. He examined natural ponds, in which a certain
amount of decaying vegetation must necessarily be
found, yet without causing putrefaction of the water.

His next step was, doubtless, to procure por-
tions of such decaying matter, and examine its
peculiar condition. It was then, we may imagine,
that he found the remains in question covered with
Water-snails, which, acting as natural scavengers,
were consuming the putrescent substances as fast as
they occurred, and so preventing the results which
had proved so fatal to his tank. This was his great
and original discovery. He added Water-snails to
his tank, and the crowning element of success was
achieved. Thenceforth his miniature lake went on
as self-supporting as its great prototypes among the
mountains, all the main conditions insisted on by
the laws of Nature having been complied with.
The reading of the paper containing these interest-
ing facts, and the publication of subsequent essays
on the same subject, in the “ Annals of Natural
History,” must give Mr. Warrington the honour of

being the more immediate founder of the Aquarium,
12

OR, THE HOME-CULTURE OF FRESH-WATER PLANTS.

in its practical form, and upon true and distinctly
announced principles.

Mr. Ward had, it is true, described in 1849 his
success in growing marine plants in artificial sea-
water, which established another interesting feature
connected with the establishment of Aquaria, though
it had been previously proved by Dr. Johnston’s
experiment. He did not, however, make any state-
ment in reference to the necessity for plants to
sustain animal life in Aquaria, leaving it to Mr.
Warrington, who had been so completely successful
in his fresh-water experiment, to turn his attention
to the establishment of a marine tank upon similar
principles, in which he has been also more tho-
roughly successful than any other operator. Many
have since followed in the track of the pioneers
I have named, among the most distinguished of
whom the names of Mr. Gosse and Dr Badham
stand pre-eminent.

Experiments of a different class, which were in
the main pure Aquaria, had been long in operation.
Such, for instance, as the Vivarium described by
Mr Jesse, at Hampton Court, in which many kinds
of fish were kept alive and in a healthy state. This
happy result, however, was accidental, and arising

from the size and situation of the Vivarium in ques-
l3

RIVER GARDENS ;

tion, in which plants and snails, the air-givers and.
scavengers, established themselves unsought, and
the Hampton Court Vivarium assumed, therefore,
similar conditions to those of a natural pond, and
cannot, therefore, enter into the category of glass
Aquaria, such as can be placed upon a drawing-room
table; nor can its establishment be Considered to
interfere with the credit of the inventors of Aquaria,
as its success was not the result of the premeditated
application of a new discovery.

The successful illustration of the principles ne-
cessary for the artificial cultivation of aquatic plants
and animals in small vessels, has been so splendidly
exhibited at the Zoological Gardens of London and
Dublin, that the taste for imitations upon a smaller
scale has become quite a mania. A distinguished
writer on the subject has, in fact, happily quoted a
passage from J uvenal in illustration of the reigning
fashion for Vivaria of this kind, which is exceed-
ingly apt, though the Roman satirist referred not
to little glass tanks, but to the collections of wild
beasts which were so much sought after when he
penned the passage—

“ Omnes tanquam ad vivaria currunt.”
It only remains, in this portion of my little

work, to say something practical of the manner of
14:

OR, THE HOME-CULTURE OF FRESH-WATER PLANTS.

preparing a “ River Garden,” or, in other words, a
fresh-water Aquarium. In the first place, care
should be taken that the paint and cement of the
glass tank (an article of room decoration now too
common to require description) should be perfectly
dry, and entirely free from any unpleasant smell,
which would be fatal to many of the animals, if not
even to the plants also.

The layer of earth at the bottom of the tank, it
is to be observed, is used more as a kind of anchor-
age, to retain some of the plants in their places,
than as necessary to their growth ; for the water is to
water plants what the earth is to the terrestrial ones,
and from it they take their chief nourishment. It
is better, therefore, to use only cleanly washed river
sand, a slight disturbance of which will not render
the water turbid, as when other kinds of earth are
used. Some plants, however, such as the great
Water-lily, are found to do better with a layer “of
rich earth under the sand; but plants of that size
are more suited to aquaria on a large scale in a con-
servatory, than to a small tank at a chamber window.

In placing a few shells, or other objects on the
sand, as stays to the roots of plants that should
have a fixed position, care should be taken to select

such objects as would naturally be formd in fresh-
15

 

RIVER GARDENS ;

water. Sea shells, or corals, so often used for this
purpose, have a very anomalous appearance, and de-
stroy the natural character of the whole arrangement.

The kind of water is not very material, if the
balance of animal and vegetable life, after added, be
nicely adjusted, and not introduced too profusely.
A few cautions, however, are necessary. Water
that has been boiled would not do; in fact, fish will
live but a very short time in boiled water, because
in that operation the greater part of the oxygen has
been expelled from it. The water of chalybeate
springs is likewise unfit, as the salts contained in it
are very injurious to vegetation. River water is
best, but pump or well water will answer very well,
especially if well aerated, by pouring from one
vessel to another before used.

The water in the tank may be occasionally
aerated, also, by means of a common pair of bellows
with a piece of gutta-percha tubing attached to the
end of the pipe. A contrivance of this sort is
adapted for all the tanks at the Dublin Zoological
Gardens, with branch pipes leading to each separate
tank, so that one pair of bellows aerates the whole
series. The action. of the air, as it enters the vessels
from these tubes, is said to produce a very pleasing
effect, insomuch that Dr. Ball, when he described

16

OR, THE HOME-CULTURE OF FRESH-WATER PLANTS.

the apparatus at the Cheltenham Meeting of the
British Association, stated that “ visitors were
so fond of blowing the bellows, that the curator
found it quite unnecessary to employ attendants to
inject fresh air into the tanks ;” an amusing remark
which has been repeated by Dr. Lankester.

A small hand-net is useful for occasionally re-
moving fish or other animals; or, for more minute
objects, a glass tube, to be used in the following
manner :—If the thumb be placed tightly over the
upper end of the tube, when about to be intro-
duced into the water, and so held till its lower
end is close to the object it is wished to take out,
and then withdrawn, the water will rise into the
tube itself, expelling a portion of the air, and the
; object may then be taken out along with the water
in the tube.

Experience, however, will best suggest many
such contrivances necessary to the possessor of
an Aquarium; and as they will be of more value
when arising in the course of such experience, than
when derived from hints thrown out in this place,
I shall leave the student to make his own disco-
veries, in all mere matters of convenience; as he
will necessarily adapt them more aptly to his own

peculiar views and wants, than one who should
17 C

RIVER GARDENS, ETC.

attempt to describe them without the special evil
to be remedied immediately before his eyes. All
that the teacher can safely do, therefore, is to make
the student thoroughly conversant with principles,
and the details Will naturally follow.

 

18

CHAPTER III.

PLANTING THE RIVER GARDEN IN THE

, ’3 . , AQUARIUM.
. ’fi/”

' HE very first plants placed picturesquel)r
. 9,‘ in an Aquarium produce an effect so
3"

    
 

2 pleasing that the trouble of structure,
Ia‘Jor the expense of purchase, are forgot-

\ M v" ten in a moment. The object at once
\f‘f‘g'fifiv forms, in fact, a most exquisite orna-
V““ \F ment for a living room, and especially
a study. The cool, fresh aspect of water is always
delightful; and the peculiar growth of aquatic plants,
straggling in graceful spiral, or in a thousand other
‘ singular and playful forms, towards the surface and
the light, are both beautiful and interesting, espe-
cially when seen as a fish would see them, that is,
sidewise, and not from the top, or looking down
upon them indistinctly, as is our ordinary point of
View for these objects. The gentle gliding move-
ments, too, of many. of the water creatures, subse-
quently to be introduced, are of a soothing and
' placid character, that seem to fill the mind with a

19

    

RIVER GARDENS ;

sweet and lulling sensation, as by a kind of silent
music. But, instead of stepping to admire the
effect of the first steps in our plantation, let us
first ascertain whether all the necessary conditions
in the preparation of the vessel have been properly
complied with.

In the first place, it should be filled with water
some days before the introduction of the plants,
and so long as any prismatic scum makes its appear-
ance at the surface, the water should be changed,
as that is a certain indication that the cement, or
other materials used in the construction of the tank,
are not, as yet, thoroughly cleansed and seasoned.
When, at last, the water remains perfectly clear,
then, and not before, we may begin to introduce
our plants. It may be as well to observe, en pas-
scmt, that the scum just alluded to may possibly
arise from some improper materials employed in
the ornamental rockwork intended to imitate the
picturesque bed of the river, on which the garden
is about to be planted. Any pieces of rock con-
taining metal are bad, as are also all kinds of dross,
such as clinkers from glasshouses, etc., and should
be removed, if found to produce the effect described.
Picturesquely formed stones, gathered from the
pebbly beds of brooks or the rocky shallows of

20

PLATE 1.

E
i
2

Q9

 

DESIGN FOR PLANTING A CIRCULAR AQUAHH'M, Wl'l'll ARUM, SITXDEW,
FUIUEI‘J'llbll-JANU'P, Ll'l'U.
I‘Aux 1‘1.

OR, THE HOME-CULTURE O-F FRESH-WATER PLANTS.

lakes, are best. I have recently seen some very
handsome pieces, brought from Loch Erne, which
are of a beautifully mottled grey tone, that has a
charmingly cool and natural effect in an Aquarium.

If it be intended, in addition to the purely
aquatic plants, to add a few of those which, with-
out growing in the water, love to linger on its mar-
gin, a plan which I strongly recommend, then a
portion of the rockwork must be made to ascend
above the surface, as shown in the circular Aqua-
rium (Plate 1.), in which two pieces of the rockery
are made to project above the water, each contrived
with cavities sufficiently deep to contain a supply
of earth for a small group of plants.

The Aquarium represented in that Plate is one
of the simplest and cheapest kind, being formed by
. the inversion of a common bell-glass, which is
mounted upon aturned wooden stand of the simplest
design. One of the projecting pieces of rockwork,
the highest and driest, has been planted with a
small root of Fern, belonging to the more dwarf
and delicately foliaged kinds. The other has been
made to form the receptacle for a fine tuft of Forget-
me-not—a plant which never flourishes so luxu-
riantly as when its roots find their way into

water. Its flowers, in such a position, attain nearly
21

RIVER GARDENS ;

double the size they do when in a drier situation,
and become so beautiful in their tender shades of
delicate turquoise-blue, enamelled with their deli-
cately small touches of white and amber at the base of
the petals, that one can fully understand how the fair
girl in the German legend longed for those growing
out of her reach in the broad shallows of the Rhine.
One can sympathise, too, with the enthusiasm of
her lover, who, endeavouring to grasp them, lost
his balance, and fell into the stream; being carried
away by the treacherous current, still holding the
coveted flowers in his clenched hand, and flinging
them to the shore as he sunk, crying, “ Vergeis
mein nicht !”——Forget-me-not I It was the popular
name—perhaps thus acquired—which probably in-
duced one of our last Plantagenet kings, Henry V.,
to assume this pretty flower as his badge, instead of
the Broom, which had been that of his ancestors.
The name, when so taken, however, as a soldier’s
motto, was no longer a love-cry, but a shout of
defiance; and the warlike successes of that victori-
ous leader were such as to make the war-cry, “ For-
get me not!” appropriate enough when addressed
to his enemies. I was about to say more upon the
subject of the sweet little Forget-me-not and its

associations, but space forbids.
22

OR, THE HOME-CULTURE OF FRESH-WATER PLANTS.

The pretty plant growing with it, in the same
Plate, is the Sundew, which delights also in damp
situations. Its leaves delicately fringed with pink,
and its pretty rose-coloured blossoms, combined
with its general neatness of growth, make it a
generally desirable plant for the Aquarium, in
which, with proper care, it thrives well.

In the centre of the vessel I have placed an
Arum (O’alla Ethiopica), a plant which always
flourishes best in water, forming a truly magnifi-
cent ornament for the borders of ponds, where I
have seen it introduced with great success. In
such situations it dies down in the winter; but
protected by a sufficient depth of water, does not
suffer from any degree of frost, though avery slight
one is sufiicient to destroy it when grown in a pot.
In the Aquarium it forms a very beautiful object.
The foliage rises like a column of some semi-trans-
parent green marble through the water, spreading
into a finely foliaged capital above; and when the
flowers eventually shoot up from this fine coronet
of elegantly formed leaves, the effect is magnificent.
But, even before the appearance of the flowers, there
cannot be a finer central object for an Aquarium than
a group of such leaves as those of the majestically
graceful Calla. Among aquatic flowering plants,

23

RIVER GARDENS ;

the following will be found suitable to the Aqua-
rium, taking care to select those of small growth for
tanks of ordinary size, while all kinds may be grown
with success if Sufficient space be allowed, especially
in Aquaria on a large scale established in conserva-
tories, which are now becoming very general :—

. The Greater Water Plantain.

. The Floating Water Plantain.

. TheWater Soldier,orWater Aloe.
. The Yellow Water Iris (Plate

Alisma plantago
Alisma natans .
Stratiotes aloides

Iris pseadaeoras

VIII., No. 4).
Hydroekaris morsus rani . . . The Frogbit.
Sagittaria sagittifolia . . . . . The Arrowhead.

Polygonam amphibia . . . . . The Amphibious Persecaria.
. The Featherfoil, or Water Violet.

Hottonia palastris . .

