m 
 
 
e 
 
 ai re 
 
 R. B. HlNMAN 
 
 COLLECTION 
 
 Professor of Animal Husbandry 
 1921-1943 
 
 New York 
 
 State College of Agriculture 
 
 At Cornell University 
 
 Ithaca, N. Y. 
 
Cornell University Library 
 SF 396.G7Y6 
 
 The pig: a treatise on the breeds, manag 
 3 1924 003 171 620 „ 
 
The original of this book is in 
 the Cornell University Library. 
 
 There are no known copyright restrictions in 
 the United States on the use of the text. 
 
 http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924003171620 
 
A SUFFOLK BOAR, THE rROPERTY OF HIS LATE MAJESTY WILLIAM IV. 
 
 A BERKSHIRE SOW, THE PROPERTY OF THE LATE DUKE OP BEDFORD. 
 
THE PIG: 
 
 A TREATISE ON THE 
 
 BREEDS, MANAGEMENT, FEEDING, AND 
 MEDICAL TREATMENT OF SWINE; 
 
 WITH DIRECTIONS FOR SALTING PORK, AND CURING 
 BACON AND HAMS. 
 
 BY WILLIAM YOUATT, V.S, 
 
 AUTHOR OF "THE HORSE," '* CATTLE,'' "SHEEP," "THE DOG," &C. 
 ILIUSTRATED WITH ENGRAVINGS DRAWN FROM LIFE 
 
 BY WILLIAM HARVEY, ESQ. 
 
 NEW-YORK: 
 
 C. M. SAXTON, AGRICULTURAL BOOK PUBLISHER, 
 152 Folton Street. 
 
 1852. 
 
e 
 
 Q 1^ (>33 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 In undertaking this work the author was more influenced by an 
 anxious desire to extend the views of medical science generally, 
 and of his own profession in particular, and a wish to draw the 
 attention of agriculturists and veterinary surgeons to a too much 
 neglected and undervalued class of animals, than by the hope of 
 materially increasing the amount of knowledge already possessed. 
 
 It has been his task to collect all the various brief and cursory 
 notices which have been accorded to swine by ancient as well as 
 modern agricultural and medical writers ; to select those which 
 were valuable and worthy of record ; and then, by weaving them 
 into the groundwork of his own ideas and experience, to bring the 
 before scattered rays into one focus, so that the eye of science 
 may be attracted towards this hitherto neglected branch, and, from 
 contemplating, may be led to study it ; and practical men may be 
 induced to aid, by their experience, in elucidating a subject 
 which is as yet so little understood. 
 
 In short, he has endeavoured to act as a pioneer, to lead the 
 way to, and break up, a new and fertile spot; one that will amply 
 reward the labours of those whom he hopes to induce by his ex- 
 ample to bestow some little of their care upon it. 
 
 Many talented and valued friends have kindly assisted him by 
 hints and information; to them he tenders his sincere thanks. 
 Should it be deemed that he has succeeded in throwing some 
 
VI PREFACE. 
 
 portion of light, faint though it may be, on the management and 
 diseases of animals whose value is becoming more and more 
 acknowledged every year, he will consider his labours amply re- 
 warded. 
 
 WILLIAM YOUATT. 
 December, 1846. 
 
 Editor's Note. — The sadden death of the talented and lamented author 
 having deprived this work of the benefit of his supervision through the 
 press, the Editor has to request the indulgence of the public for any 
 errors which may accidentally have crept in. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Zoological definition of the Pig— The order Pachydermata— The Peccary— The 
 Bahiroussa — The Phaco choeres— The Capibara — Various animals nave been 
 called by the name of Hog ........ 9 
 
 ii. 
 
 Derivation of the terra Hog— The Hog was generally esteemed by the Romans- 
 Worshipped by some of the ancients— Swine's flesh prohibited by the law of 
 Moses— By that of Mohammed— Despised by the Egyptians . . . .12 
 
 III. 
 
 The early hiBtory of Swine— Legendary and authentic records respecting the keep- 
 ing of them in England — Ancient Welsh laws relative to Swine— The forests of 
 England— Swineherds— Their mode of 'managing their herds— Calabrian Swine- 
 herds — Horn used to assemble the grunting troop — The Schwein-General — Herds 
 of Swine kept in France — Value of Pigs— Some vindication of them— Anecdotes 
 proving their teachability— Sagacity of a Pig— Some demonstrations of Memory 
 in one — Attachment to individuals— Swine not innately filthy animals— Are pos- 
 sessed of more docility than they usually have credit for— Their exquisite sense of 
 smell— Pigs said to fortell rain and wind . . . . . .15 
 
 IV. 
 
 The Wild Boar— Description of him— Characteristics— The female and her young 
 — Hunting the Wild Boar — Homer's description of a Boar-hunt — Roman festivals 
 and games — the Wild Boar in England and Scotland — In France — In Germany — 
 Mode of bunting the Boar in Germany— Wild Boar park of the Emperor of Austria 
 — Present wild breed in Germany — In Hungary — In the Styrian Alps— In Russia 
 — In Sweden — In the East — Habits of the Wild Hog in India — Wild Hog hunting 
 in India — The wild breed in America— Fearful conflict with a wild herd in 
 Columbia — The Wild Boar the parent stock of all domesticated breeds — 
 Resemblances between — Alterations produced by Domestication — Resumption of 
 old habits on again becoming free from control of man . . . .33 
 
 Swine in America— In large towns— Original breed— Improved breed— Swine in 
 Canada— In Ohio— In Mexico— Hebrides— In Columbia— In the South-Sea Islands 
 —Swine in Asia— In China and Japan— Ceylon— Hindostan— Turkey and Arabia 
 —Swine in Africa— Guinea— New Holland— Caffraria— Swine in Europe— 
 Malta— Italy— Germany— Hungary— Russia— Sweden— France— Swine indigenous 
 in the Channel Islands— In Jersey— Guernsey— Serk— Alderney— Isle of Man- 
 Hebrides— Orkneys .......... 45 
 
 VI. 
 
 Scotland, aboriginal breed of Swine in— Little known until lately— Present races— 
 England, original breed— Swine in Yorkshire— Lincolnshire— Leicestershire- 
 Bedfordshire— Essex— Suffolk— Norfolk— Shropshire— Cheshire— Gloucestershire— 
 Herefordshire— Wiltshire— Berkshire— Hampshire— Sussex— The Chinese breed- 
 Swine in Ireland .......... 60 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Skeleton of the Hog— Skull and Snout— Teeih— Brain— Apoplexy— Inflammation of 
 the Brain— Phrenitis— The Spinal Cord— Epilepsy— Pa Isy and Paralysis— Tetanus 
 —Rabies— Nasal Catarrh— The Larynx— The Pharynx— The Os Hyoides— Strangles 
 and auinsy— The Chest— Diseased valves of the Heart— The Bronchial Tubes- 
 Inflammation of the Lungs or Rising of the Lights— Pleura-Pneumonia— Epi- 
 demics . . . . . . ' . • •'< 
 
 VIII. 
 
 Anatomy of the Stomach— Gullet — Intestines— Duodenum— Jejunum— Ileum^-Cce- 
 cum— Colon : Diseases to which these parts are liable — Enteritis — Colic — Diarrticea 
 —Garget of the Maw— Anatomy of the Liver and Spleen: Splenitis— Rupture of 
 the Spleen— Absorption of the Spleen— Peritoneum— Worms— The Bladder and its 
 diseases— Protrusion of the Rectum ... ... 93 
 
 IX. 
 
 The Skin and its Diseases— Gangrenous Erysipelas— Lice — Leprosy— Mange — 
 Measles— Desquamation of the Skin. . ..... .107 
 
 x. 
 
 Operations— Bleeding— Castration— Catching and Holding— Drenching— Ringing 114 
 
 XI. 
 
 Breeding : Principles of— Choice of the Boar and Sow — Best Breeds— Age at which 
 the Sow may be used for Breeding— Proper Age for the Boar to commence at— Pe- 
 riod of Gestation— Fruitfulness of Sows— Treatment of them during Pregnancy — 
 Abortion— Parturition — Ceesarian Operation — Monstrosities — Treatment of Sows 
 while Nursing— Treatment of Young while Sucking— Weaning and alter Treat- 
 ment— Prolific Powers of Swine ....... .119 
 
 XII. 
 
 On Feeding Swine— Fat Pigs— Cattle-Shows— Wbey, Milk, and Dairy Refuse- 
 Refuse and Grains of Breweries and Distilleries— Residue of Starch Manufactories 
 — Vegetables and Roots — Fruits — Grain— Suiling and Pasturing Swine — Animal 
 Substances as Food for them— General Directions for Bleeding and Fattening . 134 
 
 XIII. 
 
 On the Proper Construction of Piggeries— Ventilation— Description of Mr. Hender- 
 son's Sties— Cooking Apparatus— Curious Contrivance for Feeding Pigs — Descrip- 
 tion of the Piggery at Prince Albert's Home Farm — Description of a Piggery at 
 Lascoed— Advantages of Cleanliness— Pig-keeping in Mexico . . .147 
 
 XIV. 
 
 • 
 
 Pigs, Profit of, to the Butcher— Sucking-pigs— Pork-butchers— Pig- killing at Rome— 
 Pickling Pork— Bacon : Mode of Curing in Hampshire— Buckinghamshire— Wilt- 
 shire— Yorkshire— Westphalia— America— Brine poisonous to Pigs— Quantity of 
 Bacon, Ham, and Salted Pork Imported during the last Three Years— Importation 
 of Swine— Pig's Dung as Manure . . . . .153 
 
 ' XV. 
 
 Medicines used in combating the Maladies of Swine . . . . . 166 
 
THE PIG. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 Zoological definition of the Pig— Tho order Pachydermata— The Peccary— The Babi- 
 rnussa— The Phaco-choeres— The Capibara— Various animals have been called by the 
 name of Hog. 
 
 The Hog {Suidae Sus of the ancients and Linnaeus,) according to 
 Cuvier, belongs to " the class Mammalia, order Pachydermata, genus 
 Suidae or Sus, having on each foot two large principal toes shod with 
 stout hoofs, and two lateral toes much shorter and scarcely touching the 
 earth; the incisors variable in number, the lower incisors all levelled 
 forwards ; the canines projected from the mouth and recurved upwards; 
 the muzzle terminated by a truncated snout fitted for turning up the 
 ground; the stomach but little divided; the body square and thick, and 
 more or less covered with bristles and hairs ; the neck strong and 
 muscular; the legs short and stout."* All this species feed on plants, 
 and especially on roots, .which their snout or trunk enables them to 
 grub out of the earth; they will devour animal, substances, but rarely 
 hunt or destroy animals for the purpose of devouring them. They are 
 thick skinned ; said to be obtuse in most of their faculties, excepting 
 in the olfaetory and oral senses; voracious; bold in defending them- 
 selves; and delight in humid and shady places. 
 
 To this order belong the elephant, the rhinoceros, the hippopotamus, 
 &c, the general characteristics of all of which are very similar.' 
 
 Under the generic term Suidae or Sus many zoologists have included, 
 besides the true hog as it exists in a wild or tame state in Europe, 
 Asia, and Africa, the peccary, the babiroussa, the phaco-choere, and the 
 capibara; we will, therefore, slightly glance at each of these varieties 
 before proceeding to the actual subject of the present work. 
 
 The Peccary. — This appears to be the nearest approach to swine 
 among the animals indigenous to the New World ; and the Collared 
 Peccary (Dicotyles torquatus) and the White-lipped Peccary (Dicolyles 
 labiatus) actually do at first sight appear to bear a very close resem- 
 blance to the common hog, but a more careful examination soon enables 
 us to detect material differences. The head is thicker and shorter, the 
 body not so bulky, the legs shorter, the hoofs longer, the ears shorter , 
 and the tail is supplied by a slight, and at a cursory glance almost 
 imperceptible, protuberance. But the great difference arises from a 
 
 * Cuvier'8 Animal Kingdom, vol. iii. 
 
10 THE PIG. 
 
 small gland on the back, which, although partially concealed by the 
 hair, is nevertheless evident, and hence it is that the term Dicotyka, 
 which signifies a double navel, has been given to this species. This 
 gland secretes a fluid which is emitted in great abundance whenever 
 the animal is irritated, and gives out a very strong odour, pronounced 
 as fetid and disagreeable by some authors, and by others compared to 
 musk. 
 
