Page:The American Boy's Handy Book edition 1.djvu/76
and 52. With a tank made upon this plan you can have aquatic plants as well as land plants and flowers, a sandy beach for the turtle to sleep upon, as he loves to do, and a rockery for the crawfish to hide in and keep out of mischief. Some species of snails like to crawl occasionally above the water-line. Such an aquarium makes an interesting object for the conservatory.
Figure No. 53 shows how a fountain can be made. The opening of the fountain should be so small as to allow only a fine jet of water to issue from it; the reservoir or supply-tank should be out of sight, and quite large, so that, by filling it at night, the fountain will keep playing all day. The waste pipe should open at the level you intend to keep the water, and the opening should be covered with a piece of mosquito-netting or wire-gauze to prevent any creature from being drawn in.
In an aquarium with a slanting bottom, only the front need be of glass; the other three sides can be made of slate, which is also a good material for the false bottom. In ponds, rivers, and lakes, the only light received comes from above; so we can understand that a vessel admitting light upon all sides, as well as from the top, forms an unnaturally luminous abode for fish. The glass front is sufficient for the spectator to see through.
The author has a tank twenty-five inches long, eleven inches wide, and twelve inches high—far too narrow and deep; but these defects have been, in a measure, overcome by filling it only two-thirds full of water, and allowing the green vegetation