Ranancalas aqaatilis . . . . . The Water Crowfoot.
Veronica Beeeabanga . . . . . Common Brooklime.
Nasturtium ofieinalis . . . . . Common Watercress.
Batomus amtellatas . . . . . The Flowering Rush.
Teueriam seordiam . . . . . Water Germander.
Micropkyllam spicata . . . . . Water Milfoil.
Tabalaria aquatica . . . . . The Aquatic Owlwort.
.Hijrparis valgaris . . . . . . The Common Marestail.
Callitrielie verna . . . . . . The Water Starwort.
Ceratopkyllam demersam . . . The Hornwort.

Tke Lemna tribe . . . . . . Duckweeds.

Aponogiton distaekg/am . . . . The Cape Aponogiton.
.Potamogeton peetinatas (and other '
species) . . } l‘he Pondweeds.
Anaekaris alsinastram.
Lastly, the most important and useful of all,

Valisneria spiralis.
24.

OR, THE HOME-CULTURE OF FRESH-WATER PLANTS.

To this list must be added the species of native
W'ater Lilies, where space admits :—

Nympkcew alba . . . . . . { The White Water Lily (Plate
11., N o. 1).
The Yellow Water Lily (Plate
NupIza/r lutew . . . . . . . { II., No. 2).
. The small Yellow Water Lily
Mp 7‘ W 1’ “W“ { (Plate IL, No. 3).
Wlla/rsz'a nympkwoz'des . . . . The Lily-like Villarsia.

When there is sufficient space and a certain de-
gree of warmth, foreign species of the Water Lily
tribe may be added, as the beautiful Nympkcea
caemolea, one or two of the Euryalz’ tribe, and
even the giant Victoria regiw ; but as one leaf
alone of this Titanic example of water vegetation
would cover the space of half a dozen drawing-
room Aquaria, it is in ordinary cases out of the
question. The ingeniously persevering processes of
Chinese gardeners might, indeed, be able to reduce
the scale of this stately queen of the waters of the
Amazon to such a scale as would enable them to
grow it in one of their own quaintly painted minia-
ture tea-saucers; but we have not, as yet, at-
tained to much skill in this kind of “ gardening in
small.”

To these plants may be added some of the

25

RIVER GARDENS ;

Water Grasses, which are very ornamental, and more
especially the fresh-water Algdz and the Stoneworts.

There are also the plants growing at the margin
of the water to be noted ; among which the follow-
ing stand foremost as among the most desirable :— -

Myosotz’s palustm's . . . . . The Forget-me-not.
.DrosemAnglz'ca (and other species) The Great Sundew.

C Ztk Z t d bl d 1
a a pa as Ms ( ou ean sing e H} The Marsh Marigold

varieties) .
Mnyantkes tmfolz'ata. . . . . The Buckbean.
Pingmcula vulgar/ms (and other } The Common Pinguicula
species). . . . . .
Esgm'sz'ta syhzatz‘ca . . . . . Drooping Joint Grass.

Of such plants as may be grown on higher por-
tions of the rockwork, rising out of the water, the
following Ferns have been named by Mr. Hibberd
as well suited to our purpose :—

 

 

 

Bleclmum boreale . . . . . . The Northern Blechnum.
Polypodz'um phegoptem’s . . . . Beech Fern.

vulgar/re . . . . . The Common Polypodium.

dry/Owen's . . . . Oak Fern.
Cetemch oficinam'w . . . . . The Common Ceterach.
Lastrea spinulosa . . . . . . Withering Fern.
Cystoptem's fragilz's . . . . . Brittle Bladder Fern.

— Alpz'na . . . . . Alpine ditto.

Antkym'um filis fwmz’na . . . . Beautiful Lady Fern.
Scolopendrz'um vulgar/r68 . . .I . Common Neat’s Tongue.
Adz'antum capz'llz's-venem's . . . True Maidenhair.
Trickomanes Tunbm'dgense . . . Tunbridge Filmy Fern.
Opln'oglossum mom . . . . Adder’s Tongue.

26 \

 

I'LA\I.\, I. 'l'llr‘ ‘ ruuhll illyrlmrlmm mumm mni», ‘J. 'l )w l‘rvrm-l-mtulml (Jig/mum [ul’rmh'm]

barn x.—I. The Iurm nl'Ilw \Vzltur I‘m-ll.- [Hy/Inn mm'gin 11w. LL 'I')u- \\‘;nnr lhwln [III/11mm v. urg ,u/Iw m
its rerfrct Ham. 8. The Inna nfllw Luxwr \\'nlcr lit-cur. é 'Ihc 1.8:M'r \S'ulvr lit-c112 in it:- 11'rfl'vtnlnlc.

OR, THE HOME-CULTURE OF FRESH-WATER PLANTS.

‘ ' To these may be added the following, which I
have selected from the splendid and extensive col-
lection of Mr. Henderson, of Pine Apple Place,
Edgware Road :—

 

 

 

 

 

Adz'antum cuneatum. Poke/podium Zepz'dosmw.
Asplem'um attenuatum. Ptem's cretz'cw.
bulbz'femm. serrulata.
Cassebeem hastata. Selagz'nella dentz'culata.
Davallz'a solz'da. 2'nwgualz's.
Gom'oplzlebzhum nerz'z'folz'um serpens.
Lz'tobroo/cz'a dentz'culata. stolom'fem.
Polypodz'um latq'pes. Mrtensz’z’.

 

 

There are also several Fern-like .lI/ycopods well
I worthy of cultivation on the raised dry rockwork
of the Aquarium, one or two species of which
will thrive and grow during a year or more, by
having the foot-stalks of the fronds or leaves
placed in the water, and allowing the feather-like
foliage to droop over the sides. A very pretty
effect was produced in this manner in the Fernery
of Mr. Henderson, where every information regard-
the culture of Ferns and their allies is freely and
obligingly given by the intelligent attendant.

In collecting wild Ferns, take in preference those
found within the drip of waterfalls or on the
banks of streams as most likely to succeed on the

rockwork of the Aquarium. Care must be taken to
27

RIVER GARDENS;

arrange plenty of drainage where you plant your
Ferns, bits of charcoal, sharp sand, or rotten
leaves have been recommended by Mr. Hibberd and
others. The water must be prevented also from
running in constantly to the roots; a certain de-
gree of dryness about the root is essential to Ferns,
and your Fern-ground must be constructed accord-
ingly.

As a general principle, the water-plants do not re-
quire much, if any, soil; as water is to them, as pre-
viously stated, what earth is to terrestrial ones, and
the bed of the stream or pond only serving them as
anchorage. Nevertheless, some plants, especially
the Water Lilies, apparently require a somewhat
strong soil to grow in. Plants of this class are,
however, too large for most Aquaria, though it
is stated that the Nuphar looted may be grown in a
vessel one foot square.

When the Aquarium has been furnished with
its plants, with snails to destroy the confervoid
growth on the glass, and to consume decaying
vegetation, at the same time furnishing a vast num-
ber of eggs to nourish the fish and other animals
in the tank, a complete circle of compensating prin-
ciples may be said to have been established which

impart to an Aquarium many of the permanent
28

OR, THE HOME-CULTURE OF FRESH-WATER PLANTS.

qualities of a real lake. The vessel must, however,
above all things, be placed Where it Will receive a
sufficiency of light, for Without that vivifying influ-
ence neither the Aquarium, nor even the natural lake
itself, could carry on its interesting processes. It
is in the sunshine, indeed, that some of the most
beautiful phenomena involved in the creation of
oxygen by the plants are exhibited, especially When
the bubbles of the newly emitted gas rise quivering
to the surface, displaying, With beautiful variations,
all the colours of the prism.

)4 A‘ ' IV \h N
“so \ “WWW

 

29

CHAPTER IV.

,. ' 4 CONCERNING THE CHARACTERTSTICS OF THE
PLANTS SELECTED FOR THE

f- f ,
g! gm?! AQUARIUM.

       

‘2-‘Q

  

<3?
“4% \

N order that one about to establish an
£5; Aquarium may be able to form a tole-
‘ ably accurate idea of the plants, from‘
among which he is about to select the
ornaments of his aquatic garden, it will
be necessary to give some further ac-
count of the most remarkable of those
named in the lists contained in the last chapter.

Of the plants growing in the water, which are
the most important to an Aquarium, in conse-
quence of their aerating qualities, the first on the
list is the Great Water Plantain. Its botanical
name, Alisma, signifies a dweller in the water.
When finely grown, in a favourable situation, it is
one of the most stately of our water plants, and is
consequently too large for a very small Aquarium;
but it is remarkably handsome, and very suitable
where there is sufficient room for its display. The

Alisma natams is a swimming or rather floating water
30

 
  
 

 
    

8y

RIVER GARDENS, ETC.

plant. It is excessively pretty, and its white-
cupped, three-petalled flowers are shown peeping '
above-the water in Plate VIII. (No. 2). It is a
plant of convenient dimensions for the Aquarium.
The Water Soldier is also a plant of most manage-
able dimensions; and its compact Aloe-like growth
and handsome white flower make it very desirable
for tanks of the smallest dimensions. (Plate VIII.,
N o. 1.) Its military name is supposed to have
been given in consequence of its erect, soldier-like
‘ appearance. The pointed leaf resembling, by a
stretch of the imagination, a sword, which is in
fact so sharp, that it often pricks the fingers of
collectors; the flower, too, has been supposed to
resemble a bronze helmet, surmounted with a white
plume. The roots of the parent plant must be
. placed firmly in the sand or soil at the bottom of
the tank, from whence it will send forth runners,
each of which, when it has reached the surface,
forms a separate plant, which, after flowering, sinks
again to the bottOm and takes root in the bed of the
pond or tank, to send up fresh flowering offsets to
the surface, as its parent had done before it. When
at the bottom of the tank, and in the under-water
period of its growth, this plant gives off oxygen

freely, and forms, also, a grateful shelter for small
31

RIVER GARDENS ;

fish; but it must be closely watched, as it is subject
to sudden decay when its treatment is uncongenial ;
in which case it should be removed from the colony
immediately.

A group of the Iris pseud-acoms (Plate VIII.,
No. 4,) forms a handsome central object to a tank.
Its bright yellow flowers, in their season, being
very attractive. Its name, the Im's, or rainbow,
has been given to this tribe of plants on account of
the great variety of rich colours with which the
flowers of the different species are enriched; rang-
ing, as they do, from yellow and red to almost
every shade of blue and purple. The Frogbit,
the botanical title of which, Hydrocharis, signifies
“grace of the waters,” is as elegant and beautiful
as its name implies. Its flowers, of a delicate
creamy white (see Plate III., No. 1), are deli-
cately reared just above the surface, from among
its purplish leaves, while its roots float down-
ward from the plant, like slender threads, moving
gently with the slightest agitation of the water.
It is strictly a floating plant.

The Arrowhead is one of the handsomest of our
native plants“! both leaves and flowers being re-
markable; the shape of the former has, indeed,
given to it both its botanical and popular English

32

OR, THE HOME-CULTURE OF FRESH-WATER PLANTS.

name. The large white flowers, finely blotched
with pink in well-grown specimens, appear in July,
and at that season would form a grand attraction to
the Aquarium (see Plate VIII., No. 3). The plants
of Arrowhead might be sought in their native
brooks and ditches just before the flowering season,
and, as they bear removal well, they need only be
allowed, like many other plants, to occupy the Aqua-
rium during the period of their inflorescence, though
it is always worthy of culture for the beauty of its
leaves alone. The rhi'zoma, or under-ground stem,
of the Sagittaria is very fleshy, and is used for food
in several European countries.

The amphibious Persicwria, with its pyramidal
spikes of pink-tipped blossoms, forms a very pretty
object for artificial culture (see Plate VII.); as
does also the Featherfoil or Water Violet. The
last is indeed an exceedingly desirable Aquarium
plant, its feathery leaves having a very graceful
appearance beneath the surface, spreading their
elegant forms about the lower portions of the tank,
like plumes of green feathers, while the flowers,
growing in a series of whorls, appear above the
water, and have a very pretty effect, being of a
delicate pinkish purple, becoming yellow towards

the centre. This plant has received its botanical
33 D

RIVER GARDENS ;

name, Hottomla, in honour of the well-known
Dutch botanist, Hotton.

The Water Crowfoot, or White Water Butter-
cup, should always form one of the plant-collec-
tion inan Aquarium, on account of its peculiar and
interesting growth. The leaves of this plant, while
they grow beneath the water, are so deeply “ cut ”
or branched, as to appear almost fibrous in their
character, like those of the class of plants which
never appear above the surface. But the fibres of
those leaves which are developed above the water
become connected by the same kind of tissue as
that which usually connects the veins of ordinary
aerial leaves. In this new condition the upper
foliage assumes quite a different character, and the
plant has thus the appearance of being furnished
with leaves of two remarkably distinct kinds.