 Cuvier remarks that the external toe on the hind feet is wanting in 
 the peccary. The body is of a grayish hue, and thickly covered with 
 strong coarse bristles, stiff enough to penetrate a tolerably firm sub- 
 stance, and shaded black and white. These are longest on the back, 
 where some will be found measuring four or five inches ; they become 
 gradually shorter and shorter on the sides, and disappear altogether on 
 the belly, which is nearly bare.- On the head is a large tuft of black 
 bristles. The eyes and snout are small, and the ears erect. 
 
 This animal is found in vast 'numbers in Paraguay and Guiana, and 
 has been termed by some writers the Mexican hog. It has nearly the 
 same habits and tastes as the common hog; feeds on seeds and roots; 
 digs with its snout; expresses its emotions by grunts; is fierce in 
 defence of its young; very prolific ; and the flesh is similar to ordinary 
 pork, but harder, less sweet and juicy, and not so fat. 
 
 The peccary may be tamed if taken when young, and will attach itself 
 to those who are kind to it, and to dogs and other animals; is fond of 
 being caressed and scratched, and will answer to its keeper's voice. 
 
 The European hog when transplanted to the wilds«of America will 
 herd with the peccaries, but is never known to breed with them ; the 
 two races, although resembling each other in certain points, are, and 
 remain distinct. The hog is the larger, stronger, and more useful ani- 
 mal, and will thrive in almost any part of the world : the peccary is 
 smaller, weaker, and cannot be made to live in a foreign climate without 
 very great care and attention.. 
 
 The Babiroussa ($us baby-roussa,") or Hog-deer, or, as it has been 
 termed by some foreign authors, the Indian hog, is chiefly found in the 
 Moluccas, Sumatra, Java, and other islands of the Indian Archipelago. 
 
 This animal stands higher than the common hog; its legs are Jong 
 and slender; its skin thin and scantily furnished with short wooly hair 
 of a reddish brown on the back, and lighter and more inclined to fawn- 
 colour on the belly. It is chiefly remarkable for the strange position 
 of its upper tusks, which come through the skin of the muzzle and 
 curve backwards almost like horns, until tliey nearly or quite touch the 
 skin again; they are sometimes as much as nine inches in length and 
 five in circumference. Pliny evidently alludes to this animal when he 
 says that wild boars are found in India which have two horns on the 
 face, similar to those of a heifer, and tusks like the common wild 
 boars.* 
 
 There are all the family characteristics of the hog in this animal ; the 
 heavy awkward gait, thick neek, small eyes, head terminated by a snout, 
 and grunting voice ; it feeds, too, on roots, plants, and leaves, and some 
 say shell-fish; but some authors assert that it does not grub roots out 
 of the ground like most of the swinish varieties. Sparrman informs us 
 
 * Pliny, b. 8, chap. lii. 
 
VARIOUS ANIMALS CALLED HOG. 1 1 
 
 that the natives would rather attack a lion than this animal, for it comes 
 rushing on a man swift as an arrow, and, throwing him down, snaps 
 his legs in two and rips his belly up in a moment.* 
 
 The flesh of the babiroussa is very fine eating, and the Malays melt 
 down the fat to use instead of butter and oil. 
 
 Cnvier has given an account of a pair that were at the Menagerie at 
 Paris, the female of which was much younger and more active than the 
 male; he was old and fat, and Only ate, drank, and Slept. When the 
 male retired to rest the female would cover him completely over with 
 straw or litter, and creep in after him, so that both were concealed from 
 sight. The specimen at the Zoological Gardens in the Regent's Park 
 used to cover himself up with straw in the same way. 
 
 The Phaco-choeres. — There are two recognised species of this 
 variety of the hog family, the one found in Guinea and the interior of 
 the Cape, and spoken of by various writers as the Wark-hog, and the 
 other first seen in Kordofan and afterwards in several parts of Abyssinia, 
 and referred to by iElian as the hog with four horns. Of the habits of 
 these creatures little is known, save that they are inhabitants of forests, 
 and their food is vegetable. 
 
 They are remarkable for the two warts or fleshy excrescences which 
 disfigure the face- on either side ; the eyes are small ; a bristly mane of 
 a pale brown colour rises between the ears and extends itself along the 
 back, many of the hairs of which are from eight to ten inches in length ; 
 the body is bare ; the tail thin and terminated by a tuft of hair ; and 
 the tusks very large and powerful. 
 
 The Capibara — is an animal which is often classed by modern 
 zoologists among the Cavies ; it also resembles a two-year old hog in 
 shape and colour, but its head is longer, its eyes larger, and 'its nose 
 cleft like the lip of a rabbit, instead of being round. It has thick coarse 
 whiskers, a narrow mouth, and no tusks. The front hoofs are divided 
 into four parts, and the back ones into three, and these divisions or toes 
 are connected together by skin, and thus in a manner webbed, and 
 adapted for swimming ; indeed so much does it delight in the water 
 that • by some it has been called the water-hog. It lives upon fruit, 
 corn, and sugar-canes, and eats all the fish it can catch. These animals 
 associate in herds and seldom go out of their lair excepting in the night 
 time, or quit the borders of some kike or river, for their short legs and 
 strangely formed feet prevent them from running with any degree of 
 speed, so their only safety is in the water, wherein they plunge on the 
 least alarm. 
 
 If taken young this animal may easily be tamed, and is capable of 
 great attachment. We are informed that its flesh is tender, juicy, and 
 fat, but has a fishy flavour; the head is, however, said to be excellent. 
 
 Cuvier refuses to admit this last-mentioned animal among the Pa- 
 chyderhata, but places it in the order RonENTrA, genus Cavia. 
 
 The animal, too, so well known to us by the name of Guinea-pig, 
 or among the French as the Cochon iPInde, he also classes among the 
 Rodentia.f 
 
 The name Hog has been given by different nations to various animals 
 which have no affinity whatever with the actual family Sua .■ thus the 
 
 * Sparrman's Voyage, vol ii. I Cuvier's Animal Kingdom. 
 
12 THE PIG. 
 
 Spaniards call the tatous, hogs in armour; the Hollanders term the 
 porcupine, the iron-hog; the porpoise has frequently been designated 
 the sea-hog; and Aristotle speaks of a hog-ape, which has been since 
 supposed to refer to one of the baboon tribe; while among our common 
 animals we have the hedge-hog. This has led to much confusion and' 
 misapprehension; but the genus Suidae or Sus is now very generally 
 allowed to apply only to the actual swine as they exist in a wild or 
 domesticated state throughout the greater part of the known world. 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 Derivation of the term Hog — The Hog was greatly esteemed by the Romans — Worshipped 
 bv some of the ancients — Swine's flesh prohibited by the law of Moses — By that of 
 Mohammed — Despised by the Egyptians. 
 
 The term Hog is stated by Carpenter to be derived from the Hebrew 
 word Tin, by which this animal was designated among the Hebrews, 
 a word derived from "W1, to encompass or surround, suggested by the 
 round figure of this animal when in his fat and most natural state. 
 Bochart and Schultens, however, are more inclined to refer the Hebrew 
 noun to the Arabic sense of the verb, viz., to have narrow eyes, and 
 there is much of probability in their supposition. In some respects 
 swine seem to form an intermediate link between the whole-footed and 
 cloven-fooled animals, and in others to occupy the same ground be- 
 tween the cloven-footed and the digitative; but look on them in* what 
 point of view we may, these animals present various peculiar charac- 
 teristics, and are of vast importance as affording the means of suste- 
 nance to millions of human beings in all parts of the world. The hog 
 is a perfect cosmopolite, adapting itself to almost every climate ; in- 
 creasing rapidly, being more prolific than any other domestic animal, 
 with the exception of the rabbit ; easily susceptible of improvement, 
 and quickly attaining to maturity. 
 
 As far back as the records of history enable us to go, the hog appears 
 to have been known, and his flesh made use of as food. 1491 years 
 before Christ, Moses gave those laws to the Israelites which have 
 occasioned so much discussion, and given rise to the many opinions 
 which we shall presently have to speak of; and it is quite evident that 
 had not pork then been the prevailing food of that nation, such strin- 
 gent commandments and prohibitions would not have been necessary. 
 The various allusions to this kind of meat, which occur again and again 
 in the writings of the old Greek authors, plainly testify the esteem in 
 which it was held among this nation, and it appears that the Romans 
 actually made the art of breeding, rearing, and fattening pigs a study, 
 which they designated Porculalio. Every art was put in practice to 
 imparl a finer and more delicate flavour to the flesh : the poor animals 
 were fed, and crammed, and tortured to death in various ways, many 
 of them too horrible to be described, in order to gratify the epicurism 
 and gluttony of this people. Pliny informs us that they fed swine on 
 dried figs, and drenched them to repletion with honeyed wine, in order 
 to produce a diseased and monstrous-sized liver.. The Porcus Trojanus, 
 
SWINE S FLESH PROHIBITED IN HOT CLIMATES. 13 
 
 so called in allusion to the Trojan horse, was a very celebrated dish, 
 and one that eventually became so extravagantly expensive that a 
 sumptuary law was passed respecting it. This dish consisted in a 
 whole hog, with the entrails drawn out, and the inside stuffed with 
 thrushes, larks, beccaficoes, oysters, nightingales, and delicacies of 
 every kind, and the whole bathed in wine and rich gravies. Another 
 great dish was a hog served whole, the one side roasted and the other 
 boiled. 
 
 Varro states that the Gauls produced the largest and finest swine's 
 flesh that was brought into Italy ; and, according to Strabo, in the reign 
 of Augustus they supplied Rome and nearly all Italy with Gammons, 
 hog-puddings, hams, and sausages. This nation and the Spaniards 
 appear to have kept immense droves of swine, but scarcely any other 
 kind of live stock ; and various authors mention swine as forming a 
 part of the live stock of most Roman farms. 
 
 In fact the hog was held in very high esteem among the early nations 
 of Europe, and some of the ancients have even paid it divine honours. 
 In the island of Crete it was regarded as sacred. This animal was 
 always sacrificed to Ceres at the beginning of harvest, and to Bacchus 
 at the commencement of the vintage, by the Greeks ; probably, it has 
 been suggested, "because this animal is equally hostile to the growing 
 corn and the ripening grape." 
 
 The Jews, the Egyptians, and the followers of Mohammed, alone 
 appear to have abstained from it. To the former nation it is expressly 
 forbidden by the laws of Moses. Leviticus xi. 7, says: "And the 
 swine, though he divide the hoof, and be cloven-footed, yet he cheweth 
 not the cud ; he is unclean unto you." Mohammed probably founded 
 his prohibition on this one, or was induced, by the prejudices of his 
 followers, to make it. Numerous theories have been advanced by 
 different authors to account for this remarkable prohibition uttered by 
 Moses against a species of food generally so wholesome and nutritious 
 as the flesh of the hog, Maimonides says : " The principal reason why 
 the law prohibited the swine was, because of their extreme filthiness, 
 and their eating so many impurities ; for it is well known with what 
 care and precision the law forbids all filthiness and dirt, even in the 
 fields and in the camp, not to mention in the cities. Now had swine 
 been permitted, the public places, and streets, and houses, would have 
 been made nuisances."* 
 
 Tacitus states that the Jews abstained from it in consequence of a 
 leprosy by which they had formerly severely suffered, and to which the 
 hog is very subject. And several other writers concur in this view, 
 stating that it was on account of the flesh being strong, oleaginous, 
 difficult of digestion, and liable to produce cutaneous diseases, that it 
 Was forbidden. Michaelis observes, that throughout the whole climate 
 under which Palestine is situated, leprosy is an endemic disease ; and 
 the Israelites being overrun with it at the period of their quitting Egypt, 
 Moses found it necessary to enact a variety of laws respecting it, and 
 the prohibiting the use of swine was one of these.f 
 
 M. Sonnini states that in Egypt, Syria, and even the southern parts 
 
 of Greece, swine's flesh, although white and delicate, is so flabby and 
 
 . . t — — 
 
 * More Nevochim, part iii. c. 8. 
 
 t Commentaries on tbe Law of Moses, Art. 303. vol. ii. 
 
14 THE PIG. 
 
 sur-charged with fat, as to disagree with the strongest stomachs,* and 
 this will account for its prohibition by the priests and legislators of hot 
 climates, such an abstinence being absolutely necessary to health be- 
 neath the burning suns of Egypt and Arabia. " The Egyptians," he 
 says, " were only allowed to eat pork once a year, on the feast-day of 
 the moon, and then they sacrificed a number of these animals to. that 
 planet. If at any other time an Egyptian even touched a hog, he was 
 obliged to plunge into the Nile, clothes and all, to purify himself. 
 The swineherds formed an isolated race, outcasts from society, forbid- 
 den to enter a temple, or intermarry with other families."! Hence it 
 probably is that, in the beautiful parable of the Prodigal Son, this 
 unhappy young man is represented as being reduced to the office of a 
 swineherd, that being considered as the lowest possible degradation. 
 
