Page:Popular Science Monthly Volume 78.djvu/600

From Wikisource
Jump to navigation Jump to search
This page has been proofread, but needs to be validated.
590
THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY.

plot having trees for the cats to climb in, basins in which swimming birds may disport themselves and soil surrounded with cement walls within which the wild rabbits may burrow. The kangaroos here find ample space in which to run about while snakes and lizards sun themselves on the rock-piles and turtles and frogs alternate between land and water.

The two glass houses (Fig. 5), one adapted for warmth and the other for cold, are in the south portion of the grounds. The glazed superstructure rests upon a thick wall and the floor lies one half a meter below the ground level. Each glass house is divided into a culture

Fig. 7. Middle Corridor of the Main building with Cultures of Algæ.

room and a preparation room (Fig. 6), the latter being connected with the main building by a glass-covered passage-way. Each culture loom is provided with a water and sand bed and a water reservoir sunken in the floor. Electric light enables the experimenter to work continuously when necessary. Venetian curtains are used as a protection from excess of light or cold.

The middle corridor of the main building is covered with a double glass roof. One portion, used as a warm room, contains sweating boxes maintained at various temperatures. In the cold portion (Fig. 7) the conditions are favorable for the culture of fresh water and marine algae and the various organisms that grow in slime. The garden includes beds for the cultivation of plants for fodder and the experimental work. One large basin (Fig. 8), and four that are smaller, contain the