The common Brooklime, though rather coarse
in its growth, puts forth its racemes of pretty blue
flowers very abundantly; and the esculent Water-
cress is also worthy of cultivation in the Aquarium,
especially when treated in the following manner :—A
few seeds should be procured,which can be purchased
of any of the leading seedsmen, and sown in the
bottom of the tank, where they will soon produce a

very pretty green crop, over the undulations of the
34s

OR, THE HOME-CULTURE 'OF FRESH-WATER PLANTS.

sand and rockwork. The plants may be allowed to
come to maturity, if thought proper, as they flourish
well in such confinement ; but as few will deem the
Aquarium a fitting place .to reap a harvest of Water-
cress, they may be removed after the more pleasing
early stages of their growth are passed, and a few fresh
seeds sown so as to continue the desirable effect.
The Flowering Bush is the monarch of its tribe;
being crowned with a wreath of rosy flowers, which
form the floral glory of our streams, and the chief
ornament and desideratum of a river-side bouquet.
I never, in the season (June and July), consider
my nosegay of brook and river flowers complete
without it. The plant is, however, somewhat large
for Aquaria of the smaller sizes, as the leaves at-
tain two or three feet in height, and the flower-stem
rears itself high above them. Its growth, however,
in confinement would be less vigorous, and as it does
not occupy much space laterally, one grand towering
ornament in the centre of the tank, when the situa-
tion suits, might be desirable. The botanical name
of the genus, Butomus, signifies “ hurtful to an OK,”
and, in fact, the sharp points of the leaves often
wound the mouths of cattle when they go to drink.
The Water Germander and Water Milfoil

are both manageable and desirable plants in an
35

RIVER GARDENS;

Aquarium; especially the latter, for its graceful
foliage beneath the surface of the water, the
minute divisions of which have given to the genus
the name of Milfoil, from Millefollz’um, or thou-
sand leaves, which name, however, in its botanical
sense, belongs more properly to another genus, the
plants of which are not aquatic: the Water Mil-
foil having, in fact, for its botanical title, a Greek
instead of a Latin title, Myriaphyllum, meaning,
however, the same thing.

The Awlwort is a curious little water plant,
worth growing on account of the peculiar awl-like
form of its leaves, which has conferred upon it its
botanical name of Subularia, from the Latin subula,
an awl. The common Mare’s-tail derives its scientific
name Hippums from the Greek words hippos (om-woe)
a horse, and 02m» (ofipa) a tail. It has pretty whorled
leaves, but inconspicuOus flowers. It has, how-
ever, been highly recommended for the Aquarium,
but is not so desirable, in my opinion, as many other
aquatic plants, requiring, as it does, a good depth
of soil to make it flourish healthily.

The Starwort is a much more suitable plant
than the one last named, both on account of the
ease with which it is cultivated in a small tank,

and also its curious habits of growth. The star-
36

OR, THE HOME-CULTURE OF FRESH-WATER PLANTS.

like form assumed by the leaves, in the position
they invariably take on the surface of the water,
forming a number of very symmetrical asteriods,
has given the plant its popular name—a name which
might be further confirmed in its propriety, if need
were, by an examination under the microscope,
in which position a number of minute rosette-
shaped excrescences will be discerned on the leaves,
occupying, apparently, the position and functions
of the hairs of other plants. It is so subject to
vary in its appearance that botanists have been
much inclined to subdivide the species.

The Hornwort is always introduced into lists of
plants for the Aquarium, and is, perhaps, some-
what interesting on account of the horny excre-
scences of its leaves, from which its botanical name
Oeratophg/llum, from the Greek acres, or rather
hams (Icepas‘), a horn, and phillon ((1900.01)) a leaf.
The plant has, however, little beauty, and might
with advantage, as I think, make way for others.

’ The tribe of Duckweeds, however, though
scarcely more ornamental than the Hornwort, have
other advantages that compensate for their want
of beauty. The plants of this family are said to
derive their botanical name Lemma, from lepis, a

scale, on account of the close scale-like manner with
37

RIVER GARDENS ;

which they cover the surface of still waters. In the
Vivarium the Duckweeds are found of great advan-
tage, from their peculiar habit of growth, which
affords a natural screen to the animals below, when
the sun is too powerful; and Dr Lankester tells
us, in his instructive little work, that these plants
harbour a number of minute creatures, among
which the microscopist may hunt for some of his
most valued game, which at the same time pro-
vides food for the fish and other inmates of the
Aquarium. All that is necessary to establish a
Duckweed screen is to remove a small portion of it
from the surface of some neighbouring pond, when it
requires no other replanting than merely throwing it
into the Aquarium, where, being strictly a floating
plant, it soon establishes itself and spreads rapidly.
The loose pieces should, however, be picked out, as it
‘is only in a mass that it produces a pleasing effect.
The Cape Aponogeton is one of the most desir-
able plants for the Aquarium, as it continues flower-
ing nearly all the year round, and the flowers
themselves, besides being very pretty, are sweet-
scented. It is quite hardy, and grows with great
luxuriance in our open ponds. In the Botanic
Garden, in Edinburgh, and the tanks of the Zoolo-
gical Society, in Regent’s Park, London, this plant

38

OR, THE HOME-CULTURE OF FRESH-\VATER PLANTS.

has been greatly admired, and few amateurs of
Aquaria, who have seen it, have failed to procure
immediately a few roots for their own tanks.
Anacham’s alsmastmm is another plant which:
if no longer to be termed exotic, is, at all events, of
very recent foreign extraction. It should find its
place in every Aquarium. It has been called the
New Water Weed, or, by some, Water Thyme, from
its slight resemblance to plants of that class, and its
history is somewhat interesting. It was unknown
in England so lately as 18412, when the late Dr.
George Johnston, of Berwick-upon-Tweed, noticed
it for the first time in a pond, at Dunse Castle, in
the month of July of that year. Specimens were
sent to the Cambridge Botanic Gardens, where it
grew far too abundantly, and the refuse, which was
from thence thrown into the Cam, has thriven with
‘ such extraordinary luxuriance that it threatens to
form a serious impediment to the navigation of that
stream. From Kew Gardens it has, in like man-
ner, escaped into the Thames, where it is already
one of the most abundant and troublesome of the
water weeds; while in some of our canals it posi-
tively threatens to put a stOp to the navigation
entirely. In the Aquarium, however, it is easily
kept within bounds, and is exceedingly valuable,

39

RIVER GARDENS ;

not only for its graceful appearance, but also as
one of the most effectual of vegetable aerators.

The Valisnem’a has the same valuable pro-
perty, and its grass-like foliage is, at the same
time, one of the most graceful adjuncts to an
Aquarium, as shown in Plate VI., in which it is
supposed to be a central object, round which gold
fish are sporting in the enjoyment of the grateful
shade it affords. The Valis'neriw and Anachamls
have a pretty effect grown together, and are the
only plants (attended by a few fresh-water mollusca)
necessary to an Aquarium in which a few choice fish
only are kept. Valisnemia is named after the Italian
naturalist Valisnei, who wrote on insects and plants
in the last century.

The Water Lily tribe have been described in
another place, as also the ornamental Water Grasses,
and we now come, therefore, to a series of water
plants of a lower range in the scale of vegetation,
though not less curious and interesting.

These consist of a class of fresh-water vegeta-
tion analogous to the sea-weeds of our coasts, and
also of another family, consisting of two genera
of plants only, Nitella and 07mm. These two
genera contain, however, some pretty vegetable

forms. The Flexile m’tellw may be known by the
40

OR, THE HOME-CULTURE OF FRESH-WATER PLANTS.

branched character of its stems, and its smooth,
pellucid appearance. The Charm Hedwegia and
Chara kispida are both very elegant, and their
somewhat angular forms would afford an agree-
able variety to the other vegetation. Their pre-
sence is indicated in the plate of fish. (Plate IV.)

Of the fresh-water Algae the most interesting sec-
tions are, perhaps, the Quiverworts, or Oscillatomlw,
the singular movements of which have led to many
conjectures and to much discussion among learned
naturalists. They have been thought by some to
form, in fresh-water, the same link between vegetable
and animal life as that of some of the lower order
of marine polyps. In short, the subject is so at-
tractive, that I make no apology for introducing
here the interesting paper on the subject read by
Professor Knowles, of Birmingham, at the late meet-
' ing of the British Association at Oheltenham :—

“ ON THE OSCILLATORLE, BY PROFESSOR KNOWLES,

“ OF QUEEN’S COLLEGE, BIRMINGHAM.

“The Oscillatomlae belong to a group of plants
which seem to stand intermediately between the
animal and vegetable kingdoms.

“ With regard to the extraordinary movements

observable in this interesting family of Aigw, I have
441

RIVER GARDENS ;

not hitherto met with any explanations that appear
to me to be satisfactory.

“Dr. Hassall, in his work on the flesh-water
Algae, observes, that he can perceive nothing extra,
ordinary in these motions; nothing indicative, as
most suppose, of a sensitive or animal life. He
then goes on to state that the Oscillatorice are
naturally straight; that the act of placing them
under the microscope must, of necessity, bend
them; and that the motions that are then per-
ceived are nothing more than a return to their
naturally straight position, depending upon their
elasticity. He further states, that currents almost
imperceptible in the liquid in which they are im-
mersed, and perhaps unequal attractions amongst
the filaments themselves, are causes amply sufficient
to explain any motion which he has ever witnessed
amongst the Oscillatom'ae.

“This appears to me to be a very easy, but
unsatisfactory mode of disposing. of a difficulty; in
short, it is an opinion that is evidently the result of
hasty or insufficient observation.

“ Now, I have no hesitation in stating that, after
very careful and repeated examinations, I have fully
satisfied myself that the motions of this family of

fresh-water Algae are entirely independent of any
42

OR, THE HOME-CULTURE OF FRESH-WATER PLANTS.

electrical influence ; of any current in the fluid in
which they are placed; or of any effort to recover
their straight position. The movements, in fact, have
very much the appearance of being spontaneous;
an Opinion in which I am pleased to find that Cap-
tain Carmichael fully concurs. The' late Captain
Carmichael devoted his attention for many years to
the investigation of marine and fresh-water Algae,
and his opinions upon this subject are consequently
entitled to the highest respect.

“ Many of the larger Oscillator/lice, if carefully
examined, may be seen to move in various direc-
tions—sometimes to the right, sometimes to the
left, sometimes slowly, sometimes briskly. I have,
however, never perceived in them anything like an
effort to recover the straight position which is con-
sidered natural to them. On the contrary, they
may often be observed to bend gradually, so as to
form a very considerable curve; return again to
the straight position; and then bend in an Opposite
direction. They have also a progressive motion;
and two filaments, lying side by side, may frequently
be seen advancing in opposite directions on the field
of a microscope. This progressive motion, in all
probability, is effected by means of cilia, although
I have not hitherto been able to detect them.

43

RIVER GARDENS ;

“ Of the correctness of these facts any one may
readily convince himself by examining, with a
little attention, fresh specimens of any of the
larger Oscillatoriw.

“ The evidence which I have adduced on this
subject is sufficient, I presume, to prove the fal-
lacy of Dr. Hassall’s views.

“ Closely allied to the Oscillator-ice is the genus
Spirillum, the motions of which are equally re-
markable. Some time ago I met with one which
may, possibly, be new, as I do not find it to agree
altogether with any species described either by Dr.
Hassall, or any author to which I have been able to
refer. It comes nearest to Spirillum Jenner/13 ; but
Dr. Hassall has not seen that species with more than
eight or ten spiral coils; while the specimens I am
alluding to have often fifty or sixty spires, and
occasionally nearly 100.

“ I have usually found it mixed with various
species of Oscillatorice. Its motions are occasionally
very active, and are very like those of the larger
Oscillatomlae, except that, in advancing across the
field of the microscope, the movement is distinctly
Spiral. I have also very often seen two of them
entwine with each other, and thus present a beau-
tiful chain or cable-like appearance.” ‘

4A:

OR, THE HOME-CULTURE OF FRESH-WATER PLANTS.

After the reading of the foregoing paper, it was
remarked by Professor Balfour that the motions in
question might be the result of the growth of the cells
of the plant; but Dr. Lankester considered them en-
tirely owing to the proteinaceous protaplasm within
the cell, a matter which, both in plants and ani-
mals, is known to possess a contractile power. It
was the source of the movements in the Proto-
pkg/ta and Protozoa, and might be regarded as
containing the essential elements of a nervous
and muscular system. So far Dr. Lankester’s
argument agrees with the theory of Professor
Knowles; but he omitted to state whether he con-
sidered the movements voluntary or not, so that
this interesting physiological question is still an
open one.

It will be seen, from these observations, that the
. keeping of an Aquarium should always be accompa-
nied by the possession of a micros00pe, with the aid
of which it is evident that an abundant, curious, and
instructive course of investigation need never flag,
while the inmates of the tank are kept in that flou-
rishing condition, which a prOper attention to the
principles upon which it is founded cannot fail to
secure.

CHAPTER V.

  
 

; / % THE MOLLUSCA AND THE FISH.

W-EHEN the plants are well established,
‘ :‘I pr: the water not forming the slightest
’- ' scum, and the tank furnished with
three or four common Pond Snails to
consume any decaying vegetation
- that may occur, and keep down the
~ growth of the confervae which would
cover the glass, and render the spectacle of its
inmates imperfect, then the Aquarium is ready for
the reception of the fish; which, from their grace-
ful forms and agile and pleasing movements, are
always the greatest favourites.

Previously to describing the fish most suitable for
our purpose, we may derive some entertainment and
instruction from the examination of the family of
shell-bearing mollusca of our fresh waters, whose ser-
vices as scavengers are so important in the circle of
compensating principles, upon which the establish-

ment of the Aquarium is founded. The common Pond
46

    
    

RIVER GARDENS, ETC.