 Others are of opinion that this and many other of the prohibitions and 
 ordinances established by Moses were solely for the purpose of distin- 
 guishing the Jews from other nations, and making them what they are 
 to this day in all countries and under all climates, " a peculiar people." 
 Others, again, assert that it was with a view to correct their gross and 
 gluttinous habits that none hut the simplest and mildest kinds of ani- 
 mal food were permitted to the Jews. And, lastly, another maintains 
 that the swine was thus declared an abomination in the sight of God 
 as a lesson to the Jews to abstain from the sensual and disgusting 
 habits to which this animal is given.:): 
 
 This aversion to swine has descended to the Jews,- Egyptians, and 
 followers of Mohammed of modem times. The Copts rear no pigs, 
 indeed this animal is scarcely known in most of the cities of Lower 
 Egypt ; and the poorest Jew would sooner starve than touch a morsel 
 of this forbidden food, even though the presumed cause of the prohibi- 
 tion has long ceased to exist, and he is removed to colder climes, where 
 pork is both wholesome and nutritious. 
 
 By the precepts, warnings, and threatenings of the prophets, we read 
 that, so great was the detestation excited in the minds of the Jewish 
 nation against this animal, that they would not even pollute their lips 
 by pronouncing its name, but always alluded to it as " that beast," 
 " that thing ;" and we read in the history of the Maccabees, that Eleazer, 
 a principal scribe, being compelled by Antiochus Epiphanes to open 
 his mouth and receive swine's flesh, spit it forth, and went of his ac- 
 cord to the torment, choosing rather to suffer death than break the divine 
 law and offend his nation.§ 
 
 And yet it is well known that immense numbers of swine were reared 
 in the country of the Jews, probably for the purpose of gain, and in 
 order to supply strangers ond the neighbouring idolaters; and it has 
 been supposed,!! that it was in order to punish this violation of the 
 Divine commandments that our Saviour permitted the herd of swine to 
 be affected with that sudden disorder which caused them to rush head- 
 long into the lake of Genesareth.^' ^ 
 
 * Plutarch {it hide) affirms that those who drank the milk of swine became blotchy 
 and leprous. 
 t Sonnini's Voyage dans la Haute et Basse Egypte, vol. iii. 
 X Lactaintius, Inst. § 2 Maccabees vi. 18, vii. 1. 
 
 I! Farmer's Essay on Dtemoniacs, and Bishop Pearce's " Miracles of Jesus vindicated." 
 IT Matth. viii. 32. 
 
EARLY HISTORY OF SWINE. 15 
 
 / 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 The early history of Swine— Legendary and authentic records respecting the keeping 
 of them in England — Ancient Welsh laws relative to Swine— The forests of England 
 — Swineherds— Their mode of managing their herds— Calabrian Swineherds— Horn 
 used to assemble the grunting troop— The Schwein-General— Herds of Swine kept in 
 France— Value of Pigs — Some vindication of them— Anecdotes proving their teach- 
 ability—Sagacity of a Pig — Some demonstrations of Memory in one— Attachment to 
 individuals— Swine not innately filthy animals — They are possessed of more docility 
 than they usually have credit for— Their exquisite sense of smell— Pigs said to foretell 
 rain and wind. 
 
 In our own country the keeping of large herds of swine can be traced 
 back to 863 years before Christ, at least if any reliance may be placed 
 on the ancient and legendary history of Bath, for there it is recorded 
 that, about 270.9 years ago, a numerous herd of swine was kept by a 
 British prince in the neighbourhood of Bath, to whom we owe the dis- 
 covery of the medicinal qualities of the hot springs there. "Baldred, 
 eldest son of Lord Hudibras (then King of Britain,) it is said, having 
 spent eleven years at Athens in study, came home leprous, and was in 
 consequence confined to prevent infection. Having e'ffected his escape, 
 however, he went very remote from his father's court, into an untra- 
 velled part of the country, and offered his services in any common 
 employment. He entered into service at Learwick, a small village 
 three miles from Bath, where his business was to take care of pigs, 
 which he was to drive from place to place for their advantage in feed- 
 ing upon acorns, haws, &c. While at his usual employment one 
 morning, a part of the drove of swine, as if seized with a frenzy, ran 
 down the side of the hill into an elder-moor, till they reached the spot 
 of ground where the hot springs of Bath now boil up, and from thence 
 returned, covered with black mud. The prince being of a thoughtful 
 turn, was very desirous to find out the reason why pigs that wallowed 
 in the mire in summer to cool themselves, should do the same in win- 
 ter ; at length he perceived a steam arise from the place where they 
 had wallowed, and making his way to it, found it warm. Having 
 thus satisfied himself that it was for the benefit of the heat that the pigs 
 resorted hither, he observed, that after awhile they became whole and 
 smooth from their scabs and eruptions by often wallowing in this mud. 
 Upon this he considered within himself why he should not receive the 
 same benefit by the like means. He tried the experiment with success, 
 and finding himself cured of his leprosy, declared who he was. His 
 master, though incredulous at first, being at last persuaded to believe 
 him, went with him to court, where he was owned ; and upon succeed- 
 ing to his father, he erected the baths. In one of these baths there is 
 at the present time a statute of King Baldred, which was erected in 
 1699, under which is the following inscription on copper: "Baldred, 
 son of Lord Hudibras, eighth King of the Britons from Brute, a great 
 philosopher and mathematician, bred at Athens, and recorded the first 
 discoverer and founder of these baths,'863 years before Christ." 
 
 In Greece and the neighbouring islands it would seem that swine 
 were also common at even an earlier period, and were kept in large 
 droves by swineherds ; for we read in Homer's Odyssey, which is sup- 
 posed to have been written upwards of 900 years B.C., that Ulysses, on 
 
16 THE PIG. 
 
 his return from the Trojan war, first sought the dwelling of Eumaeus, 
 his faithful servant, and the keeper of his swine : and that office must 
 then have been held in higher esteem than it subsequently became, or 
 was in other countries, or it would not have been performed by that, 
 wise and good old man, himself a descendant of princes. 
 
 " But he, deep-musing, o'er the mountains stray'd, 
 Thro* mazy thickets of the woodland shade, 
 And cavern'd ways, the shaggy coast along, 
 With cliffs and nodding forests overhung. 
 Eumaeus at his sylvan lodge he sought, 
 A faithful servant and without a fault. 
 Ulysses found him busied, as he sat, 
 Before the threshold of his rustic gate; 
 Around the mansion in a circle shone 
 A rural portico of rugged stone; 
 (In absence of his lord, with honest toil 
 His own industrious hands had raised the pilel — 
 The wall was stone from neighbouring quarries borne. 
 Encircled with a fence of native thorn, 
 And strong with pales, by many a weary stroke 
 Of stubborn labour, hewn from heart of oak; 
 Frequent and thick. Within the space were reared 
 Twelve ample cells, the lodgments of his herd. 
 Full fifty pregnant females each contained, 
 The males without (a smaller race) remained; 
 Doomed to supply the Suitors' wasteful feast, 
 A stock by daily luxury decreas'd, 
 Now scarce four hundred left. Those to defend, 
 Four savage dogs, a watchful guard, attend. 
 Here sat Eumaeus, and his cares apply'd 
 To form strong buskins of well-seasoned hide. 
 Of four assistants who his labour share, 
 Three now were absent on the rural care; 
 The fourth drove victims to the suitor train; 
 But he of ancient faith a simple swain, 
 Sigh'd while he furnisb'd the luxurious board, 
 And weary'd heaven with wishes for his lord. 1 '— xiv. 1-30. 
 
 The rude tables of the ancient Britons were chiefly supplied from their 
 herds of swine, and the flesh of these animals furnished them with a 
 great variety of dishes.* 
 
 Sharon Turner, in his History of the Anglo-Saxons, while enumerating 
 their live stock, states they had " great abundance of swine ;" and adds, 
 that although horned cattle are occasionally mentioned in grants, wills, 
 and exchanges of property, swine are most frequently spoken of. 
 
 The country then abounded with woods and forests, and these are. 
 seldom particularized without some mention being made of the swine 
 fed in them. These animals appear in fact to have constituted a con- 
 siderable item in the wealth of an individual, for legacies of them often 
 occur in wills. Thus Alfred, a nobleman, bequeaths to his relatives a 
 hide of land with one hundred swine, and directs that another hundred 
 shall be given for masses for the benefit of his soul; and to his daughters 
 he leaves two thousand. So Elf helm left land to St. Peter's at "West- 
 minster on the express condition that they should feed a herd of two 
 hundred swine for the use of his wife.f 
 
 In the original Domesday-Book for Hampshire, where an estimate of 
 the value of the lands and forests belonging to the king, the monasteries, 
 the hundreds, and other divisions is given, the number of hogs which 
 can be fed on each separate portion is invariably specified.}: 
 
 * Cffisar, book i. chap. 1. t Sharon Turner's Hist, of Anglo-Saxons, vol. iv. 
 
 t Warner's History of Hampshire. 
 
ANCIENT WELSH LAWS RESPECTING SWINE. 17 
 
 In the oldest of the Welsh Triads (which treat, of the events of Bri- 
 tain in general,) we find evidence of the early domestication of swine, 
 for one of these contains a recital of the actions of three powerful swine- 
 herds in the Isle of Britain, "over whom it was not possible to prevail 
 or gain," and who restored the swine to their owners with increase. 
 Some of the fabulous narrations blended with the history of these 
 swineherds have been attributed by antiquarians to a period antecedent 
 to Christianity. 
 
 In the laws of Howel, or (as some write it) Hoel Dha, there is a 
 chapter on the value of animals, in which it is stated "that the price of 
 a little pig from the time it is born until it grows to burrow, is one 
 penny; when it ceases sucking, which is at the end of three months, 
 it is worth two pence; from that time it goes to the wood with the 
 swine, and it is considered as a swine, and its value is four pence; 
 from the Feast of St. John unto the 1st day of January, its value is 
 fifteen pence; from the 1st of January unto the Feast of St. John, its 
 value is twenty-four pence; and from that time forward its value shall 
 be thirty pence, the same as its mother." 
 
 " The qualities of a sow are, that she breeds pigs and do not devour 
 her young ones. The seller must also warrant her sound against the 
 quinsy for three days and. nights after she is sold. If she should not 
 possess these qualities, one-third of her price must be returned. The 
 value of a boar is equal to the value of three sows."* 
 
 There are several enactments in these same laws of Howel Dha, 
 which regulate the compensation for corn spoiled or damaged by the 
 trespassing of swine; and it is stated in that part of the code, that 
 "little pigs, from the time they turn up the cow-dung with their noses, 
 are subject to the same law as their mothers." The following seems 
 more singular than just : " If swine enter a house and scatter about the 
 fire, so as to set the house on fire, and the swine escape, let the owner 
 of the swine pay for the act. If the swine be burnt, then both house 
 and swine are equal, for both are stupid ; therefore as both have equally 
 suffered according to law, there is nothing to be redressed, but the in- 
 jury of the one must be set against the injury of the other." This ap- 
 pears rather hard, seeing that the swine came to the fire, and not the 
 fire to the swine. 
 
 In a paper by Dr. Hibbert,f entitled " Illustrations of the Customs of 
 a Manor in the North of England," &c, there is the following notice 
 regarding swine, derived from an ancient court-roll of the manor of 
 Ashton-under-Lyne, in Lancashire, dated a. d. 1422. 
 
 "Attached to these ordinances was a covenant between Sir John of 
 Assheton and his tenants, relative to the keeping of swine. These 
 animals were allowed to range in the demesnes of the town from the 
 latter end of August until sowing-time, provided that they were pro- 
 perly ringed, and did no harm ; in default whereof the owner was to 
 loose him to the lord four pence, or by this sum redeem the animal from 
 poundage. The brewer who brewed to sell, and the miller, were 
 allowed to keep three swine; the tenants who had land in the fields, 
 two swine; and he who held no land might have one swine." 
 
 In a chapter on " The King's Entertainment from the Manors," it is 
 
 * Hoel Dha, Leges, Wnllicffi, 41. 
 
 t Transactions of the Antiquarian Society of Scotland, vol. iii. 
 
18 THE PIG. 
 
 stated that among various rents which vassal manors must grant the 
 king is a three-year old swine in winter. And among the articles which 
 form the king's entertainment from a free manor in winter, are enume- 
 rated "a three-years old swine and a flitch of bacon salted, being three 
 fingers in thickness." 
 
