This beautiful fish was first introduced into England about the year
1691. It is a native of China, where they are very common in ponds.
They are, however, very delicate, and unable to stand the powerful rays
of the sun; on which account, in each of the ponds where they are kept,
earthenware basins, with holes in them, are placed upside down, so that
the fishes may retire under them for shade. In China these fish are
taught to rise to the surface of the water, to be fed, at the sound of
a bell. In very cold weather, they are frequently taken into the house,
to prevent them from being frozen.
There are several varieties of this beautiful fish,--some of them
appearing all speckled over with golden dust; others are pure silvery
white; some are spotted with red and white; and a fourth variety is
black and white, spotted.
Many of these, of a large size, may be seen in the ponds at the royal
gardens of the Tuileries, at Paris. They are perfectly tame, and follow
individuals round the ponds in hopes of being fed.