Snail alone has been found to fulfil these functions
with great completeness, but as variety of form is a
great desideratum when it is sought to render an
Aquarium an ornamental object, several other kinds
of fresh-water mollusca may be added. The Trumpet
Snail, with its flat coiled form, similar, in miniature,
to that of the giant Ammonites, so remarkable among
the shells of a former epoch of the world’s natural
history, will, for instance, form a pleasing contrast
to the sharp spiral of the shell of the I/o'mneus
pereger, or small Mud Snail. Then there is the
beautiful though. common Marsh Shell, Paladina
vivipam, and its relative, Paladinw achatina, both
of which would be ornamental as well as useful.
These species only attack the small decaying portions
that fall from the plants, or the minute confervoid
growth that attaches itself to the glass. But some
. other species are very destructive to the plants
themselves. Among these the larger Mud Shell,
Lymneus stagnalz’s, is most voracious in an Aqua-
rium, and a couple of them would soon clear it of
its little forest of aquatic vegetation. Some of our
bivalves of the fresh-water Mussel tribe may be
added, for variety of form, though it is not yet
ascertained whether they are useful as cleansers.
Among these the Swan Mussel (Anodon cygneus) is

47

RIVER GARDENS ;

interesting on account of its large size and agree-
ably tinted semi-transparent shells. The British
Pearl Mussel (Alasmodon margaritiferus) might
also be introduced. Pearls are occasionally found
in all the fresh-water Mussels, but most frequently
in the last-named species, being generally caused
by the accidental presence of some small irritating
substance within the shell, which cannot be ex-
pelled, and which is therefore coated with layers of
the same substance as that which forms the nacreous
lining of the shell itself. The artificial introduction
of such substances has been tried with success, but
not with sufficient certainty of result to be of any
commercial importance. The pearl fishery in some
of our British streams was, however, at one time
followed with such perseverance as, no doubt,
rendered the trade in them to some extent remune-
rative, and in the time of the Romans they were
sent to Italy in considerable quantities. Anti-
quarians have collected many interesting particulars
concerning this traffic, which we have only alluded
to en passomt. There are many other varieties of I
British fresh-water shells which might be intro-
duced with advantage into the Aquarium, but I
must refer those who would make them a pro-
minent feature in the tank, to the beautiful and

48

PLATE IV.

 

\. 'Hw l‘oruh Ll'n'mflumx/I’M}. J ‘l'hc‘lum'll (’l'nm: rub/urn). .1. Th» Hnm‘h (Leurllt'us ruhluu'r.

 

t. The I'ike “\Emr {Imus}. Tn. v Alumnus [Laurisrmyhnnmm).

OR, THE HOME-CULTURE OF FRESH-WATER PLANTS.

complete works on our British fresh-water shells,
such as those of Turton and others.

The cleansers having been duly located to keep the
apartment in order, like the neokorio of the celebrated
temples of Greece, the fish may be introduced.

I shall speak of Gold and Silver Fish in a separate
place, and commence my description of the British
species suited to our purpose with the Perch. (Plate
IV., No. 1.) He is a fine fellow, and we should take
care to make his acquaintance, and know some-
thing about him before requesting his company in
the little glass palace to which he is about to be
invited. Baron Ouvier, in his great work, has
chosen the common Perch as the type of his order:
Perm—an honour to which his finely marked charac-
teristics fully entitle him. His distinct markings, his
strikingly erect dorsal fin, and fine bold movement
in the water, early attracted the notice of ancient as
well as modern naturalists, and we thus have him
accurately described under the name of wepm)
(perké) by the great Greek physiologist Aristotle.
He was the Perca of the Romans, as Mr. Yarrell
tells us in his beautiful work; and his ancient name
has been but little mutilated in his modern titles.
Pergesa, in Italy; Perscke, in Germany; Perche,

in France; and more briefly Perch, in England.
49 E

RIVER GARDENS ;

This handsome fish is found in nearly all the lakes
and rivers of temperate climates, but in the colder
regions, towards the north, he becomes rare, and
at last disappears. Even in the lochs north of
the Forth he is but sparingly found, and entirely
wanting in the more remote lochs of Scotland. Yet
his distribution is somewhat capricious, for although
he is not found in Orkney or Shetland, he is described
by Nellson as not infrequent in Scandinavia.

The Perch, if not of too large size, in which case
he would be dangerous to his neighbours, is exceed-
ingly well suited to the Aquarium, both on account
of his robust constitution, and his susceptibility of
being tamed, to say nothing of his handsome
appearance. Mr. Jesse, in speaking of Perch placed
in a Vivarium in Bushy Park, says, that after be-
coming familiar with their new mode of life, they
came up boldly and took worms greedily from the
fingers. This fish is, in fact, one of the most fear-
less of his tribe, and his rashness often proves his
destruction, for he is generally the first prize of the
young angler. Perch have been known to breed in
small vases, and there is little doubt that they
might, with only ordinary care, bring up a nume-
rous family in a well-managed Aquarium. They are

so hardy that they live for many hours out of water,
50

OR, THE HOME-CULTURE OF FRESH-WATER PLANTS.

and revive when put in again without appearing to
have sustained much injury. In Catholic countries,
indeed, where fresh fish is much more prized than
with .us, fine Perch are often brought to market and
exposed for some hours on Open stalls, upon a little
damp moss, and if not sold, taken back, and put
into the pond again. The Perch frequently attains
four pounds in weight, or even more. Donovan,
in his “ History of British Fishes,” says they have
been taken from Bala Lake weighing five pounds;
and it is stated by Yarrell, that a gentleman residing
near Dudley took one six pounds in weight from
the Birmingham Canal. Colonel 'Montague re-
cords the capture of a Perch of still greater size,
stating that one was taken in the Avon, in Wilt.
shire, with a night-line baited for a Pike, which
weighed eight pounds; dimensions which Pennant’s
famous specimen considerably exceeded, the one he
records as taken in the Serpentine, weighing nine
pounds ! This must have been a magnificent fish;
but it is stated by Block that a head of a Perch is pre-
served in the Church at Luehlah, in Lapland, mea- ‘
suring near twelve inches from the nose to the gill
cover. This, however, must doubtless be the head
of some allied species, and not our common Perch;

probably the last of some now extinct species.
51

RIVER GARDENS;

The colouring of a healthy and well-marked Perch
is very striking. The back and upper parts are of
a rich olive-brown, variegated by several broad
bands of a dark purplish hue. These upper tones
pass into rich golden tints, which grow gradually
paler till they become nearly white underneath.
The ventral, anal, and caudal fins are bright ver-
milion, the others, different shades of brown, the
dorsal one being marked with a few black spots.

Specimens of the Perch are occasionally found
nearly white, in ponds impregnated with the par-
ticles from particular soils; and they retain this
colour even when removed to other waters. A
white Perch would form a splendid addition to the
Aquarium, but such a prize is but rarely to be
met with. It should be observed here that fish
placed along with the Perch should be of nearly or
quite his own size, as he is terribly piscivorous.

I stated, in reference to the Perch, that it was
desirable to know something of his character and
antecedents before introducing him into the Aqua-
rium. The same remark applies in like manner to
the other fish recommended for that purpose, as the
more we know respecting their habits, qualities,
history, etc., the more we shall find them sur-

rounded with pleasing and instructive associations, .
52

OR, THE HOME-CULTURE OF FRESH-WATER PLANTS.

and capable of inspiring many kinds of interest which
we should not have dreamt of without some'previous
knowledge concerning them. I shall therefore make
no apology for appending a brief historical notice to
each of the fish about to be described.

The Carp is a desirable fish for the Aquarium—
perhaps even more so than the Perch, as he is not
so voracious; indeed, he seldom attacks fish, living
almost entirely upon small aquatic insects or
worms, etc. The common Carp, Cypmlmos carpio,
was noticed by both Aristotle and Pliny, but was
not held in so much estimation by the ancients
as by the moderns, especially during the middle
ages.

The Carp declines in size when removed from the
warmer regions of the temperate zones; but he is
“ cultivated ” as a table delicacy with much success
both in Austria and Prussia, where Carp ponds
form an essential feature in rustic economy. An
acre of water stored with Carp will, in fact, let for
as much as an acre of the richest land. In central
Europe, where it is difiicult, indeed nearly im- '
possible, to obtain sea fish, those of the fresh-water
are very highly prized, and their‘ growth and
various methods of fattening them have been studied

with much success.
53

RIVER GARDENS ;

From the custom of keeping them in artificial
ponds, the great age to which a Carp will live has
been frequently noticed, and there are several cases
recorded of their living for a 100 and even 150
years. The celebrated tame Carps of the ponds of
Fontainebleau are, indeed, said to have been placed
there in the reign of Francis 1., which would give
them a much greater age. It is said, however,
that after a certain time they lose the golden hue
of their scales, which assume an ashy tone, by which
their advanced age may be known.

Mascal claims the credit of having introduced
Carp into England, but they were certainly known
before this time, if, indeed, in our southern waters
they are not indigenous. In the curious book of
Dame Juliana Berners, prioress of Sopewell Nun-
nery, called the “ Boke of St. Alban’s,” and printed
at Westminster in 1496, by Wynkyn de Worde, the
Carp is mentioned as “ a deyntous fish 3” and in the
privy purse expenses of Henry VIII., for the year
1532, various sums are entered as paid to persons
for bringing Carps to the king.

The Carp loves sluggish rivers, especially when
the bed is formed of soft mud ; but he grows much
more freely in some waters than others, without

any apparent cause. In Scotland Carp grow very
54

OR, THE HOME-CULTURE OF FRESH-WATER PLANTS

slowly, and it is said do not breed at all. They live
for a great length of time out of water if kept
moist with damp grass or moss, and are often
suspended in that way in the dairies in Holland,
and fed upon bread and milk, under which treat-
ment it is said they fatten very quickly, and the flesh
becomes exceedingly delicate. In ponds they feed
well on boiled potatoes, and have been known to
attain to three pounds in weight as early as their
sixth year.

They attain, occasionally, a remarkable size even
in England, though not so great as in some parts of
the Continent. Mr. Ludbrooke, from his park at
Gatton, as we are told by Yarrell, presented Lord
Egremont with a brace that weighed thirty-five
pounds; while at the fishing of a larger piece of
water, on another estate, a Carp was found thirty
_ inches long, and weighing eighteen pounds.

Aristotle calls the Carp ICU'7pr09, which Pliny
translates prm'flms, the name by which the genus
is still known in scientific natural history. His
popular names have, however, for a long period
been Carper/0, Oarpo, Karpfen, Cowpe, or Carp. It
is said that the Carp was originally introduced

from Persia, and became distributed in EurOpe by
degrees.
55

RIVER GARDENS ;

I have mentioned the fine Carp in the ponds at the
Chateau of Fontainebleau; and M. Orbigny* men-
tions others as fine, and probably of as great age,
at Chantilly and Pontchartrain. The Carp in the
Dniester and Volga attain to a very large size, not
infrequently weighing as much as seventy pounds.

The Crucian Carp, prrinus curassia, by the
French termed Oarpe camssin, and in Sweden,
Oarussa or meuclze, is another species, generally of
inferior size, which is well suited to the Aquarium;
as is likewise another distinct species, the Prussian
Carp, prrimus gibelio, which is a very hardy fish,
and it is said will live for thirty hours out of water.

Our old favourites, the Gold and Silver Fish, are
of the Carp family (Cg/primes carat/Ms), but I shall
speak of them separately in another place.

The Tench (Plate IV., No. 2,) is also easy to keep
in a moderately sized glass tank. His fine deep
bronze tones, touched here and there with a sparkle
of gold at the edge of the scales, as though
brightened by his passage through the water, give
to him a richness of hue that produces a good
effect among the foliage of the tank; while his
small and delicate scaling forms a remarkable con-
trast to the large horny scales of the Carp. In the

9“ See Hist. Nat. vol. iii.
56

V

OR, THE HOME-CULTURE OF FRESH-WATER PLANTS.

Aquarium at the Zoological Gardens there are
several Tench, which appear to enjoy themselves as
well as in their native ponds. They generally lie
near the bottom, as though in a dreamy and pleasing
abstraction, but if too closely watched glide myste-
riously away and disappear, taking advantage of
some deep shadow, or projecting stone, or tuft of
Valisneria. Like the Carp family, the Tench is
very tenacious of life. ”Daniel, in his “ Rural
5*» Sports,” mentions a curious example of this tenacity
under very peculiar circumstances. A pond had
been filled up for many years, when it became
necessary to clear away the ground below the depth
of the former pond. On the last portions being re-
moved, it was found that the mud at the bottom had
never thoroughly dried, and there were a few holes
imperfectly filled by the rubbish, which still con-
tained a small quantity of water. In these cavi-
ties several Tench of large size were found in per-
fect health. Their habit of hybernating in the mud
having made this long interment only appear, it
would seem, like a somewhat unusually long winter.
Under the roots of a buried tree a larger hole than
the rest contained rather more water, and in this
an immense Tench was found, which had grown to
the form of the hollow which had so long been his

57

RIVER GARDENS;

prison, and could not be removed till the roots were
cut away. This singularly shaped creature was
perfectly healthy, and remained so after being re-
moved to an ordinary pond, where he continued to
flourish at the time that Daniel wrote his account
of the circumstance, which was some years after
the removal of the monster Tench to his new abode.
The Tench is a good table fish, but is sometimes
unpleasantly flavoured by the presence in the pond
of some rank weed. This kind of susceptibility is,
however, very capricious; for occasionally Tench,
which were positively stained black by the mud
of the waters in which they have been bred,
have been found perfectly sweet, while those taken
in much more favourable situations have had a
muddy or earthy taste, which is a very common
objection to the flesh of the Tench. This forms no
obstacle, however, to the adoption of the Tench as
an inmate of the Aquarium, and only refers to his
eligibility for the fryingpan or gridiron.

The Roach, Leuciscus rutilus (Plate IV., No. 3),
is a very pretty fish. His white scales glisten like
silver, against which the bright red fins are seen to
great advantage, giving him that bright, sparkling,
healthy appearance which perhaps led to the

saying, “as sound as a roach.” This may have
58

OR, THE HOME-CULTURE OF FRESH-WATER PLANTS.

arisen, however, from his French name, Roche, that
is, rock ; and “ sound. as a rock ” may possibly have
been the original form of the saying. But as the
Italians have a proverb, “somo come él pesoa”
(sound as a fish), it seems that we may leave the
English form of the same idea, “ sound as a roach,”
undisturbed, for it is certain that he always looks
positively gleaming with bright fresh health; the
vivid orange circlet of the eye and the ruddy fins
tending to increase that pleasing impression.