 The British forests, which formerly occupied the greater part of 
 England, were peopled by the swinish multitude. Hertfordshire was 
 nearly covered with wood and forest land; Buckinghamshire boasted 
 its magnificent Bern Wood; Hampshire, its extensive New Forest; 
 nor were the other counties destitute of these sylvan retreats, which 
 have latterly vanished before the axe of the woodman and the industry 
 of the husbandman. The "Merrie green wood" has given place to 
 pasture and cultivated fields ; shepherds now feed their flocks where 
 the swineherd formerly drove his grunting troop ; and waving corn dis- 
 plays its golden harvest where once acorns and — 
 
 " the falling mast 
 For greedy swine provides a rich repast." 
 
 In 1646- Norwood in Surrey is described as containing 830 acres 
 from which the inhabitants of Croydon " have herbage for all kinds of 
 cattle, and mastage for swine without stint." 
 
 The right of forest borderers to fatten their swine in the various 
 forests, formerly royal property, is very ancient, being evidently ante- 
 rior to the Conquest. At first a small tax or fee was paid by those 
 holding this right ; but whether this went to the crown, or consisted in 
 a certain gratuity to the forest ranger or the swineherd, is no where 
 specified in the records. This privilege, like all others, was greatly 
 abused; for many of the keepers availed themselves of it, and kept 
 large herds of swine which they suffered to run the forests during the 
 whole of the year, doing exceeding damage to the timber as well as to 
 the land. 
 
 The actual period for which it was lawful to turn swine into the royal 
 woods and forests for masting, was from fifteen days before Michslmas 
 to forty days afterwards,* and this was termed the pawnage month. 
 
 The method of treating hogs at this season of migration, and reducing 
 a large herd of these unmanageable brutes to order and obedience, is 
 thus graphically described by Gilpin: — 
 
 "The first step the swineherd takes is to seek out some close shel- 
 tered partof the forest where trfere is a conveniency of water, and plenty 
 of oak or beech mast; the former of which he prefers when he can 
 have it in abundance. 
 
 " He next fixes on some spreading tree, round the bole of which he 
 wattles a slight circular fence of the dimensions he wants, and, cover- 
 ing it roughly with boughs and sods, he fills it plentifully with straw 
 or fern. 
 
 " Having made this preparation, he collects his colony among the 
 farmers, and will get together perhaps a herd of five or six hundred 
 hogs. Having driven them to their destined habitation, he gives a 
 plentiful supper of acorns or of beech-mast which he had already pro- 
 vided, sounding his horn during the repast. He then turns them into 
 the litter, where, after a long journey and a hearty meal, they sleep 
 soundly. 
 
 * Manwood's Forest Law. 
 
SWINE IN THE FORESTS OF ENGLAND. 19 
 
 "On the next morning he suffers them to look around, shows them 
 the pool or stream where they may occasionally drink, leaves them to 
 gather the offals of the last night's meal ; gives them another plentiful 
 repast under the neighbouring trees — that almost rain acorns upon 
 them — for a considerable time to the sound of his horn, and then sends 
 them once more to sleep. 
 
 " On the following day he is perhaps at the pains of procuring them 
 another meal, with music playing as before. He then leaves them a 
 little more to themselves, keeping his eye, however, on them about 
 evening; when their bellies are full, they seldom wander far from home, 
 but commonly retire orderly and early to bed. 
 
 " After this he throws his sty open, and leaves them to cater for them- 
 selves, and henceforward has little more trouble with them during the 
 whole time of their migration. 
 
 " Now and then, in calm weather, when mast falls sparingly, he per- 
 haps calls them together by the music of his horn to a gratuitous meal ; 
 but they require very little further teaching, but return home regularly 
 every evening, although they sometimes stray two or three miles from 
 their sty. There are always experienced leaders among the herd, who, 
 having led this rambling life before, are competent to instruct their 
 juniors in the method of it. By this management the herd is carried 
 home to its owners in such a condition that a little dry meat will soon 
 fatten them. 
 
 " I would not, however, have it supposed that all the swineherds in 
 the forest can manage their colonies with such exactness. The hog is 
 commonly supposed to be an obstinate, headstrong beast, and he may 
 perhaps have a degree of positiveness in his temper ; but if properly 
 managed he is, or maybe made, an orderly docile animal. When your 
 meanings are fair, and friendly, and intelligible, he maybe led with a 
 straw ; nor is he without his social feelings, when he is at liberty to 
 ' indulge them. 
 
 " During his migrations in the forest, it is commonly observed that 
 of whatever number the herd consists before setting forth on their 
 daily excursions, they generally separate themselves into parties, and 
 may thus be met with in those friendly groups, some earlier and some 
 later, according as they have been more or less fortunate in the pursuits 
 of the day. 
 
 "Beside the hogs thus led out in the mast-season to fatten, there are 
 others, the property of forest-keepers, who spend the whole year in 
 similar societies. . 
 
 "After the mast-season is over, the indigenous forest hog depends 
 chjefly for his livelihood on the roots of fern, and he would find this 
 food very nourishing if he could have it in abundance ; but he is obliged 
 to procure it by so laborious an operation, that his meals are rarely ac- 
 companied by satiety. He continues, however, by great industry, to 
 obtain a tolerable subsistence through the winter, except in frosty wea- 
 ther ; and he must then perish if he does not, in some degree, experi- 
 ence his master's care. 
 
 - " Besides these stationary hogs, there are others in some of the deso- 
 late parts of the forest that are bred wild, and left to themselves with- 
 out any settled habitation, and as they cost nothing in their food, their 
 
20 THE PIG. 
 
 owners are content with the precarious profits of such as they are able 
 to reclaim."* 
 
 Our readers must forgive us if we add yet another view of this pic- 
 ture, given in the truthful and simply descriptive lines of our rural poet, 
 Bloomfield : — 
 
 " From oak to oak they run with eager haste, 
 Anil wrangling share the first* delicious taste 
 Of fallen acorns; yet btit thinly found 
 Till the strong gale has shook them to the ground. 
 It comes, and roaring woods obedient wave; 
 Their home well pleased the joint adventurers leave. 
 The trudging sow lends forth her numerous young, 
 Playful, and white, and clean, the briars among; 
 Till briars and thorns increasing force them round, 
 Where last year's mouldering leaves bestrew the ground, 
 And o'er their heads, loud lash'd by furious squalls. 
 Bright from their cups the rattling treasure falls. 
 Hot, thirsty fond; whence doubly sweet and cool 
 The welcome margin of some rush-grown pool." 
 
 Nor was the practice of feeding swine in herds,and accustoming them 
 to assemble at the sound of the horn, peculiar to this country. In Cala- 
 bria they are grazed in herds, and the keeper uses a kind of bagpipe, 
 the tones of which, when the period arrives for their being driven home, 
 quickly collects the scattered groups from every part. In Tuscany it 
 is the same. 
 
 Barna Goge, in commending the use of the horn to all keepers of 
 swine, gives the following ludicrous anecdote: — " Certain pirates, who 
 seem not well to have learned their business, since they were unable 
 to swim, landed on the coast of Tuscany, and carried off a number of 
 swine to their boats, and were just paddling off when the swineherd, miss- 
 ing some of his charges, winded his horn. At the well-known sound 
 up started all the grunters una et viva voce, and crowding to one side of 
 the boat upset it, and swam ashore to their keeper, leaving the unfortu- 
 nate thieves floundering in the sea." 
 
 In Germany almost every village has its swineherd, who at break of 
 day goes from house to house collecting his noisy troop, blowing his 
 still more noisy cow-horn, and cracking his clumsy whip, until the 
 place echoes with the din. The following very amusing account of 
 that important personage, the Schwein-General, has lately been given in 
 a popular work : — 
 
 " Every morning, at half-past five o'clock, I hear, as I am dressing, 
 the sudden blast of an immense long wooden horn, from which always 
 proceed the same four notes. I have got quite accustomed to this wild 
 reveille,a.ni the vibration has scarcely subsided, it is still ringing among 
 the distant hills, when, leisurely proceeding from almost every door in 
 the street, behold a pig ! Some, from their jaded, care-worn appeararfce, 
 are evidently leaving behind them a numerous litter ; others are great, 
 tall, monastic, melancholy-looking animals, which seem to have no- 
 other object left in this wretched world than to become bacon ; while 
 others are thin, tiny, light-hearted, brisk, petulant piglings, with the 
 world and all its loves and sorrows before them. Of their own accord 
 these creatures proceed down the street to join the herdsman, who oc- 
 casionally continues to repeat the sorrowful blast from his horn. 
 
 " Gregarious, or naturally fond of society, with one curl in their tails, 
 
 * Gilpin's Forest Scenery. 
 
THE SCHWEIN-GENERAL OF OERMANY. 21 
 
 and with their noses almost touching the ground, the pigs trotnn grunt- 
 ing, to themselves and to their comrades, halting only whenever they 
 come to any thing they can manage to swallow. 
 
 "I have observed that the old ones pass all the carcasses which, 
 trailing to the ground, are hanging before the butchers' shops, as if 
 they were on a sort of parole d'honneur not to touch them ; the middle- 
 aged ones wistfully eye the meat, yet jog on also ; while the piglings, 
 who (so like mankind) have more appetite than judgment, can rarely 
 resist taking a nibble. Yet no sooner does the dead calf begin again 
 to move, than from the window immediately above out pops the head 
 of a butcher, who, drinking his coffee whip in hand, inflicts a prompt 
 punishment, sounding quite equal to the offence. 
 
 "As I have stated, the pigs, generally speaking, proceed of their own 
 accord ; but shortly after they have passed, there comes down our street 
 a little bare-headed, bare-footed, stunted drab of a child about eleven 
 years old — flibbertigibbet sort of creature, which in a drawing one would 
 express by a couple of blots, the Small one for her head, and the other 
 for her body, while, streaming from the latter, there would be a long 
 line ending in a flourish to express the immense whip which the child 
 carries in its hand. This little gobblin page, the whipper-in, attendant, 
 or aide-de-camp of the old pig-driver, facetiously called at Langen- 
 Schwalbach the 'Schwein-General,' is a being no one looks at, and 
 who looks at nobody. But such a pair of eyes for a pig have seldom, 
 perhaps, beamed from human sockets! The little intelligent urchin 
 knows every house from which a pig ought to have proceeded : she can 
 tell by the door being open or shut, or even by footmarks, whether the 
 creature has joined the herd, or whether, having overslept itself, it is 
 still snoring in its sty. A single glance determines whether she shall 
 pass a yard, or enter it; and if a pig, from indolence or greediness, be 
 loitering on the road, the sting of the wasp cannot be sharper or more 
 spiteful than the cut she gives it. As soon as she has finished with 
 our street, she joins her general in the main road ; the herd slowly 
 proceed down the town. 
 
 "As I followed them this moming, they really appeared to have no 
 hams at all ; their bodies were as flat as if they had been squeezed in a 
 vice, and when they turned sideways, their long sharp noses and tucked- 
 up bellies gave to their profile the appearance of starved grayhounds. 
 
 " Besides the little girl who brought up the rear, the herd was pre* 
 ceded by a boy of about fourteen, whose duty it was not to let the fore- 
 most, the most enterprising, or, in other words', the most empty pig, 
 advance too fast. In the middle of the drove, surrounded like a shep- 
 herd by his flock, slowly stalked the ' Schwein-General,' a wan spectre- 
 looking old man, worn out, or nearly so, by the arduous and every-day 
 duty of conducting against their wills a gang of exactly the most obsti- 
 nate animals in creation. A single glance at his jaundiced, ill-natured 
 countenance, was sufficient to satisfy one that his temper had been 
 soured by the vexatious contrarieties and ' untoward events ' it had met 
 with. In his left hand he held a staff to help himself onwards, while 
 round his right shoulder hung one of those terrific whips which must 
 be seen to be imagined. At. the end of a short handle, turning upon a 
 swivel, there was a lash about nine feet long, formed like the vertebra 
 of a snake, each joint being an iron ring, which, decreasing in size, was 
 
22 THE PIG. 
 
 closely connected with its neighbour by a band of hard, greasy leather. 
 The pliability, the weight, and the force of this iron whip, rendered it 
 an argument which the obstinacy even of the pig was unable to resist ; 
 yet, as the old man proceeded down the town, he endeavoured to speak 
 kindly to the herd, and as the bulk of them preceded him, he occasion- 
 ally exclaimed in a low, hollow, worn-out tone of encouragement, 
 'Nina! Anina!' (drawling, of course, very long on the last syllable.) 
 
 "If any little savoury morsel caused a contention, stoppage, or con- 
 stipation on the march, the old fellow slowly unwound his dreadful 
 whip, and by merely whirling it round his head, like reading the Riot 
 Act, generally succeeded in dispersing the crowd ; but if they neglected 
 this solemn warning — if their stomachs proved stronger than their 
 judgments, and if the group of greedy pigs still continued to stagnate, 
 'Arriff!' the old fellow exclaimed; and rushing forwards, the lash 
 whiTling round his head, he inflicted with strength which no one would 
 have fancied he possessed, a smack that seemed absolutely to electrify 
 the leader. As lightning shoots across the heavens, I observed the 
 culprit fly forwards, and for many yards continuing to sidle towards the 
 left ; it was quite evident tbat the thorn was still smarting in his side, 
 and no wonder, poor fellow ! for the blow he received would almost 
 have cut a piece out of a door. 
 
 " As soon as the herd got out of the town, they began gradually to 
 ascend the rocky, barren mountain which appeared towering above 
 them, and then the labours of the Schwein- General and his staff' became 
 greater than ever; for as the animals from their solid column began to 
 extend or deploy themselves into line, it was necessary constantly to 
 ascend and descend the slippery hill, in order to outflank them. 
 ' Arriff!' cried the old man, striding after one of his rebellious subjects ; 
 'Arriff!' in a shrill tone of voice was re-echoed by the lad, as he ran 
 after another. However, in due time the drove reached the ground 
 which was devoted for that day's exercise, the whole mountain being 
 thus taken in regular succession. 
 
 "The Schwein-General now halted, and the pigs being no longer 
 called upon to advance, but left entirely to their own notions, I became 
 exceedingly attentive in observing them. 
 
 " No wonder, poor reflecting creatures ! that they had come unwill- 
 ingly to such a spot, for there appeared literally nothing for them to 
 eat but hot stones and dust; however, making the best of the bargain, 
 they all very vigorously set themselves to work. Looking up the hill, 
 they dexterously began to lift up with their snouts the largest of the 
 loose stones, and then grubbing their noses into the cool ground. I 
 watched their proceedings for a very long time. Their tough wet 
 snonts seemed to be sensible of the quality of every thing they touched, 
 and thus out of the apparently barren ground they managed to get fibres 
 of roots, to say nothing of worms, beetles, or any other travelling in- 
 sects they met with. As they slowly advanced working up the hill, 
 their ears most philosophically shading their eyes from the hot sun, I 
 could not help feeling bow little we appreciate the delicacy of several 
 of their senses, and the extreme acuteness of their instinct. 
 
 " There exists, perhaps, in creation no animal which has less justice 
 and more injustice done to him than the pig. Gifted with every faculty 
 of supplying himself, and of providing even against the approaching 
 
THE SCHWEIN-GENERAL OF GERMANY. 23 
 
 storm, which no creature is better capable of foretelling than a pig, we 
 begin by putting an iron ring through the cartilage of his nose;- and 
 having thus barbarously deprived him of the power of searching for and 
 analyzing his food, we generally condemn him for the rest of his life 
 to the solitary confinement of a sty, 
 
 "While his faculties are still his own, only observe how, with a 
 bark or short, he starts if you approach him, and mark what shrewd 
 intelligence there is in his bright twinkling little eye: but with pigs 
 as with mankind, idleness is the root of all evil. The poor animal, 
 finding that he has absolutely nothing to do, having no enjoyment, 
 nothing to look forward to but the pail which feeds him, naturally most 
 eagerly, or, as we accuse him, most greedily, greets its arrival. Having 
 no natural business or diversion, nothing to occupy his brain, the whole 
 powers of his system are directed to the digestion of a superabundance 
 of food. To encourage this nature assists him with sleep, which, lull- 
 ing his better faculties, leads his stomach to become the ruling power 
 of his system — a tyrant that can bear no one's presence but his own. 
 The poor pig thus treated gorges himself — sleeps — eats again — awakens 
 ina fright — screams — struggles against the blue apron — screams fainter 
 and fainter — turns up the whites of his little eyes — and dies ! 
 
 "But to return to the Schwein-General, whom we left sitting with 
 horn and whip by the side of the mountain. 
 
 "In this situation do the pigs remain every morning for four hours, 
 enjoying little else but air and exercise. At about nine or ten o'clock 
 they begin their march homewards, and nothing can form a greater con- 
 trast than their entry does to their exit from their native town. 
 
 " Their eager anxiety to get to the dinner trough that awaits them is 
 almost ungovernable, and they no sooner reach the first houses of the 
 town than a sort of ' sauve qui peuf motion takes place; away each of 
 them starts towards his duke domum,- and it is really curious to stand 
 still and watch how quickly they canter by, greedily grunting and 
 snuffling, as if they could smell with their stomachs as well as their 
 noses the savoury food which was awaiting them. 
 
 " At half-past four the same four notes of the same horn are heard 
 again ; the pigs once more assemble, once more tumble over the hot 
 stones on the mountains, once more remain there for four hours, and in 
 the evening once again return to their sties. 
 
 " Such is the life of the pigs, not only of Langen-Schwalbach, but 
 those of every village throughout a great part ofi Germany: every day 
 of their existence, summer and winter, is spent in the way I have de- 
 scribed. The squad consists here of about 156, and for each pig the 
 poor old Schwein-General receives 46 kreuzers (about Is. Id.) for six 
 months' drilling of each recruit. The income- therefore is about 26^. 
 a-year, out of which he has to pay the board, lodging, and clothing of 
 his two aides-de-camp; and when one considers how unremittingly 
 these poor creatures have to contend with the gross appetites, sulky 
 tempers, and pig-headed dispositions of the swinish multitude, surely 
 not even the most niggardly reformer would wish to curtail his emolu- 
 ments"* 
 
 In France^ again, swine are ftept in herds, and in many districts the 
 
 * Bubbles from the Urunnen. 
 
24 THE PIG. 
 
 feeding of them in the woods and forests (/e glandage,) under certain 
 conditions and restrictions, has been a source of no inconsiderable 
 emolument to the forester. Indeed to such an extent was it carried in 
 certain localities, that it became an object of political economy. But 
 of late years it has much diminished ; the progress of agriculture is 
 fast sweeping away those immense tracts of woodland country winch 
 formerly existed both in England and France, and with them depart 
 the denizens of the forest, whether wild or tame, and the privileges 
 and offices of foresters, rangers, &c. 
 
 Nature evidently designed the hog to fulfil many important functions 
 in a forest country. By his burrowing after roots and such like, he 
 turns up and destroys the larva; of innumerable insects that would 
 otherwise injure the trees as well as their fruit and roots. He greedily 
 destroys the slug, the snail, the snake, and the adder, and thus not only 
 rids the forest of these injurious and unpleasant inhabitants, but also 
 makes them subservient to his awa nourishment, and thus to the benefit 
 of mankind. The fruits; too, which he eats, are such as would other- 
 wise rot on the ground and be wasted, or yield nutriment to vermin; 
 and his digging for earth-nuts, &c, loosens the soil and benefits the 
 roots of the trees. Hence, under proper restrictions, the appanage of 
 hogs in forest-land may be regarded as eminently beneficial, and it is 
 only the abuse of it which is to be feared. The celebrated German 
 agriculturist, Thaer, does not, however, advocate the forest feeding of 
 swine unless they are kept in the woods day and night and carefully 
 sheltered; as he conceives that the bringing them home at night heats 
 their blood, and nullifies the good effects of the day's feeding. He 
 likewise considers that, although acorns produce good firm flesh, beech- 
 mast makes unsound oily fat. 
 
 But if he is a useful animal in this public point of view, how much 
 more so is he to individuals! Among the poorer classes of society 
 how often is the pig their chief source of profit, of wealth, if we may 
 so speak ; in Ireland is this especially the case ; there he is emphati- 
 cally " the ginfleman what pays the rint," better treated often than the 
 peasant's own children. The small cost at which these animals can 
 be reared and fattened, and their fecundity and wonderful powers of 
 thriving under disadvantages, render them an actual blessing to many 
 a poor cotter, who, with his little savings, buys a young and ill-con- 
 ditioned pig, fattens it on all the refuse lie can beg or spare, or collect, 
 and sells it at a good profit, or occasionally, perhaps, kills it for the 
 use of his family, who thus obtain an ample supply of cheap nutritious 
 diet. 
 
 Were it not for this animal many of the labouring poor would 
 scarcely be able to keep a roof over their heads, therefore we may with 
 justice designate the hog " the poor man's friend." 
 
 With the exception of the rabbit, swine are the most prolific of all 
 domesticated animals, and this is another argument in their favour. 
 Nor does its value cease with its life ; there is scarcely a portion of the 
 pig that is not available for some useful purpose. The flesh takes the 
 salt more kindly than that of any other animal, and, whether dried as 
 bacon or salted down as pickled pork, forms an excellent and nutritious 
 food, exceedingly valuable for all kinds of stores. The fat or lard is 
 useful for numerous purposes — the housewife, the apothecary, and the 
 
A SPORTING FIG. 25 
 
 perfumer in .particular know how to value it; — the head, the feet, and 
 great part of the intestines, all are esteemed as delicacies. Brawn, that 
 far-famed domestic preparation — which is evidently no recently invented 
 dish, for at the marriage of Henry IV. in 1403, and of Henry V. in 
 1419, we find, among other records quoted by Strutt, that brawn and a 
 kind of hashed pork formed the staple dishes — is made from the pig. 
 The bristles, too, are another important item in the matters furnished 
 by swine; they are used by brushmakers, and are necessary to the 
 shoemaker, and some idea may be formed of the extent to which they 
 form an article of use and of commerce, when we state that in the yeiar 
 1828 alone, 1,748,921 lbs. of hog's bristles were imported into England 
 from Russia and Prussia, each of which cannot have weighed less than 
 two grains. From this we may fairly conjecture that 13,431,713,280 
 bristles were imported that year. As these are only taken from the top of 
 the hog's back, each hog cannot be supposed to have supplied more than 
 7680, which, reckoning each bristle to weigh two grains, will be one 
 pound. Thus in Russia and Prussia in 1828, 1,748,921 hogs and 
 boars were killed to supply the consumption of bristles in England. 
 The skin is formed into pocket-books, employed in the manufacture 
 of saddles, and of various other things, and even the ears are eaten 
 in pies. 
 
 It has been too much the custom to regard the hog as a stupid, brutal, 
 rapacious, and filthy animal, grovelling and disgusting in all his habits; 
 intractable and obstinate in temper. But may not much of these evil 
 qualities be attributable to the life he leads ! In a native state swine 
 seem by no means destitute of natural affections; they are gregarious, 
 assemble together in defence of each other, herd together for warmth, 
 and appear to have feelings in common ; no mother is more tender of 
 her young than the sow, or more resolute in their defence. Besides, 
 neglectedas this animal has ever been by authors, there are not wanting 
 records of many anecdotes illustrative of their sagacity, tractability, 
 and susceptibility of affection. How often among the peasantry, where 
 the pig is, in a manner of speaking, one of the family, may this animal 
 be seen following his master from place to place, and grunting his re- 
 cognition of his protectors. 
 
 The well authenticated account of the sow trained by Toomer, a game- 
 keeper to Sir Henry Mildmay, testifies to the teachability of these ani- 
 mals ; and therefore, as it is our intention to defend them from many 
 of the aspersions cast upon them, we will quote it. 
 