Roach of from a quarter to half a pound are
considered by the angler fine fish, quite above the
usual run; but Pennant refers to Roach of five
pounds in weight. Jesse states that the largest ever
taken in the Thames weighed three pounds; and
old Izaak Walton tells us, in his quaint way, that
he considered a Roach of two pounds worthy of
. “ particular attention.”

The Pike (Plate IV., No.41), may be added to the
Aquarium without danger, if space should allow;
but he must be a small specimen, not much larger
than the Roach, or the latter would stand but little
chance of exhibiting his personal charms for a very
lengthened period. The Perch, the Carp, the
Tench, and the Pike should, in fact, be selected of

as nearly the same size as possible. Taking away
59

RIVER GARDENS;

the Pike and Perch, the others would agree well
together, of almost any size, as they are not vora-
cious—at all events in a fish-devouring way—and
are content with much smaller prey. If, however,
variety be sought—and certainly the elongated figure
of the Pike and the fine dorsal battlement of the
Perch add greatly to the diversity of the forms and
characters of a group of fish in an Aquarium—then
the caution just put forth must be carefully
observed.

The Barbel (Barbus vulgaris), a name sug-
gested by his seeming beard, will also do well in
confinement; but he is rather a clumsy-looking
fish, and also somewhat sluggish in his movements.
He is represented, though upon a very small
scale, in Plate I. Jesse mentions Barbel among
the fish kept in the Vivarium in Bushy Park,
stating that they were the strongest and most un-
tameable of all the kinds. In spring, however,
when they could perceive no one watching them,
they would sometimes roll about and rub them-
selves against the brickwork, in many playful
gambols. In the Thames they sometimes attain
the weight of fifteen pounds. They become quite
torpid in winter, sheltering themselves under some

projecting bank, or sometimes under the lee-side of
60

OR, THE HOME-CULTURE OF FRESH-WATER PLANTS.

a stationary barge, where they occasionally congre-
gate in large numbers, lying one over the other.
This state of torpidity becomes so complete in the
depth of the winter, that they may be taken by the
hand without making any attempt to escape.

The Flounder may be placed either in a fresh or
salt water tank, as he frequently ascends our rivers,
sometimes not finding his way back to the sea.
His singular action in swimming is so distinct from
that of the kinds of fish more frequently observed,
that it forms an agreeable variety in the Aqua-
rium. It is from its peculiar action when swimming,
near the bottom, that the Swedes give this fish
the name Flzmdra, from which the English name is
derived.

Another kind of swimming action may be ex-
hibited by the introduction of an Eel or two to the
~ collection, care, however, being taken not to over-
stock the colony; for it is said that two small fish
and as many aquatic plants are enough for each
gallon of water. The sharp-nosed Eel (Anguilla
acutorostris), and the broad-nosed species (A. lati-
rostm's), are equally common. Both belong to the
Lamprey tribe, Cuvier’s Murwnidce, or eel-shaped
fishes. The specimens selected should be small, as

large ones have been known to devour small-sized
61

RIVER GARDENS ;

Gold fish. They are torpid in winter ; and it is their
habit to make their way to the sea to spawn towards
August, when they will leave the ponds and travel
for miles over the meadows to reach their desti-
nation. At the time that the young fry ascend the
rivers towards the fresh waters, vast shoals of them
have sometimes been observed. The passage of young
Eels up the Thames at that season, as Yarrell informs
us, is an extraordinary sight. Above 1800 per
minute, averaging about three inches long, have
been known to pass a given point. This passage of
the young Eels, says the same writer, is called Eel
Fare, from the old Saxon word, to travel, or pass.
From this migratory habit it is evident that at
a certain season the pet Eel will escape from
the Aquarium, and most likely come to some un-
timely end, unless the requisite precautions be
taken.

Among the smaller kinds of fish, I have tried
the Loach, or Beardie (006615219 barbatula), in an
Aquarium, and found the species bear confinement
well. It would be worth while to observe very
carefully the movements of this little fish, as it is
said that by them the changes in the weather may
be ascertained as readily as by a weather-glass.

At certain periods I have, indeed, noticed that it
62

OR, THE HOME-CULTURE OF FRESH-WATER PLANTS.

becomes restless; and its p0pular name, Loach, or
Loche, is derived from the French verb locker, to
be uneasy. A continental species, the lake Loche,
is in an old naturalist’s miscellany termed the Ther-
mometmm 2273mm, ; and it is certain that they are ex-
tremely sensitive to atmospheric changes, as thunder
frequently kills them. The Loach is not altogether
solitary in this extreme sensitiveness to change of
weather, for the Gold Carp frequently die in large
numbers during thunder-storms; and Lobsters, as
Pennant tells us, sometimes cast their claws at a
loud clap of thunder. It has also been observed that
the high swimming fish are less aficected by electric
changes than those that swim near the bottom.
' The Loach, considered by us as an utterly insig-
nificant fish, is considered a choice table delicacy in
Sweden, where it was naturalized by Frederic I.
as a table delicacy.

The Gudgeon (Gobio fluvialis) holds a more con-
spicuous place among our smaller native fishes.
The tones of purplish green which decorate his
back are very pleasing, and, in some individuals, of
remarkable richness, and he occasionally attains the
length of - eight inches, though seldom exceeding
four. Three or more should be kept, if any, as they

are accustomed to swim in shoals, and a phalanx of
63

RIVER GARDENS ;

these little fish swimming about the Aquarium, in
company, produce a pleasing effect.

The Miller’s-thumb, or Bull-head, would form
a curious and interesting object in the Aquarium,
but that he has the habit of concealing himself
under stones or any other shelter he can find. In
Switzerland children watch for them and spear
them as they attempt to dart from the shelter of
one stone to that of another. It is considered deli-
cate food in Italy, as we are told by Rosso ; and in
Russia it is used as a charm against fever.

The Minnow, Leuciscus pkoxinus (Plate IV., Nos.
5 and 6), is one of the very smallest of British fish,
but he is a very elegant little fellow; His motions,
are sprightly and agile in the extreme, and when
the sun shines upon the tank in which he is placed,
the fresh olive-green of his back shading to silvery
white beneath, has a very glittering effect as he
darts playfully about. In summer the white por-
tion of the body is delicately tinted with rose
colour, which has doubtless given to him one of his
popular names, the Pink. The name Minnow,
however, or, more correctly, Minim, is no doubt
derived from the Latin word minimus, as he is, in
fact, one of our smallest fresh-water fishes. But

there is one native genus of still smaller dimensions,
64

OR, THE HOME-CULTURE OF FRESH-WATER PLANTS.

the Gasterosteus, or Stickleback, Whose habits are
so interesting that it would be well worth While to
assign a tank especially to his service; and in that
feeling I shall devote an entire chapter of this little
book to his history.

 

65 F

,.~ 73/] CHAPTER VI.

/ / STICKLEBACKS AND THEIR NEST-
< " “"“ BUILDING.

 

OME of the pleasantest associations,
;bound up with the recollections of my

  

,, 1;; P backs. All the scenes of those days of
§ \ '1. :‘O/ sunshine are still green in my memory,
/é/‘\<j~’-{-‘ and even the very names of the obscure
streamlets and lanes have a sound more intimately
familiar than things of yesterday. Sparkbrook,
Stoney Lane, Lady-pool Lane, Great Mill, are names
still attached to the reminiscences of days of peering
into the mysteries of the world beneath the waters,
and into the life and movements of half-hidden
creatures, whose instincts and habits possessed an
irresistible attraction which I could not resist.

More than once I was on the point of making
the interesting discovery concerning the nidification,
which M. Coste has had the gratification of adding
to the archives of Natural History. I had seen the
male Stickleback darting hither and thither, with a

66

RIVER GARDENS, ETC.

small bundle of some green substance in his tiny
mouth, but, with all my watching, failed to discover
the purpose for which it was intended. But before
describing this interesting discovery, which, with
proper care, may be illustrated in a well-arranged
Aquarium, let us become more intimately acquainted
with the little creature, whose parental instincts in
the matter about to be described would seem to
place him far above all the larger kinds of fish, as
well of fresh as salt water.

The Stickleback (of the genus Gasterosteus) is, as
we shall see, a most interesting little fellow. He is
found along our coasts aswell as in our inland streams,
and is, therefore, suitable either for the marine or
fresh-water Aquarium. He is possessed of muscular
strength which seems far beyond his small dimen~
sions ; and he displays his powers not only in com-
bats, often fatal to one or more of the contending
parties, but also in playful gambols, often leaping
above a foot out of the water when excited to more
than usual joyousness by the genial warmth of a
summer’s afternoon. He might escape in this way
from an Aquarium and perish, if no protection were
placed over the tank, which is a precaution desirable
.on many other accounts. His natural food consists

of small insects, chrysalids, and young fish just
67

RIVER GARDENS;

emerging from the spawn. He is very ravenous,
and it is stated by Baker, as quoted by Orbigny, that
one individual has been observed to devour seventy-
four vaudoises Within an hour. In some parts of
the Continent the Sticklebacks are so abundant,
after their spawning season, that they are used for
manure, and pigs are fed With them. In eastern
Prussia oil is extracted from them; and the Kamts-
chadales dry the Gasterosteus obolam'us in large
quantities for the Winter food of their numerous dogs.
In England also they are, in some seasons, almost
equally abundant. At Spalding, in Lincolnshire,
Pennant informs us that they appear occasionally
in such large numbers, that he recollects a man Who
earned four shillings a day by selling them at Sixpence
a bushel. These shoals at Spalding appear every
seven or eight years, coming up from the Wellan.
Their flesh is of an agreeable flavour, and forms
very Wholesome food, making an exceedingly nutri-
tious broth; but their diminutive size has secured
them against becoming very generally articles of
human food. Their cuirass-like armour and spines
secure them also against the assaults of other fish,
even the most voracious; but they have a fatal enemy
in a small crustaceous parasite, Which attaches itself

to their bodies, and, sucking the blood, soon destroys
68

OR, THE HOME-CULTURE OF FRESH-WATER PLANTS.

its victim. They are also pursued and devoured by
the voracious Water Beetle (Dyticus marginalis),
whose horny forceps defy the armour and spinal
defences of this formidable little fish.

Block states that the duration of the life of the
Stickleback is three years ; and the observations of
other naturalists appear to confirm this opinion.

Mr. Yarrell divides the genus Gasterosteus into
several species, all of which are tolerably well
marked. The first is termed G. trackums, or
Rough-tailed Stickleback; his defensive plates of ar-
mour continuing all along the side to the tail, upon
which they appear to terminate in minute spines.
The second is called G. semiarmatus, or half-armed,
his defences not continuing above three plates be-
yond the pectoral fin. The third, G. leiums, or
Small-tailed Stickleback, the side plates being less
‘ conspicuous and not extending beyond the pectoral
fin. The fourth, G. brachycentms, or short-spined
kind, as large as the first or second species named,
but having the spines on the back much shorter.
The fifth has been termed G. spmulosus, the four-
spined species, much smaller than the last named.
Probably from feeling himself more completely
armed, however, he is more decidedly pugnacious

than his larger relatives, even in confinement. The
69

RIVER GARDENS ;

last of the species frequenting the fresh as well as
salt water is G. pungitius, the ten-spined Stiekle-
back, a very distinct species, much smaller than
any of the preceding. Cuvier makes a second
species in the ten-spined division ; but it is not found
in England. There is, however, one more native
kind, the fifteen-spilled, which remains always in
the sea, but, like its relatives, will live in fresh
water. If, therefore, it can be procured, it should
be present, to complete the collection of native
species in an Aquarium, for which purpose I would
recommend preparing a special tank, which, consi-
dering the interesting habits of this pretty tribe Of
miniature fishes, would well repay the trouble. The
last-named species, though a thoroughly well-charac-
terised Gasterosteus, is of very peculiar form, almost
Eel-like in his proportions, from which it has been
termed the Sea Adder. Mr. Yarrell gives avery in-
teresting account of the capture of a specimen of this
rather rare species, in the stomach of which he found
a specimen of the curious Opossum Shrimp, which he
had never seen before. The peculiarity of the Opos-
sum Shrimp, as described by Montague, is that the
female is furnished with a natural external pouch,
like that of the Opossum or Kangaroo tribe, in

which she carries her ova and afterwards her young.
70

OR, THE HOME-CULTURE OF FRESH-WATER PLANTS.

It is composed of four concave scales turned up-
wards; and the opportunity of observing this curious
creature was deemed, by the enthusiastic naturalist
I am quoting, a more interesting event than even
the capture of the fifteen-spined Stickleback itself.
The first three species of Sticklebacks, just described,
have been considered by some as merely accidental
varieties ; and none of these ever exceed two and a
half inches in length.

Some of the habits of these interesting little
fish are very graphically described by a writer in
Loudon’s “ Magazine of Natural History.” A
number being placed, as he informs us, in a
wooden vessel of considerable size, at first swam
about in a shoal, as if exploring the nature and
capacities of their new habitation. Suddenly, one
of the party took possession of a particular corner,
‘ and succeeded in beating off his companions from
that part of the domain. First, however, a furious
battle ensued, the combatants swimming round each
other, fencing with the utmost skill, each watch-
ing for an opportunity to dash at his opponent with
his sharp spines fully extended, or failing such an
opportunity, resorting to the warfare of the mouth.
Such a contest frequently lasts several minutes

before either gives way. When one at last retires,
71

RIVER GARDENS ;

beaten by sheer exhaustion, he is followed by the
conqueror, who chases him till himself unable to
pursue. Many such contests, however, terminate
fatally in the early part of the onset, fatal wounds
being at the first furious passes inflicted with the
spines. These, however, I am happy to say, are the
habits (as we are informed) of the male fish only, the
females being quite pacific and never interfering in
these sanguinary conflicts.

They are indeed always without the gaudy and
soldier-like uniform of the male, which in sum-
mer is bright with glowing scarlet on the chest,
while on the back shades of rich purple are often
found, beautifully blending into green and white.
In combat they appear to have the power of assum-
ing their brilliant colours, as Indians do their war-
paint, and during the contest the little scaly warrior
is refulgent with scarlet, vivid green, and white. If
conquered, however, his war-paint fades to the
dullest hues, while the victor swims triumphant,
and still splendid in his gaudy uniform. If fatally
wounded, the defeated hero, in his latest agony,
once more assumes his splendid colouring (but not
so brightly), as though in his last delirium he
fancied himself the conqueror.

In this power of changing colour the Stickleback
72

OR, THE HOME-CULTURE OF FRESH-WATER PLANTS.

is quite chameleon-like. The conqueror in a com-
bat, from being a speckled dull greenish-looking fish,
assumes the rich colouring described, which varies
according to varying circumstances. The belly and
lower jaws frequently becoming brilliant crimson,
and the back sometimes white, or a beautiful cream
colour, but more frequently a fine clear apple green.

These fish, indeed, vary much even in their ordi-
nary colouring, some being very nearly black. The
little sable warriors, however, only become blacker
during a combat, and somewhat paler if defeated.

The effect of passion upon the colouring of this
tribe is strongly illustrated by the existence of a.
similar power in the marine species, the fifteen-
spined Stickleback. This pretty fish is of a fine
full olive on the back, becoming rich golden be-

neath ; but from sudden terror it has been known
‘ to turn to a pale dirty white for eighteen hours,
afterwards regaining its usual colour.

This singular kind of susceptibility in the Stickle-
back may be curiously illustrated by placing some
of the most brightly coloured in a white vessel, in
the'dark, when they quickly become nearly white,
regaining their colour when exposed in an ordinary
vessel to the light. It is said they will assume, in

a greater or less degree, the colour of any vessel in
73

RIVER GARDENS;

which they are placed, and that their natural colours
are frequently the result of the colour of the soil
forming the beds of their native streams. A simi-
lar kind of susceptibility is also found in other
fishes—a circumstance which is, in fact, a means of
defence, as rendering them less conspicuous in the
water. Dr. Stark tells us that he once observed a
shoal of Flounders, on the flat sandy part of the
coast of Holland, so exactly the colour of the sand
over which they were swimming, as to be hardly
distinguishable from it.

But I must hasten to describe the most interest-
ing instincts that honourably distinguish the little
Stickleback. I of course allude to those connected
with his habits of nidification.

Nest-architecture is generally thought to be
almost entirely confined to birds; the number of
quadrupeds which attempt nest-building being very
few, and those few not remarkable for any special
skill. Indeed, even in these cases, such as the “nest”
of the Squirrel, the Field-mouse, the Rabbit, and a
few others, it is rather a “bed” for the young, than a
receptacle for the deposition and production of eggs,
which is alone the character of a true nest.

The only true nests, therefore, except those of

birds, are constructed by fish. This, consider-
7!:

OR, THE HOME-CULTURE 0F FRESH-WATER PLANTS.

ing the apparently insufficient means which their
formation has furnished them for the edification of
such structures, appears very extraordinary, and yet,
if our means of observation presented greater facili-
ties, many more species of fish might be found to be
constructors of complicated nests, than those which
are as yet known to possess that instinct. The veil
of the waters, however, which screens their habits
so effectually from us, renders discovery in this
direction exceedingly slow.

Till M. Coste read his interesting paper, on The
Nidqiflcation 0f the Sticklebaclc, the other day, at the
French Academy, modern naturalists, speaking
generally, may be said to have been ignorant of
this peculiarity in any species of fishes, as no pub-
lished details had appeared. It had been singu-
larly overlooked by them that Aristotle, above 2000
years ago, had stated that a certain little fish had
the habit of constructing a nest like that of a bird.

Clive, it is true, among modern naturalists, had
asserted that the Black Gobie built a nest, and it is
now thought that this is the same fish alluded to by
Aristotle. Major Harding had also stated that the
Gourami, an Indian fish, constructed a kind of nest ;
but no accurate details upon the subject were made

known before the publication of the interesting
75

RIVER GARDENS;

paper, above alluded to, by M. Coste, entitled “ Sur
la Nidvgfication des Epinoclzes.” It is, in fact, these
curious details so recently published concerning the
habits of a little fish found in every streamlet,
which has at length called the attention of icthy-
ologists to this interesting subject.

Among birds, as we well know, the female is the
chief architect, the male only assisting in bringing
material; but among fish it would seem that the
building of the domestic dwelling is the task of
the male. The female, or rather females—for the
Stickleback is a polygamist—do not appear to offer
any aid at all, and expect their lords not only to do
all the fighting, as previously described, but also all
the work; while the wives remain idle, in a kind of
fine-ladyism, which the male Stickleback appears, in
his polite devotion to the seX, entirely to approve of.

At spawning-time, therefore, the males may be
observed, one and all, very busy in preparing the
nursery, an evidently arduous task to each little
architect, who brings all the materials in his
mouth, of course in very small quantities at a time,
and frequently from very considerable distances.
It is very instructive to observe his contrivances for
preventing the foundation of his structure from

being carried away by the stream, which he effects
76

OR, THE HOME-CULTURE OF FRESH-WATER PLANTS.

by bringing sand, also in his mouth, and placing it
upon the successive layers forming the foundation of
his edifice. His next process is to cement these layers
well together, by a gluten which he obtains from his
own. skin,by rubbing himself against them; and thus
is formed the floor upon which the rest of the struc-
ture is to be raised. It is occasionally further secured
at its anchorage by a root or twig at the bottom of
the stream, or by some other accidental assistance.
His next process is to stick small, or occasionally
stronger materials, as uprights, all round the founda-
tion; frequently taking them out with his mouth,
and putting them in situations more to his fancy, till
he is at length satisfied that they are all in the right
places. Sometimes he finds a portion of his mate-
rials altogether unsuitable, in which case he takes
it away to a distance from the intended nursery of
his offspring, and, regardless of labour and fatigue,
gets another lot of materials. He cements the walls
as they arise, by rubbing against them, as he had
. done to the floor, and then sets about the roof, which
he completes in a similar manner. His hardest
work appears to be this cementing process; the
vibrating of the body, by means of which he exudes
the necessary mucus from the surface of the skin,

seeming to exhaust him very much.
77

RIVER GARDENS ;

He makes two openings to his dwelling, a front
and a back door as it were, which he retains in suit-
able form by passing continually through them in
such a manner as to keep them neat and open. Some
species build on the ground, others between small
roots, near the bottom of the stream (see Plate
V.) ; the species Traclmms and Leiums preferring
the ground, Pungitius the support of roots, etc.

When the nest is completed, combats often
occur between males to keep or obtain possession;
and then they have many polite ways of inviting a
favourite female to come and take possession of
the edifice they have constructed, always keeping
guard during the time she is depositing her eggs
(as shown in Plate V.), and wearing, in honour of
the occasiOn, their gayest uniforms, frequently
assuming bright scarlet and pure white on the joyful
occasion. The male maintains his guard in full uni-
form until the spawn or eggs are all hatched, and the
young fry begin to disperse in all directions. The
nest is said to resemble that of the Long-tailed
Titmouse, which, like it, has two entrances.

The assiduous duties of the male Stickleback
appear to be reversed in the salt-water species,
which, according to a communication from a lady

at Aberdeen to Dr. Lankester, are, in the case of
78

OR, THE HOME-CULTURE OF FRESH-WATER PLANTS.

that very distinct species, performed by the female.
This assertion is founded on actual observation; a
female of the species in question having formed her
nest, deposited her spawn, and covering it care-
fully over, watched it assiduously, attacking any
approaching enemy, just as is the habit of the males
in the other species. The nest appears, however, to
have been a far inferior structure to that of the
male architects.

There are many other particulars relating to the
nidification of these interesting little fishes; but
space will not allow of further detail in this place.
Enough has been said, however, to show how very
interesting a colony of Sticklebacks might be made
in an Aquarium, especially if all the species were
collected, and their abode made sufficiently com-
fortable to induce them to feel quite at home and
exhibit their curious nest-building instinct in full
confidence and security.

 

79

CHAPTER VII.

GOLD FISH

   
 

. ‘\ ciples were understood, Gold and Silver
E Fish had become favourite pets, and
' \ were kept with more or less success in
’ Egglass globes manufactured expressly.
Their rich colouring and pleasing mo-
“A tions made them very ornamental, and
many elaborate structures were invented for their
display. The globes were placed on richly deco-
rative stands, surrounded with moss and flowers,
and in some cases an inner globe was contrived,
open with wire-work at the bottom, into which
Canary birds were introduced, to be seen perching
on branches of coral as though a'ctually disporting
themselves in the water among the Gold and Silver
Fish; white Mice or Guinea Pigs being sometimes
substituted in the inner globe for the birds.
The effect produced was fantastic, and not un-
pleasing, and suited the imperfectly developed taste

of the day; but in these times of international ex-
80

RIVER GARDENS, ETC.

hibitions, and art treatises, and art novels, and even
art sermons, the laws of taste—pure taste—can no
longer be vitiated with impunity. Even the placing
of coral branches or sea shells in fresh water would
be sufficient to shock the very fastidiously accurate
taste of our art critics, and the affected semblance of
birds existing under water would be denounced in
some cotemporary journal of “art, science, and lite-
rature,” in language of “ crushing force and biting
sarcasm.”

The bad taste, however, was not the only defi;
ciency exhibited by a past generation of lovers of
domestic pets. The principle by means of which
fish could be kept in a healthy state in a confined
space, when living plants are cultivated in the same
water, was not then understood; and consequently,
notwithstanding the greatest care, and the changing
' of the water very frequently, the fish, in most cases,
very soon perished, which was the main cause of
their going “ out of fashion.”

But now that we have mastered the necessary
secret, and can keep aquatic animals in a glass ves-
sel, arranged as a true miniature lake, we can re-
sumeour chamber intercourse with our old friends
under more auspicious circumstances. We need no

longer see them pursuing their interminable circuit
81 G

RIVER GARDENS ;

in the glaring light of their unsheltered globe, with
the knowledge that, despite all our solicitude, the term
of their existence will be very brief; for we shall take
care that they have their little forests of Algae and
water-plants, and the broad leaves of Water Lilies, or
the green veil of the Lemma tribe, not only to shel-
ter them from too much light, which is injurious to
them, but also to renew continually their supply of
air as fast as they consume it. In addition to these
advantages, we shall find their motions greatly
varied and increased in interest and attractiveness
by the plants, round and among which they will
pursue their floating promenade with evident zest
and enjoyment. (See Plate VI.)

With these newly discovered aids our old friends,
the Gold Fish, may resume all their former interest,
and a prettily planted Aquarium may be rendered
beautiful and interesting without the introduction
of any other creatures. When there is not an
innate taste for the pursuits of natural history in
general, I would almost recommend confining the
attention to plants and Gold Fish, as the latter can
be procured without any difficulty, and are more
easily manageable than any other kind of fish.

The dealers should, however, be stimulated to
vary their stock by the introduction of new kinds.

82

PLAT 1‘; \h 1.

my,» ‘uuu u

 

Vnrmtics ”mum y‘all (' ypruuzs mun/w), nvmmlmniml by .1 mam of Ialmwria spu-ulxs, upon which
are \‘urimus \ancr Snails.

OR, THE HOME-CULTURE OF FRESH-WATER PLANTS.

Amateurs should insist that the single old species,
with its varieties and sub-varieties, no longer satisfies
them (it being well known that the only kind yet in-
troduced is esteemed by the Chinese the poorest of
all), and that they now require some of the splendid
species which are described as common enough in
China, though never yet introduced into Europe.
The Gold Fish is a Carp (prrinus aweus, or
Golden Carp), and is very closely allied to our less
brilliantly coloured species. Its first introduction to
EurOpe is variously dated as 1611, 1691, and 1728 ;
the earliest seen in France were, however, those
sent for Madame de Pompadour. Soon after-
wards they became tolerably common, as it was
found that they throve well in the waters of South-
ern Europe, especially in Portugal, where, from a
few small fish, said to have escaped accidentally
, from a vessel newly arrived from China, several of
the streams in the neighbourhood of Lisbon soon
absolutely swarmed with them, and it is from that
source that our common supply is now generally
obtained. At the Mauritius, where they also be-
came very common, they are eaten as a delicacy.
Even in England they flourish greatly in water
kept a little above the ordinary temperature. In

some of the manufacturing districts, where water-
83

RIVER GARDENS ;

power is employed, the water becomes heated during
some of the processes, and the mill-dams thus
artificially warmed (sometimes to a very high tem-
perature) have been found to be most favourable
reservoirs for the breeding of Gold Fish. In such
situations they have not only multiplied exceed-
ingly, but have attained to a much greater size than .
in ordinary waters, however well sheltered. In some
cases referred to, the heat of the water appeared too
hot for anything living to exist in; but there are very
extraordinary examples of the degree of heat in which
fish will not only exist, but thrive. .