 " Toomer (formerly one of the king's keepers in the New Forest, and 
 afterwards gamekeeper to Sir Henry Mildmay) actually broke a black 
 sow to find game, and to back and stand. Slut was bred in, and was 
 of that sort which maintain themselves in the New Forest without 
 regular feeding, except when they have young, and then but for a few 
 weeks, and was given, when about three months old, to be a breeding 
 sow, by Mr. Thomas to Mr. Richard Toomer, both at that time keepers 
 in the forest. From having no young she was not fed or taken much 
 notice of, and, until about eighteen months old, was seldom observed 
 near the lodge, but chanced to be seen one day when Mr. Edward 
 Toomer was there. The brothers were concerned together in breaking 
 pointers and setters, some of their own breeding, and others sent to be 
 broke by different gentlemen : of the latter, although they would stand 
 3 
 
26 THE PIG. 
 
 and back, many were so indifferent that they would neither hunt, nori 
 express any satisfaction when birds were killed and put before them.) 
 The slackness of these dogs first suggested the idea that, by the same 
 method, any other animal might be made to stand, and do as well as, 
 any of those huntless and inactive pointers. At this instant the sow 
 passed by, and was remarked as being very handsome. R. Toomer threw 
 her a piece or two of oatmeal roll, for which she appeared grateful, and 
 approached very near ; from that time they were determined to make a 
 sporting pig of her. The first step was to give her a name, and that of 
 Slut (given in consequence of soiling herself in a bog) she acknow^ 
 ledged in the course of the day, and never afterwards forgot. Within 
 a fortnight she would find and point partridges or rabbits, and her train- 
 ing was much forwarded by the abundance of both which were near 
 the lodge ; she daily improved, and in a few weeks would retrieve 
 birds that had run as well as the best pointer, nay, her nose was supe- 
 rior to the best pointer they ever possessed, and no two men in England 
 had better. ' She hunted principally on the moors and heaths. Slut 
 has stood partridges, black-game, pheasants, snipes, and rabbits, in the 
 same day, but was never known to point a hare. She was seldom 
 taken by choice more than a mile or two from the lodge, but has fre- 
 quently joined them when out with their pointers, and continued with 
 them several hours. She has sometimes stood a jack-snipe when all 
 the pointers had passed by it: she would back the dogs when they 
 pointed, but the dogs refused to back her until spoke to, their dogs being 
 all trained to make a general halt, when the word was given, whether 
 any dog pointed or not, so that she has been frequently standing in the 
 midst of a field of pointers. In consequence of the dogs not liking to 
 hunt when she was with them (for they dropped their sterns and showed 
 symptoms of jealousy,) she did not very often accompany them, except for 
 the novelty, or when she accidentally joined them in the forest. Her 
 pace was mostly a trot, was seldom known to gallop, except when called 
 to go out shooting; she would then come home off the forest at full 
 stretch, for she was never shut up but to prevent her being out of the 
 sound of the call or whistle when a party of gentlemen had appointed 
 to see her out the next day, and which call she obeyed as regularly as 
 a dog, and was as much elevated as a dog upon being shown the gun. 
 She always expressed great pleasure when game, either dead or alive, 
 was placed before her. She has frequently stood a single partridge at 
 forty yards' distance, her nose in an exact line, and would continue in 
 that position until the game moved : if it took wing, she would come up 
 to the place, and put her nose down two or three times ; but if a bird ran 
 off, she would get up and go to the place, and draw slowly after it, and 
 when the bird stopped she would stand it as before. The two Mr. 
 Toomers lived about seven miles apart, at Rhinefield and Broomey 
 lodges; Slut has many times gone by herself from one lodge to the 
 other, as if to court the being taken out shooting. She was about five 
 years old when her master died, and, at the auction of his pointers, &c, 
 was bought in at ten guineas. Sir Henry Mildmay having expressed 
 a wish to have her, she was sent to Dogmersfield Park, where she 
 remained some years. She was lastin the possession of Colonel Sykes, 
 and was then ten years old, and had become fat and slothful, but could 
 point game as well as ever. She was not often used, excepting to 
 
TRACTABILITY OF SWINE. 27 
 
 show her to strangers, as the pointers refused to act when out with her. 
 When killed she weighed 700 lbs. Her death-warrant was signed in 
 consequence of her having been accused of being instrumental to the 
 disappearance of sundry missing lambs."* 
 
 Colonel Thornton also had a sow which was regularly taught to 
 hunt, quarter the ground, and back the other pointers. 
 
 Some thirty years since it was mentioned in the public papers that a 
 gentleman had trained swine to run in his carriage, and drove four-in- 
 hand through London with these curious steeds. And not long since 
 the market-place of St. Albans was completely crowded in consequence 
 of an eccentric old farmer, who resided a few miles off, having entered 
 it in a small chaise-cart drawn by four hogs at a brisk trot, which pace 
 they kept up a few times round the area of the market-place. They 
 were then driven to the wool-pack yard, and after being unharnessed 
 were regaled with a trough of beans and wash. 
 
 A gentleman present offered 50/. for the whole concern as it stoodj 
 but his offer was indignantly declined. In about two hours the ani- 
 mals were re-harnessed, and the old farmer drove off with his extra- 
 ordinary team. He stated that he had been six months in training them. 
 
 Nor are these cases without parallel, for Montfaucon informs us that 
 Heliogabalus, the Roman emperor, trained hoars, stags, and asses to 
 run in his chariot ; and Pennant states that in Minorca, and that part of 
 Murray which lies between the Spey and Elgin, swine have been con- 
 verted into beasts of draught, and that it is by no means unusual to see 
 a cow, a sow, and two young horses yoked together in a plough, and 
 that the sow is the best drawer of the four. In Minorca, the ass and 
 hog may be regularly seen working together in turning up land. 
 
 Henderson gives another, and a very simple account, illustrative of 
 the tractability of swine : — 
 
 "About twenty-five years ago my father farmed very extensively in 
 various parts of the kingdom, and upon one of his farms in Redkirk, in 
 the parish of Gretna Green, Dumfriesshire, kept at times upwards of 
 one hundred swine. It so happened that the keeper of that flock was 
 either taken unwell or abruptly left his service one harvest, when 
 every creature able to work was employed in reaping. A brother and 
 I being the only idlers about the premises, the above flock was given in 
 charge to us for a few days, until a proper keeper was found ; we were 
 then reluctantly obliged to march off with our ' hirsel ' early every 
 morning to a clover-field about a mile distant, with our dinners, books, 
 and great-coats, &c. packed upon our backs : we, however, soon began 
 to think it was a great hardship' for us to be groaning under our loads 
 while so many stout able ponies were trotting along before us at their 
 ease, and immediately set about training one of them to relieve us of 
 our burdens, which we accomplished in a few days by occasionally 
 scratching the animal and feeding it with bread, &c. out of our hands. 
 It became at last so docile as to stand every morning until it received 
 the burden girthed upon it, and then marched on in the rear, which 
 place it was trained to keep, as we had more than once lost our dinners 
 when it was allowed to join the herd; and in the same manner we 
 soon trained two or three more into carrying the baggage in turns. 
 
 * Daniel's Rural Sports. 
 
28 THE PIG. 
 
 Having been so successful in this training exploit, we then thought it 
 would be turning our punishment into pleasure if we could train each 
 of us one to ride : this was no sooner thought of than commenced, and 
 although we received many a tumble, yet we soon accomplished our 
 design, and succeeded in breaking in each two or three chargers. At 
 length our system became so complete, that we not only rode to and 
 from the field, but whenever any of the herd were likely to stray, or go 
 into some adjoining field of corn, &c, each alternately mounted his 
 charger, and went off at full gallop to turn back and punish.the trans- 
 
 " Such as were trained seldom or never went astray, being always 
 about hand, and in readiness to be mounted; in short, on such days as 
 my father was from home, it was not unusual. for a group of servants 
 to receive amusement from my brother and I running set matches with 
 our steeds, which were determined in the usual manner, with whip 
 and spur; and in this latter management there was no such thing as 
 bolting or tumbling going on, which occurred frequently during the 
 training season. This system however, came at length to my father's 
 ears, from one or two of the racers happening to die in consequence of 
 too severe heats, or too much weight ; when we were immediately dis- 
 banded from our office, and (our holidays being expired) ordered off to 
 school again, which we set about with as much reluctance as we did 
 the first morning in driving the hundred swine tQ the clover field."* 
 
 The learned pig is another illustration of this same quality. Thi3 
 creature had been taught to pick up letters, written upon pieces of 
 card, at command, and arrange them into words. It was first exhibited 
 in the vicinity of Pall-Mall, in 1789, at 5s. each person. The price of 
 admission was afterwards reduced to 2s. 6d., and finally to Is. 
 
 The showman stated that he had lost three pigs in the course of 
 training Since then there have been many successors of the "learned 
 pig "exhibited at different places, but none equal in talent to the ori- 
 ginal. 
 
 The next thing which we shall claim for our porcine clients is saga- 
 city ; nor are we here in want of illustrative evidences of their posses- 
 sion of it. But in general there is nothing in the life of a pig, in his 
 domesticated state at least, which calls for any exercise of reasoning 
 powers. His sole business is to eat, drink, sleep, and get fat; all his 
 wants are anticipated, and his world is limited to the precincts of his 
 sty or of the farm-yard. Yet even in this state of luxurious ease indi- 
 viduals have shown extraordinary intelligence. 
 
 Mr. Craven relates the following anecdote of an American sow : — 
 •' This animal passed her days in the woods, with a numerous litter of 
 pigs, but returned regularly to the house in the evening, to share with 
 her family a substantial supper. One of her pigs was, however, quietly 
 slipt away to be roasted ; in a day or two afterwards another; and then 
 a third. It would appear that this careful mother knew the number of 
 her offspring, and missed those that were taken from her, for after this 
 she came alone to her evening meal. This occurring repeatedly, she 
 was watched out of the wood, and observed to drive back her pigs 
 from its extremity, grunting, with much earnestness, in a manner so 
 
 * Henderson's Practical Grazier. 
 
SAGACITY OF THE PIG. 29 
 
 intelligible, that they retired at her command, and waited patiently for 
 her return." 
 
 Surely this must be the result of something very like" reasoning 
 powers? "A gentleman residing at Caversham bought two pigs 
 at Reading market, which were conveyed to his house in a sack, and 
 turned into his yard, which lies on the banks of the river Thames. 
 
 "The next morning the pigs were missing. A hue and cry was 
 immediately raised, and towards the afternoon a person gave informa- 
 tion that two pigs had been seen swimming across the river at nearly 
 its broadest part. 
 
 " They were afterwards observed trotting along the Pangbourn road, 
 and in one place where the road branches off, putting their noses toge- 
 ther as if'in deep consultation. The result was their safe return to the 
 place from which they had originally been conveyed to Reading, a dis- 
 tance of nine miles, and by cross roads. 
 
 "The farmer from whom they had been purchased, brought them 
 back to their owner, but they took the very first opportunity again to 
 escape, recrossing the water like two dogs, thus removing the stigma 
 on their race, which proverbially disqualifies them for " swimming 
 without cutting their own throats," and never stopped until they found 
 themselves at their first home." 
 
 Here we see difficulties overcome, and a strange element encountered, 
 in order to arrive at a far distant spot — the home to which- the animals 
 were attached. Some recollection of that place or some association of 
 ideas must have influenced the proceedings of these animals ; but to 
 what faculty shall we attribute their swimming the river in a direct line 
 with their old master's house, and thenfindingtheirwayso immediately 
 thither 1 ? And how shall we account for their thus acting in concert, 
 if pigs are to be considered as the stupid obtuse brutes most persons 
 are in the habit of designating them ? Such instances of sagacity in 
 the dog and the horse scarcely astonish us, because we allow to them 
 a certain degree of reasoning power. But is not the great development 
 of it in them as much arising from their intercourse, if such we may 
 term it, with man? — from their being his companions, educated and 
 ordered by him 1 "I have observed great sagacity in swine," observes 
 Darwin, in his "Zoonomia," "but the short lives we allow them, and 
 their general confinement, prevent their improvement, which would 
 otherwise probably equal that of the dog." 
 
 "The Naturalist's Library" gives another anecdote of a pig which 
 is indicative of no small degree of.instinct or intelligence : — 
 
 " Early in the month, a pig that had been kept several days a close 
 prisoner to his sty, was let out for the purpose of its being cleaned and 
 his bed replenished. On opening the sty-door he anticipated the pur- 
 pose of his liberation by running to the stable, from which he carried 
 sevefal sheaves of straw to his sty, holding them in his mouth by the 
 band. The straw being intended for another purpose, it was carried 
 back to the stable; but our porter, seizing a more favourable opportu- 
 nity, regained it to the amazement of several persons, who were pleased 
 to observe the extraordinary instinct of this wonderful pig." 
 
 Swine have also been repeatedly known to attach themselves to indi- 
 viduals, and to other animals, and to manifest great docility, gentleness, 
 and affection. 
 
30 THE PIB. 
 
 Mr. Henderson says, " I have a young sow of a good breed, so 
 docile that she will suffer my youngest son, three years of age, to climb 
 upon her back and ride her about for half an hour at a time, and more; 
 when she is tired of the fun, she lays herself down, carefully avoiding 
 hurting her young jockey. He often shares his bread and meat with 
 her."* 
 
 A pig belonging to a baker in Kinghorn, county Fife, became so 
 attached to a bull-dog that it would follow and sport with him, and 
 follow her master, when he was accompanied by this dog, for five or 
 six miles. The dog was fond of swimming', and the pig imitated this 
 propensity ; and if any thing was thrown into the water for the dog to 
 fetch out, the pig would follow and dispute the prize with him very 
 cleverly and energetically. These two animals invariably slept to- 
 gether. 
 