Les Fontaines found a fish, the Spams of Lace-
pede, flourishing in the hot springs of Barbary, in
a temperature of 86° Fahrenheit, and other small
fish, of the Mullet and Perch families, have been ob-
served in these springs. De Saussure found Eels in
the hot springs of Savoy, which raised the thermo-
meter to 1130 Fahrenheit; while Bruce, in the hot
baths of Teriana, perceived small fish resembling
Gudgeons, the water being so hot that he was asto-
nished they were not boiled. Broussonet made several
experiments to ascertain the extent of the endurance
of fish with regard to heated water, and found that
many species would live for several days in water
in which he could not bear his hand ; and Hum-

84

OR, THE HOME-CULTURE OF FRESH-WATER PLANTS.

boldt and Bonpland perceived fishes thrown up alive
and in apparent health from the bottom of a vol-
cano, along with water heated to a degree that raised
the thermometer to 210°l—being only 2° below boil-
ing point. This proves, at all events, that water of a
tepid heat would be highly favourable to Gold Fish,
and perhaps to many other species; and if the breed-
ing and rearing of fish for the table were more at-
tended to, it might be found that all the fresh-water
species could be made to multiply more abundantly,
grow more rapidly, and attain a larger size, by the
judicious introduction of warmth to parts of ponds
or streams, which might be easily effected near to
dwellings where forcing-houses are in operation, by
means of an extended range of hot-water or steam
pipes being made to pass through the ponds, or parts
of. the adjacent streamsfi‘e
_ Pennant tells us that in China every person of
taste keeps Gold Fish, and that they make the
crossing of the several distinct species quite a
scientific business. They also succeed in taming
them, so that they will come to the call of a whistle

9‘ Fish also bear a great degree of cold, though it is not pre-
tended that they flourish in it; it is said that Perch that have
been frozen up in solid ice have recovered when thawed before

the fire.
85

RIVER GARDENS ;

to receive their food. We are informed, by the
same author, that the most beautiful kinds are
taken in a lake in the province of Che-Kyang.

M. de Sauvigny, in his beautiful work entitled
“ Les Dorades de la Chine,” describes several of the
species and varieties to which I have alluded as
desiderata, and from the carefully drawn and ex-
quisitely coloured plates of his work, there appears
sufficient ground for considering the species as‘ dis-
tinct as many other kinds of Carp, which have also a
strong family resemblance. The description of a few
of. the examples from the work quoted will be
sufficient to show that if they are only varieties,
they are very distinct ones, quite as distinct——to
borrow an analogy from vegetable life—as the
nectarine and the peach, or the lemon and the
orange, though by botanists the lemon is only made
a variety of the orange, as the nectarine is of the
peach. The Chinese are, however, such accurate ob-
servers, that in all probability we may accept their
views regarding distinct species, especially when we
consider the minute attention that has been paid to
fish in the Celestial Empire, not only as to the means
of their capture, in which they excel all other nations,
but also in their nomenclature and classification, the

elaborate nature of which may be conceived when
86

OR, THE HOME-CULTURE OF FRESH-WATER PLANTS.

we refer to the report recently forwarded by Sir
John Bowring to the Registrar-General, from which
we learn that the portion of the Chinese people who
obtain a livelihood by pursuits connected with the
fisheries is larger than the whole population of
Great Britain and Ireland, namely, above forty
millions, which Sir John estimates at about one-tenth
of the present p0pulation of China. But whether
the beautiful kinds of the Gold Carp about to be
described be mere varieties or not, many of the fish
are so remarkably distinct in form as well as colour
as to be quite as desirable, in an ornamental point
of view, as scientifically distinct species.

The original drawings were made by a native
artist, under the superintendence of M. de Sauvigny,
and most carefully engraved by M. F. N. Martinet,
engineer and engraver of the Cabinet du R073. Ac-
cording to this work, the Chinese reckon seven dis-
tinct species, each with its sub-varieties, of which
M. de Sauvigny gives fifty-eight examples; from
these I have selected the following :—

Of the Chinese species, Kin-ya, the variety
called the “ Mottled Beauty,” is very remarkable.
Beneath, it is simply silver toned, but on the back and
sides mottled with blue, yellow, black, and rose

colour, the rose colour deepening to pure crimson at
87

RIVER GARDENS ;

the gills, and the black becoming deep and velvety
along the ridge of the back, especially near the tail.

Another of the same species is the “ Superb,”
which is nearly fifteen inches long. The under part
of this magnificent fish is silver, but the back, which
is remarkably broad, is splendidly varied with
scarlet and black, the scales being delicately edged
with metallic gold colour.

Another variety of this species is the “ Small
Blue.” It is silver beneath, exquisitely flushed with
pale rose colour, the whole of the sides and back
being of a lovely metallic azure. Here is a prize
for the Aquarium !

Again, a very distinct variety is the “ Moor,” or
Darkling. It is a large fish, very nearly black on
the back and sides, which becomes violet under-
neath, the whole of the scales being edged with a
red-bronze tone.

Of the species Owen-ya there is a beautiful
variety, the ground colour of which is delicate
flesh colour, upon which are large patches of full
rich brown, like the markings of a piebald horse.

Of the Long-tsing-yu, or Dragon-eyed species,
so named from the prominence of the eyes, which
appear set in large semi-spherical tubercles, there

are some remarkably beautiful varieties, among
88

OR, THE HOME-CULTURE OF FRESH-WATER PLANTS.

which the “ Telescope” holds a prominent place.
He is a fine large fish, delicately marked with very
light shades of scarlet, black, and grey.

Of the Nin-eubk-yu, or Nymphs, there are end-
less varieties, all beautiful. The one called the
Amber Yellow is very distinct. His ground colour
is silver, with fine large patches of delicate amber-
yellow, not at all inclining to scarlet, like our com-
mon varieties—each patch deepening in the centre
to a pure orange.

There is also the Ruby, a fish of exquisite beauty,
being of delicate, semi-opaque violet-crimson, fading
to a delicate rose colour underneath.

Of the Ya-tan-yu tribe or species, so named from
the rotund, spherical, or egg-like shape of the fish,
there are many very curious varieties: one, with
a rich violet back, flushed with deep rust colour,
whose native name M. de Sauvigny translates as
' the “ ferruginous,” is very singular; as is another
with a drooping, fringe-like, scarlet tail, known as
“'Red Fringe.”

The species Kin-tem-yu is very remarkable, and
seems quite distinct. The tail and head are bent
upwards, giving to the entire fish the form of a
crescent; and they have the habit, it would seem,

of throwing themselves over and over as they swim,
89

RIVER GARDENS;

as tumbler pigeons do in their flight. The variety
termed the “ Blue Greening,” a rich blue, flushed
with orange, is very beautiful, as are several others.

In the Kin-ya division there is a species with
rather large crimson spots bordered with blue, and
another peculiar variety, entirely flesh colour, or
“ tout-e chair,” as M. de Sauvigny translates the
Chinese name. .

There is a sub-species of the Dragon-eyed division
which have egg-shaped bodies, like the Ya-tom-yu
family, one of which, whose entire colour is deep
carmine, is very remarkable, and known by the
characteristic name of the “ Cherry.”

The species Owen-ya, or “lettered” kind, so named
from their Streaky markings, not altogether unlike
Chinese characters, has some very pretty varieties,
especially one called the “ Elegant,” a perfectly
white fish—pure paper urliite+sparmgly dashed with
patches of pearly pink on the body, and having
some exquisite letter-like markings about the head
and tail. Another is rich scarlet, shading to black
on the back, in the midst of which is a large cross
of pure white, having two transverse bands, like the
cross of Lorraine. ‘

Among the Nin-eubk-yu, or Nymphs, I have

omitted to name one peculiarly fine variety, called
90

OR, THE HOME-CULTURE ()F FRESH-WATER PLANTS.

the “ Pearly,” from the brilliantly changing nacre-
ous hues with which his pure white is varied in
different lights, and another called the “ Red Fins,”
a beautiful fish of delicate azurine tone, having the
head, tail, and fins of intense scarlet.

Surely here is a list to tempt a speculator. ' Let
a tolerably large tank be fitted up in some vessel
trading with China, and well furnished with hardy
water-plants before leaving the Celestial ports, and
then there is every probability that a cargo of these
magnificent fish would arrive safely in the port of
London, and be the means of establishing most of
the kinds in this country, Where they might no
doubt be easily acclimated. Such additions would
impart quite a new zest to the pleasures of Gold Fish
keeping, and make the Aquarium rich with colours
that even the conservatory could scarcely match.

 

     
  

CHAPTER VIII.

little creatures, and perfectly harm-
. less, notwithstanding their bad name,
r L Ethe Frog, the Toad, and the Hedge
flirt; \Lf Snake, a beautiftu marked, harmless
creature, completing the list, with the exception
of the Blind Worm, the bite of which in self-defence
is perfectly free from venom; and, lastly, the only
poisonous reptile of the native family, the Viper, or
Adder, the virulence of whose bite has been much
exaggerated. Bell, in his “ History of British Rep-
tiles,” distinctly states that no well-authenticated
case of death from the bite of a Viper is recorded,
though inflammation of a serious character nearly

   

always ensues. _

One of the greatest advantages of all the coun-
tries of the temperate zones is their freedom, like
England, from the presence of venomous and dan-

92

RIVER GARDENS, ETC.

gerous reptiles, Ireland claiming to be, through the
“interposition of St. Patrick,” entirely free from rep-
tiles of all kinds. The little Land Lizard (Lacerta
agilis) is, however, common in that country; and
Frogs were artificially introduced by an enthusiastic
naturalist in the beginning of the last century. It is
to a Dr. Gwythers that Ireland appears to be indebted
for this addition to her natural productions. He first
took over a large number of Frogs and placed them
in the ditches of University Park, but all perished ;
and it was not till he bethought himself of obtaining
some bottles of the spawn that he succeeded in
establishing a breed of Frogs in Ireland. This hap-
pened in the time of Dean Swift, who, speaking of
English abuses in general, says they multiply like a
colony of Frogs, in allusion to the successful experi-
ment of Dr. Gwythers. Every attempt to naturalize
the Hedge Snake has, however, up to the present
time, failed; all the attempts of a later naturalist
to naturalize it in Ireland having hitherto proved
abortive.

There are two kinds of Newts, or Water Lizards,
suited to the Aquarium. The larger is Triton
cm’status, the skin of which is tuberculated like
that of the Toad, and may be said to form the
Toad type of the Water Lizard tribe. This crea-

93

RIVER GARDENS ;

ture, though forming, as I have said, a kind of Toad
division in his special family, is yet much handsomer
than the Toad; his long, slender form, and, in the
early part of summer, the rich colouring of the under
part of his body—orange, spotted with crimson—
rendering him a very handsome creature : each
tubercle, too, is ornamented with a bright speck of
white, which produces a pretty sparkling effect.
But I prefer the smooth, or Frog division, of the
Newt family, all the individuals of which are ex-
ceedingly graceful creatures, and often very elegantly
marked with rich colours, especially during the
breeding season.

There are two species of the smooth spotted Newt
(I/issotriton punctatus). The lesser species is the
handsomest of the two. The male (figured in Plate
VII., No.1) is of a full rich grey on the back, spotted
with black; and underneath, of a fine orange colour,
enriched with large finely formed spots of crimson.
The female (No. 2, in the same Plate) is less richly
coloured. It is, however, only during the summer
season that this great disparity of colour exists, at
which time the male is also distinguished by a hand-
some fin-like crest, running the whole length of the
back and tail.

A pair of the larger species (Nos. 3 and 4,

9-1:

I’LA'I'F. V I l.

 

18; 2’. 'l'hv Mmmtlx NI-VH [Iliunnll'xlnn luuwrutun) . 55 .\ l. 'l lw LIII‘HI'I‘ hnwulh NM”
:7 Tim “'ulvr I'4~l'~i|'.

 

in (l'nlygnuum Vllrlp/Ullllllfl).

 

OR, THE HOME-CULTURE OF FRESH-WATER PLANTS.

Plate VII.) exhibit similar peculiarities; they
are more robustly formed than the species just
described, but not quite so finely marked, the spots
of the male, though more numerous, being not so
large.

Towards autumn, about the middle of September,
these elegant creatures generally leave the element
of their nativity, and seek food among the damp
grass of the meadows—returning to the pond or
brook to hybernate. They will, however, live in
water all the year round, though, after the gills of
their tadpole state have disappeared, they are unable
to remain entirely under water for many minutes
together; and it is very interesting, in a tank, to
watch them on a sunny morning maintaining their
position, by “treading water,” as a swimmer would
say, with their delicately formed little feet, occa-
sionally rising to the surface for the necessary
supply of air, and then sinking to the original
situation, about half-way from the bottom—some
favourite spot, favoured by a peculiar shade, or
some other accidental attraction.

The addition of a little rocky island, on which the
little creatures can bask occasionally, retreating to
the water at will, is a great desideratum where
Newts form part of the Aquarium colony.

95

RIVER GARDENS;

The tadpole of the Newt, in its very early stages,
is almost indistinguishable from that of the Toad or
Frog. As it grows, however, the disparity becomes
very evident, their elegantly spreading branchiw, or
external gills, assume a distinct form, and the tail
continues to lengthen, while that of the Frog tad-
pole diminishes, till at last, even in their gilled or
tadpole state, they become as distant as in their
eventually complete form.