 M. de Dieskau tells us that "he made a wild boar so. tame that the 
 animal, although nearly three years old, would go up stairs to his 
 apartment, fawn upon him like a dog, and eat from his hand. He also 
 endeavoured to bring up one which he caught very young, and which 
 formed such an attachment to a young lady in the house that he accom- 
 panied her wherever she went, and slept upon her bed. Once he 
 attacked her maid as she was undressing her mistress, and, had he 
 been strong enough, would have done her some mortal injury. This 
 lady was the only person in the house for whom the creature showed 
 any affection, and yet he was not fed by her. At last he fretted him- 
 self to death on account of a fox which had been taken into the house 
 to be tamed." 
 
 A very amusing account of a " pet pig " is given by a lady, in 
 "Chamber's Edinburgh Journal:" — 
 
 "Being at a loss- what to do with the refuse of our garden, Aunt 
 Mary suggested that a pig should be purchased. Accordingly our little 
 damsel Annette was despatched to a neighbouring farmer, and in ex- 
 change for a few shillings she brought home a fat, fair, round pig, just 
 six weeks old ; and in her haste to display her bargain she tumbled it 
 out in the sitting-room. Nothing daunted by the splendour of its new 
 abode, the pig ran up and down, snorting and snuffing at every chair 
 and table in the room, overturning with his snout my aunt's footstool, 
 and trying its teeth on her new straw work-basket. After the pig had 
 been duly admired and commented on, Annette was desired to instal it 
 in its own domicile; but this was more easily said than done; for 
 being, I suppose, pleased with his quarters, Toby — for so we named 
 him — ran hither and thither, now scudding behind a chair or table, now 
 whisking under the sofa ; at length Annette succeeded in dragging him 
 from his hiding-place, while he roared out ' Murder!' as plain as a pig 
 could speak. Annette was very fond of dumb creatures, as she called 
 them; the pig became her darling, and for want of a companion^ her 
 own species, Toby became her constant associate ; and finding his 
 •visits to the kitchen were winked at, he made use of the privilege, and 
 would bask himself at full length before the fire. He even ventured 
 pccasionally to follow her into the front lobby ; and if, as sometimes 
 fwas the case, she put him into the yard, he would kick up such a row 
 
 , ' " : — ' 
 
 * Henderson on Swine. 
 
CLEANLINESS AND SENSITIVENESS OF PIGS. 31 
 
 at the kitchen door, to be let in, thumping on it with his snout, that 
 she was fain to admit him to his old quarters. Toby was of a very 
 social disposition, and so fond of Annette, and so grateful for her kind- 
 ness, that he would follow her about every where ; indeed, to my great 
 surprise, one day I found him standing sentry over her while she was 
 putting down the stair' carpet, and he seemed to be watching her pro- 
 ceedings with a very sagacious air. In process of time there came 
 "another proof that the course of true love never did run smooth. An- 
 nette fell into bad health, and returned to her home; the damsel who 
 replaced her had no taste for the society of pigs ; so she thumped" Toby 
 away from the kitchen door, and many were the blows he got from her 
 broom, or whatever missile came first to hand. Toby was now exiled 
 to his sty, much against his inclination, for he evidently would have 
 preferred bivouacking in the back premises. We seldom passed to the 
 garden without throwing him some comfort in the shape of a few cab- 
 bage-leaves, a handful of acorns, or a bunch of turnip-tops. It was 
 truly amusing to see Toby make his bed. As the straw which was 
 furnished for it was rather long and coarse, Toby used to take it bunch 
 by bunch in his teeth, and run into a corner, breaking it into small 
 pieces ; and having accomplished this feat, he proceeded to arrange his 
 couch in the most methodical manner. One day, Betty having omitted 
 to give him his dinner, Toby, in a great passion, jumped out of his sty, 
 and came running to the kitchen door to see what was the reason of 
 his being so shamefully neglected, and loud and long were his remon- 
 strances on the subject. Finding it difficult to get the poor animal 
 jiroperly attended to, he was transferred to a neighhour ; and we never 
 gave him a successor, as we scarcely expected to find in another of his 
 species that gratitude for kindness, and affection for his friends, which 
 shone so conspicuous in the character of poor Toby."* 
 
 It may appear absurd to claim cleanliness as a swinish virtue ; but 
 in point of actual fact the pig is a much more cleanly animal than most 
 of his calumniators give him credit for being. He is fond of a good 
 cleanly bed ; and often, when this is riot provided for him; it is curious 
 to see the degree of sagacity with which lie will forage for himself. 
 "A hog is the cleanliest of all creatures, and will never dung or stale 
 in his sty if he can get forth," says a quaint old writer of the sixteenth 
 century, and we are very much of his opinion. But it is so much the 
 habit to helieve that this animal may be kept in any state of filth and 
 neglect, that "pig" and "pig-sty" are terms usually regarded as 
 synonymous with all that is dirty and disgusting. 
 
 His rolling in the mud is alleged against him as a proof of his filthy 
 habits; if so, the same accusation applies to the elephant, the rhino- 
 ceros, and other of the Pachydermata. May this not rather be for the 
 purpose of cooling themselves, and keeping off flies, as we admit it to 
 be#n the case of the animals above mentioned ? Savages cover them- 
 selves with grease in hot climates in order to protect their skins ; may 
 not instinct teach animals to roll themselves in mud for a similar 
 purpose ?f 
 
 * Chambers's Edinburgh Journal, vol. v. 
 
 t " The Hog, tho' he tumble in the dirte in the summer, is not a filthie animal. He 
 dnelh it, partlie to cool himselfe, partlie to kill his lice; for when the dirte is dric he 
 rubbeth it off, and therebie destroyelh the lice."— Hartlieb's Laet Legacis. 
 
32 THE FIG. 
 
 Pigs are exceedingly fond of comfort and warmth, and will nestle 
 together in order to obtain the latter, and often struggle vehemently to 
 secure the warmest berth. 
 
 They are eminently sensitive of approaching changes in the weather, 
 and may often be observed suddenly to leave the places in which they 
 had formerly been quietly feeding, and run off to their sties at full 
 speed, making loud outcries. When storms are overhanging, they 
 collect, straw in their mouths, and run about as if inviting their com- 
 panions to do the same; and if there is a shed or shelter near at hand, 
 may be seen to carry and deposit it there, as if for the purpose of pre- 
 paring a bed. Hence has arisen the common Wiltshire saying, "Pigs 
 see the wind." Virgil, in enumerating the signs of settled fine weather, 
 notices this peculiarity in swine : — 
 
 " Nor sows unclean are mindful to provide 
 Their nestling beds of moutti collected straw !" 
 
 Foster says — " When hogs shake the stalks of corn, and thereby 
 spoil them, it indicates rain ; and when they run squeaking about and 
 throw up their heads with a peculiar jerk, windy weather is about to 
 commence." 
 
 Darwin observes — "It is a sure sign of a cold wind wherfpigs collect 
 straw in their mouths, and run about crying loudly. They would carry 
 it to their beds for warmth, and by their calls invite their companions 
 to do the same, and add to the warmth by numerous bedfellows."* 
 
 In their domesticated state swine certainly are very greedy animals; 
 eating is the business, of their lives; nor do they appear to be very 
 delicate as to the kind or quality of the food which is set before them. 
 Although naturally herbiverous animals, they have been known to 
 devour carrion with all the voracity of beasts of prey, to tear and mangle 
 infante, and even gorge their appetites with the living limbs of their 
 own young. 
 
 Low, however, says — " Instances have occurred in whioh a sow has 
 been known to devour her young ; but rarely, if ever, does this happen 
 in a state of nature. It is not unreasonable to believe that when an act 
 so revolting does occur, it arises more from the pain and irritation pro- 
 duced by the state of confinement, and often filth, in which she is kept, 
 and the disturbances to which she is subjected, than from any actual 
 ferocity: for it is well known that a sow is always unusually irritable 
 at this period, snapping at all animals that approach her. If she is 
 gently treated, properly supplied with sustenance, and sequestered 
 from all annoyance, there is little danger of this ever happening."! 
 
 Roots and fruits are the natural food of the hog, in a wild as well as 
 a domesticated state ; and it is evident that, however omnivorous this 
 animal may occasionally appear, its palate is by no means insensible 
 to the difference of eatables, for whenever it finds variety it wil^be 
 found to select the best with as much cleverness as other quadrupeds. 
 " In the peach-tree orchards of North America," says Pennant, " where 
 hogs have plenty of delicious food, they have been observed to neglect 
 the fruit that has lain a few hours upon the ground, and patiently wait 
 for a considerable time for a fresh windfall.'' 
 
 * Darwin's Zoonomia. + Domesticated Animals of the British Islands. 
 
CHARACTERISTICS OF THE WILD BOAR. 33 
 
 According to Linnsus the hog is more nice in the selection of his 
 vegetable diet than any of our other domesticated herbivorous animals. 
 This great naturalist states that — 
 
 The Cow eats 376 plants and rejects 218 
 
 „ Gnat „ 449 „ 126 
 
 „ Sheep „ 387 „ 141 
 
 „ Horse „ 262 „ 312 
 
 but that the Hog only „ 72 „ 171 
 
 They are gifted with an exquisite sense of smell as well as touch, 
 residing in the snout, and this enables them to discover roots, acorns, 
 earth-nuts, or other delicacies suitable to their palates, which may be 
 buried in the ground. 
 
 In some parts of Italy swine are employed in hunting for truffles that 
 grow some inches below the surface of the soil, and form those pickles 
 and sauces so highly esteemed by epicures., A pig is driven into a 
 field and there suffered to pursue his own course. Wherever he stops 
 and begins to root with his nose, truffles will invariably be found. 
 
 The last charge which we shall endeavour to refute is that of intrac- 
 tability. All the offences which swine commit are attributed to an 
 innately bad disposition ; whereas they too often arise solely from bad 
 management or total neglect. Would horses or cattle behave one iota 
 better, were they treated as pigs too often are ? They are legitimate 
 objects for the sport of idle boys, hunted with dogs, pelted with stones, 
 often neglected and obliged to find'a meal for themselves, or wander 
 about half-starved. Can we wonder that, under such circumstances, 
 they should be wild unmanageable brutes 1 Look at the swine in a 
 well regulated farm-yard — they are as peaceable and as little disposed 
 to wander or trespass as any of the other animals that it contains. 
 Here, as in many other things, man is but too willing to attribute the 
 faults which are essentially of his own causing, to any other than their 
 true source. 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 The Wild Boar— Description of him— Characteristics— The female and her young- 
 Hunting the Wild Boar— Homer's description of a Boar-hunt— Roman festivals and 
 Karnes — the Wild Boar in England and Scotland — In France — In Germany— Mode of 
 hunting the Boar in Germany— Wild Boar park of the Emperor of Austria — Present 
 wild breed in Germany— In Hungary— In the Styrian Alps— In Russia and Sweden— 
 In the East— Habits of the Wild Hog in India— Wild Hog hunting in India— The wild 
 breed in America— Fearful conflict with a wild herd in Columbia— The Wild Boar the 
 parent stock uf all domesticated breeds — Resemblances between — Alterations produced 
 by Domestication — Resumption of old habits on again becoming free from control of 
 man. 
 
 The wild boar (««s scrofa ,• var. aper) is generally admitted to be the 
 parent of the stock from which all our domesticated breeds and varieties 
 have sprung. This animal is generally of a dusky brown or iron-gray 
 colour, inclining to black, and diversified with black spots or streaks. 
 The body is covered with coarse hairs, intermixed with a downy wool ; 
 these hairs become bristles as they approach the neck and shoulders, 
 and are here so long as to form a species of mane, which the animal 
 erects when irritated. The head is short, the forehead broad and flat, 
 
34 
 
 THE PIG. 
 
 the eats short, rounded at the tips and inclined towards the neck,, the 
 jaw armed with sharp crooked tusks which curve slightly upwards, 
 and are capable of inflicting fearful wounds, the eye full, neck thick 
 and muscular, the shoulders high, the loins broad, the tail stiff, and 
 finished off with a tuftof bristles at the tip, the haunch well turned, and 
 the legs strong.* 
 
 THE WILD BOAR. 
 