The Frog (Roma oiridis), though a perfect
aquatic in his tadpole state, is only amphibious
when he attains his final develOpment; and while his
relative, the Newt, is able to remain in the water,
as his element, after he has lost his gills, the Frog
becomes more decidedly terrestrial, only seeking the
water again in the breeding season. At other
times, though he is an expert swimmer, and a most
excellent diver, and able to remain long under water,
he is, nevertheless, incapable of residing exclu-
sively in that element, in which, in fact, he drowns.
I have seen a full-grown Frog placed by dealers in
an Aquarium, about which he swims till exhausted,
and at last stretches out his limbs like any other
drowning creature, resigning himself to his in-
evitable fate. In this last stage I have seen igno-

rant dealers stir him up with a little stick, calling
96

1’L.\TE VIII.

1 9),
A '2

 

I. The Water Soldier (Sim/full}.~ (Hon/m). 4. Thu Yclluw Iris (Irix pscuzlm-nrus).
‘2. '1‘hol“luulin: l’lnnmin (Alixnm unluusL :1. Thu (,‘myfirh (:lslarnxflm'iu/xlix)‘
:5. Thu Arl'mV-lmhl (Sugitluriu sugilli/bliu). 6. The Trcc Frog (Ruuu urLorw).

OR, THE HOME-CULTURE OF FRESH-WATER PLANTS.

him a lazy fellow, and telling him to kick a little,
and show the lady how healthy and robust he is.

It is impossible, from the causes just described,
to keep full-grown Frogs in Aquaria; but it is
well worth while to obtain some of the spawn in
the prOper season—April or May and place a small
quantity in the tank. The development of the tad-
pole from the egg state, till it is on the verge of be-
coming a perfect Frog, will afford a continuous
succession of interesting phenomena for curious
observation. Many interesting things might be
told concerning Frogs, did space allow, but con-
sidering them as unfit inhabitants of the Aquarium,
except in their tadpole state, this is not the place to
dilate upon the history, the anecdotes, or asso-
ciations connected with them.

The small Climbing Frog of continental Europe
_ (Rana arborea) might, however, form a very pretty
object for the island of the Aquarium, which, if only
as a means of cultivating semi-aquatic plants, such as
the Sundew and Forget-me-not, should always form
part of the arrangement. If such a miniature
island be made the abode of the Climbing Frog, a
small branching twig, such as that represented in
Plate VIII., on which the little creature is re-
presented, should always be furnished. With such

97 H

 

RIVER GARDENS ;

means for displaying his gymnastic skill he will
exhibit some very pretty antics; sometimes suspend-
ing himself by one foot from a lateral branch, or
holding on to four as distant twigs as possible by
each of his globule-tipped feet. These little globules
at the extremity of each toe are the additions to his
structure which make him a climber, while his
relative, the common Marsh Frog, unfurnished with
these appendages, is compelled to remain a traveller
on level ground; his power of leaping, however,
being, as is well known, very remarkable

The colouring of the Climbing Frog is very pleas-
ing. His full, soft green—not varnished, as in the
common Frog, but only having what painters term an
egg-shell gloss—is a very beautiful colour, something
like that of the gem termed aquamarine, if it were
but Opaque, like the turquoise, instead of being
semi-transparent. His sides are ornamented with a
very delicate lateral streak of white, which seems
like a line of demarcation between the upper and
nether portions of the body; and immediately
under it is a narrow band of deep ruddy brown,
which gives it a very bright efiect; the brown
shading suddenly off to grey, which eventually
fades into a porcelain white beneath. This ele-

gant little creature has, in fact, more the ap-
98

OR, THE HOME-CULTURE OF FRESH-WATER PLANTS.

pearance of an ideal Frog beautifully wrought in
Dresden china, than a real living and moving
creature. Sometimes, indeed, he remains so long
immoveable, in precisely the same position, as greatly
to favour this notion; but he will suddenly catch a
fly, or some other small insect, with such evident
relish, as to remove at once all idea of his merely
porcelain existence. In the neighbourhood of
Weimar the Tree Frog is common, and the students
nicknamed the military of Saxe-Weimar after these
little creatures, in consequence of their green and
yellow uniform.

That graceful and beautifully marked creature,
the common Hedge Snake, might also be natural-
ized upon the island of an Aquarium, in which a
little cave of retreat might be fashioned for him,
lined with a few dead leaves. Into such a miniature
‘ cavern he would retire in chilly weather, and in
winter wholly hybernate: while on sunny days, to-
wards spring, he could come forth and bask on a
convenient portion of the rockwork, or take an
occasional bath, he being very fond of the water, in
which his action in swimming is most graceful as
well as singular. He should not, however, be placed
on the same island as the little Frog, as, like some

sections of the human race, he considers the Frog a
99

RIVER GARDENS, ETC.

most nutritious and delicious esculent, and would
be likely to act upon that conviction.

I do not dwell at greater length on the subject of
Reptiles for the Aquarium, as I am aware that
deeply rooted prejudices will cause many to exclude
them altogether, restricting their selection of in-
mates for their tanks to plants and fishes only, to
the exclusion even of aquatic insects, the interesting
metamorphoses of which will form the subject of
the next chapter.

 

     
   
 

/
.9pr
flfij;§.;§2’% /, 1 / 1
it", a o ("its-t
~ ' . ,\-. are

I
' I
. '3", -'

1“““;"‘\ ‘
4‘91 “N1 l,‘,‘.‘

100

' of Aquaria, of the singular metamor-
.. phoses of those insects which pass the
whole or part of their existence in water,

 

A” ' written, full of interesting and curious
facts. In the present place, however, an allusion to
a few of the most prominent must suffice, as in a
general description of all kinds of animal life suited
to an Aquarium, the more conspicuous classes ne-

cessarily occupy the greatest portion of our space,
i and are treated of in the greatest detail.

Among the larva stages of water-insects, those
of the great Water Beetles are perhaps the most
remarkable. That of the Margined Beetle, Dytécus
margv’malis (Plate 111., No. 1), is a singular, scorpion-
like creature, whose unprepossessing appearance has
gained for him the unenviable appellation of the
“ water-devil.” He scarcely belies his name—or that

of the water-tiger, by which he is also known—as
101

RIVER GARDENS;

his voracity makes him the terror of every other
class of aquatic insect life. Woe to the Boat Beetle,
or Nepa, coming within range of his dirmer excur-
sion—he is seized, and literally torn to pieces in an
instant by this destructive creature. His change to
the perfect, or beetle state, takes place in a structure
which he forms at the necessary period, somewhat
analogous to the Chrysalis, or pupa case in which
the caterpillar is gradually transformed into the
butterfly.

This case contains the semi-torpid form, which
developing itself into the perfect Dyticus, generally
lies buried in the mud at the bottom of streams or
ponds, or in the adjacent banks, in a secure spot
selected by the larva, where he burrows to undergo
his change in safety. From this receptacle the per-
fect Dyticus emerges in due time. He is ahandsome
swimming Beetle (Plate 111., No. 2); but though
improved in personal appearance, his habits have not
amended—he is as voracious as in his larva stage.
Small fish, even the Stickleback, in his plate armour,
often become his victim, and the number of tad-
poles he will consume at a long drawn-out meal,
extending over great part of the fore and after-noon,
is something extraordinary. A pair of these Beetles

should not therefore be placed in an Aquarium, ex-
102

OR, THE HOME-CULTURE OF FRESH-WATER PLANTS.

cept by themselves, or with such insects, etc., as are
intentionally destined to be their food. They are,
however, very handsome creatures, and so well worthy
of observation is their structure and habits, that it
might be worth while to fit up a small Aquarium as
their especial habitation. Such an Aquarium should
be covered over at night, as after dark these Water
Beetles have the habit of quitting the water for a
night flight in the air, to return to the water again
at daybreak, a contrast in modes of existence thus
enjoyed simultaneously, that no other class of either
insects or animals are endowed with ; for the
aquatic fowl, which have the air also as their
domain, do not in the water live beneath it, but
only on its surface.

The larger kind of Water Beetle, the Hydroplzilus,
piceus, is much less voracious than the preceding
species, so much so, indeed, that he may be placed
in a tank with fish and other insects, without much
risk of mischief, as he lives upon the smaller
Crustacea and minute animalculae. The larva, when
about to change, comes out of the water, and bur-
rowing in an adjacent bank, forms the pupa case
for his change, similar to that of the preceding
species.

The larvae of our handsome Dragon Flies are
103

RIVER GARDENS ;

somewhat similar in form to those of the Water
Beetle tribe, and, when about to change, it is very
interesting to observe them leaving the water, and
attaching themselves to the leaf of a reed or rush,
just above the surface, where they become a kind of
chrysalis, from the dull black husk of which the
gaily coloured Dragon Fly eventually emerges.

A few of the larvae of the Gnat should be placed
in the Aquarium, if only to observe the interesting
pupa or Chrysalis state of this little creature. When
the active little larva that we so often see frisking
in sudden bounds in tanks of rain-water, is about to
undergo his change from a water larva, or swim-
ming maggot, to a graceful, aerial creature, his pupa
form ascends to the surface of the water, where it
floats in a singular, boat-like shape, till the creature
within the tiny ark is fully developed ; at which
period it is a most interesting sight to watch his
efforts to escape from his floating prison, and see
him at last take flight from its tiny prow to weave
his mazes in the warm summer air.

But in hastening to speak of the more wonderful
metamorphoses of the Gnat and Dragon Fly, I have
omitted to mention some other species of Water
Beetles which might form interesting subjects for

observation in an Aquarium. Among these are the
104:

OR, THE HOME-CULTURE OF FRESH-WATER PLANTS.

Whirligigs (Gyrmidae), so called from their whirling
movements on the surface of the water, where their
shining coats of bright bronze have a glittering
appearance in the early days of spring. There are
also the Water Boatmen (Notonecta) and the Water
Scorpion (Nepa), well worthy of a place in the
tank.

There are also the Caddis Worms of different
kinds,which form interesting objects, clothed in their
portable house of little sticks and stones (see Plate
111.), which protects them from the attacks of fish
or other insects. They are the larva stages of
various species of Phrygcmea.

One of the most interesting creatures in a tank
is the Diving Spider (Argyronetw aquatica), which,
however, should not be placed with fish or voracious
beetles, or he would soon disappear. The trans-
parent membrane which surrounds the body of the
Water Spider, and enables him to swim, gives him
the appearance, when in motion, of a globule of
quicksilver—an appearance which has rendered him
a great favourite with keepers of Aquaria. There
are other species of Water Spiders, but living upon
the surface of the Water, and not having the power
of diving, they are not so attractive as the silvery,

air-clad species. It constructs its nest in a singular
105

RIVER GARDENS ;

manner at the bottoms of brooks, and all its move-
ments and habits, in pursuit of its prey, and other-
wise, are curious and amusing.

From the Water Spider to the Crab, Shrimp, and
other crustaceans, is but a step; they are so similar
in many points of their structure. The fresh-water
Shrimp is worthy of a place in the Aquarium, on
account of his peculiar method of swimming, but is
so inconspicuous that few would take much in-
terest in his proceedings on that account. Other
small fresh-water Crustacea are curious as micro-
scopic objects, but scarcely desirable for the
Aquarium; I therefore pass to the only con-
Spicuous member of the family who has conde-
scended to honour the fresh water with his pre-
sence. This is the Gray Fish of our brooks and
trout-streams—the Astacus fiuviatila’s. He is
somewhat difficult to manage, but many have
failed, it would seem, in consequence of placing him
in too deep a vessel, as Professor Bell, in his work
on British Crustacea, describes one that was kept
for a considerable time in a pan, only an inch
and a half deep. A glass ledge might therefore be
erected in the Aquarium, about that distance from
the surface of the water, upon which a few pieces of

rockwork might be formed into a retreat for the
106

OR, THE HOME-CULTURE OF FRESH-WATER PLANTS.

Cray Fish, which, though tameable, is at first shy
and shelter-loving. I have kept Cray Fish for a
short time myself, and found great interest in watch-
ing them take their food—generally small pieces of
raw liver—which I have let down to them at the end
of a string. They have at first approached the prof-
fered meat very cautiously; but gaining courage,
have come boldly forward at last, and taking hold
of the meat with a claw, as ready in its actions
as a human hand, have carried it to their mouths,
and devoured it with evident relish; occasionally
using the other claw to tear off a tough piece, or
otherwise assist in the operation.

One of these creatures is a very pretty minia-
ture of a lobster (see Plate VIII), and is a
pleasing variety to the other forms of animal life
in the Aquarium. It is a singular fact that, in the
representation of this creature, in Roesel’s beautiful
work, he is represented in his living state as of afine
bright scarlet. This can scarcely have been the
error of the naturalist, but rather that of the
colourist in preparing c0pies for the bookseller
which had not the advantage of the author’s re-
visal. The colourist, however, commits this special
sin in good company; for I recollect a noble picture
of the “ miraculous draught of fishes,” by no less

107

RIVER GARDENS, ETC.

a hand than that of the great and accomplished
Rubens, in which a lobster, scrambling from the
heavily filled net as it is drawn up, is also painted a
magnificent scarlet."

It will be seen, by the contents of the foregoing
chapters, that the fresh-water Aquarium is able to
afford as many attractive sources of interest as the
marine, notwithstanding the Sea Anemones and
richly coloured Algae, which have made the salt-
water tank so generally attractive. It is calculated
at the same time to awaken an interest in natural
history, in a province more generally accessible
than the shores of the ocean; for every brook, every
pond, every ditch is filled with the curious and beau-
tiful forms of animal and vegetable life respecting
which the fresh-water Aquarium has awakened new
or dormant interests; interests which are all the
more likely to meet with further extension, as the
fields for additional investigation are open to all
who have a pond in their garden, or even a small
brook running through the neighbouring meadows.

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