 The wild boar is a very active and powerful animal, and becomes 
 fiercer as he grows older. When he exists in a state of nature, he 
 will usually be found in moist, shady, and well wooded situations, not 
 far remote from streams or water. In India they are found in the thick 
 jungles, in plantations of sugar-canes, rice, or rhur, or in the thick 
 patches of high, long grass.f In England, France, Germany, Italy, 
 
 * A full grown wild boar in India averages from thirty to forty inches in height at 
 the shoulder. The African wild boar is about twenty.eigbt or thirty inches high. 
 
 t The wild hog delights in cultivated situations/but will not remain where water is not 
 at hand in which he can quench his thirst and wallow at his ease, nor will he resort a se- 
 cond season to a spot that does not afford ample cover, either of heavy grass or underwood 
 jungle, within a certain distance for him to fly to in case of molestation ; and especially 
 to serve as a retreat during the hot season, as otherwise he would find no shelter. The 
 sugar-cane is his great delight, both as affording his favourite food and yielding a highly 
 impervious, and unfrequented situation. In these the hogs, and the breeding sows espe- 
 cially, commit great devastation, for the latter not only devour but cut the canes for a 
 litter, and to throw up a -species of hut, which they do with much art, leaving a small 
 entrance which they can stop up at pleasure. Sows never quit their young pigs without 
 completely shutting them up. This is, however, only requisite for a few days, after 
 which, the little ones may he seen following their mother at a good round pace, though 
 evidently not more than a week or ten days old.— Williamson's Oriental Field Sports. 
 
A WILD-BOAR HUNT, FROM HOMER. 35 
 
 and Spain, their resorts have been in the woods and forests. This ani- 
 mal is naturally herbivorous, and appears to feed by choice upon plants, 
 fruits, and roots. He will, however, eat the worms and larvae which 
 he rinds in the ground, also snakes and other such reptiles, and the 
 eggs of birds; and Bnffon states that wild boars have been seen to 
 devour the flesh of dead horses, while other authors accuse them of 
 devouring hares, leverets, partridges, and indeed all kinds of small 
 game, and feeding greedily upon carrion ; but this has also been as- 
 serted to be only the case when they are pressed by hunger. They 
 seldom quit their coverts during the day, but prowl about in. search of 
 food during twilight and the night. Their acute sense of smell enables 
 them to detect the presence of roots or fruits deeply imbedded in the 
 soil, and they often do considerable mischief by ploughing up the 
 ground in search of them, particularly as they do not, like the common 
 hog, root up a little spot here and there, but plough long continuous 
 furrows. 
 
 The wild boar, properly so called, is neither a solitary nor a gregari- 
 ous animal. For the first two or three years the whole herd follows 
 the sow, and all unite in defence against any enemies, calling upon 
 each other with loud cries in case of emergency, and forming in regular 
 line of battle, the weakest occupying the rear. But when arrived at 
 maturity the animals wander alone, as if in perfect consciousness of 
 their strength, and appear as if they neither sought nor avoided any 
 living creature. They are said to live about thirty years; as they grow 
 old the hair becomes gray, and the tusks begin to show symptoms of 
 decay. Old boars are rarely found associating with a herd, but seem 
 to keep apart from the rest, and from each other. 
 
 The female produces but one litter in the year, and herlitters are much 
 smaller in number than those of the domestic pig; she carries her young 
 sixteen or twenty weeks, and generally is only seen with the male 
 during the rutting season. She suckles her young for several months, 
 and continues to protect them for some time afterwards ; if attacked 
 then, she will defend herself and them with exceeding courage and 
 fierceness. Many sows will often be found herding together, each fol- 
 lowed by her litter of young ones, and in such parties they 'are exceed- 
 ingly formidable to man and beast. Neither they or the boar, however, 
 appear to want to attack any thing, but only when roused by aggres- 
 sion, or disturbed in their retreat, do they turn upon their enemies 
 and manifest that mighty strength with which nature has endowed 
 them, otherwise they pursue^ their way in a kind of solitary savage 
 majesty. Occasionally when two males encounter each other, a fierce 
 and furious battle will ensue, especially if this happens during the 
 rutting season, when their passions are inflamed. When attacked by 
 dogs, the wild boar at first sullenly retreats, turning upon them from 
 time to time, and menacing them with his tusks; but gradually his ire 
 rises, and at length he stands at bay, fights furiously for his life, and 
 tears and rends his persecutors. He has even been observed to single 
 out the most tormenting of them, and rush savagely upon him. 
 
 Hunting the wild boar has been a favourite sport v in almost all the 
 countries in which this animal was found, from the earliest ages. In all 
 the ancient Grecian and Roman classical writers, some allusions to this 
 
36 THE PIG. 
 
 animal will be found.* Homer, whose vivid portraitures of the actions 
 and habits of princes and warriors nearly thirty centuries ago are known 
 to almost every scholar, again and again refers to this savage denizen 
 of the forests, nor can we deny ourselves the pleasure of extracting the 
 following graphic lines : — 
 
 "Sunn as the morn, new roll'd in purple light, 
 Piere'd with her golden shafts the rear of night, 
 Ulysses, and his brave maternal race 
 The young Antofici, assay the chase ; 
 Parnassus, thick nerpiex'd with horrid shades, 
 With deep-mouth'd hounds thu hunter troop invades; 
 What lime the sun from ocean's peaceful stream 
 Darts o'er the lawn his horizontal beam. 
 The Pack impatient snuff the tainted gate; 
 The thorny wilds the woodmen fierce assail; 
 And foremost of the Train, his cornel spear 
 Ulysses wav'd to rouse the savage war; 
 Deep in the rough recesses of the wood, 
 A lofty copse, the growth of ages stood; 
 Nor winter's boreal blast, nor thunderous show*r. 
 Nor solar ray could pierce the shady bower. 
 With wither'd foliage strew'd, a heapy store! 
 The warm pavilion of a dreadful boar. 
 Rous'd by the hounds' and hunters' mingling cries, 
 The savage from his leafy shelter flies. 
 With fiery glare, his sanguine eye-balls shine 
 And bristles high impale his horrid chine. 
 Young Ithacus advanced, defies the foe, 
 Poising his lifed lance in act to throw: 
 The savage renders vain the wound decreed, 
 And springs impetuous with opponent speed! 
 His tusks oblique he aim'd, the knee to gore; 
 Aslope they glanced, the sinewy fibres tore, 
 And bar'd the bone: Ulysses undismay'd, 
 Soon with redoubled force the wound repaid; 
 To the right shoulder-joint the spear applied, 
 His further flank with streaming purple dyed ; 
 On earth he rush'd with agonizing pain, 
 With joy, and vast surprise, the applauding train 
 Viewed his enormous back extended on the plain. "t 
 
 The wild boar formed part of the sports, pageants, and wild-beast 
 shows and fights of the Romans. On the return of Severus from Arabia 
 and Egypt, in the tenth year of his reign, sixty wild boars fougjit each 
 other; and in the year that Gordian the First was sedile, he entertained 
 the people of Rome, at his own expense, once a month ; and " on the 
 sixth month there were two hundred stags, thirty wild horses, one 
 hundred wild sheep, twenty effes, one hundred Cyprian bulls, three 
 
 * In hunting the wild boar, javelins and large nets were used. The recent prints of 
 the animal's feet on the ground, the impression of ,his teeth on the bark of the trees, and 
 other indications, led us to a thick wood (Xenoph, Exped. Cyr. lib. 5.) We loosened a 
 dog of Lacomia, who followed the scent and brought a cry of his discovery. We imme- 
 diately retired and prepared our nets, and occupied our respective places. The wild 
 boar first comes on our side; far from being entangled in the net, he paused, and for 
 a moment sustained the attack of the whole pack; but their baiting, and the attempts 
 of the hunters to wound him with arrows and stones, caused him to re-enter the forest. 
 He very soon met with Moschion, who awaited him with the intention of spearing him, 
 but the spear glided over the shoulder of the animal and fell from the hands of the hun- 
 ter, who instantly threw himself down with his face on the ground. I thought that he 
 was lost. Already was the beast about to trample him under foot, when lie saw Diodti- 
 rus, who flew to the aid of his companion. He immediately sprung on this new enemy, 
 who, more skilful or more fortunate, plunged his spear into the joint of. the shoulder. 
 We then had a dreadful example of the ferocity of this animal, who, although wounded, 
 continued to advance furiously towards Diodorus, who also kept up the conflict. Seve- 
 ral of the dogs were wounded and escaped, but Diodorus was more fortunate.— Vid. 
 Xenoph. de Venat. vol. v. 999, and Voyage du Jeune Anacharsis, vol. iv. 6. 
 
 t Homer's Odyssey, b. xix. v. 501. 
 
THE BOAR S-HEAD OF THE MIDDLE AGES. 37 
 
 hundred red Barbary ostriches, thirty wild asses, and one hundred and 
 fifty wild boars," given out to be hunted by the populace, and become 
 the property of whosoever was fortunate enough to catch them.* 
 
 During the middle ages, hunting the wild boar formed one of the 
 chief amusements of the nobility, in most European countries. The 
 dogs provided for this sport were of the slow heavy kind, anciently 
 known by the name of the "boarhound." None but the largest and 
 oldest boars were hunted, and these afforded a very exciting and often 
 dangerous sport, lasting for many hours ; for when first the animals 
 was "reared,"" he contented himself with slowly going a way, just keeping 
 ahead of his pursuers, and_ apparently caring but little for them, and 
 pausing every half-mile to rest himself, and give battle to his assail- 
 ants, who are, however, tpo wary to advance upon him until he becomes 
 tired ; then he takes his final stand, and dogs and hunters close around 
 him, and a mortal combat ensues, in which the beast eventually falls a 
 victim. 
 
 In treatises on venery and hunting, the technical term for the boar in 
 the first year is "a pig of the sounder;" in the second, "a hog;" in 
 the third, "a hog steer;" and in the fourth, "a boar." 
 
 Many of the forests in our own country were infested by wild boars. 
 The Anglo-Saxons seem, from the rude frescoes and prints which are 
 handed down to us, to have hunted this animal on foot with no other 
 weapon but the boar-spear, and attended by powerful dogs ; and appa- 
 rently with such success, that at the Norman conquest William the 
 First thought it necessary to make some strict laws for the preserva- 
 tion of this beast of the chase. The period for hunting the wild boar 
 among the Anglo-Saxons was in September. Howel Dha, the cele- 
 brated Welsh lawgiver, gave permission to his chief huntsman to chase 
 the boar from the middle of November until the end of December.f 
 
 These animals continued to linger in the forests of England and 
 Scotland for several centuries after the Norman conquest, and many 
 tracts of land have derived their name from this occurrence, while in- 
 stances of valour in their destruction are recorded in the heraldic de- 
 vices of many a noble family.:): Fitzstephen, a writer of the twelfth 
 century, informs us that wild boars, stags, fallow deer, and bulls, 
 abounded in the vast forests which existed on the northern side of Lon- 
 don in the time of Henry II. The learned Whittaker informs us 
 that this animal roved at liberty over the woods of the parish of Man- 
 chester for many centuries after the Romans departed from that station, 
 and hence the name of Barlow (ioar-ground) came to be assigned to a 
 district in the south-western portion. In Cumberland, the appellation 
 "Wild Boar's Fell " still points out the haunts of this animal. The 
 forests of Bern wood in Buckinghamshire, of Stainmore in Westmore- 
 land, and those extensive woody districts which once existed in Hert- 
 fordshire and over the Chiltern Hills, were formerly peopled with wild 
 boars, wolves, stags, and wild bulls. Many ancient Scottish writers, 
 too, speak of the existence of this animal in the woods of Caledonia. 
 In the county of Fife there exists a tract of country formerly called 
 Muckross (which in the Celtie signifies Boar's Promontory); it is said 
 
 * Augustan History, vol. ii. t Lpges Walliae. 
 
 X The ancient crest of the family of Edgcumbe was a boar's bead crowned with bays 
 upon a charger. 
 
38 THE PIG. 
 
 to have been famous as the haunt of wild boars. One part of it was 
 called the Boar Hills, which name has since been corrupted into 
 Byro Hills. It lies in the vicinity of St. Andrew's, and in the cathe- 
 dral church of that city two enormous boar's tusks were formerly to be 
 seen chained to the high altar, in commemoration of an immense brute 
 slain by the inhabitants after it had long ravaged the surrounding 
 country.* 
 
 The precise period at which the wild boar became exterminated in 
 England and Scotland cannot be correctly ascertained. Master John 
 Gifford and William Twety, who lived in the reign of Edward II., 
 composed a book on the craft of hunting, part in verse and part in prose, 
 and among the beasts mentioned in those hunted we find — 
 
 •• To venery I caat me fyrst to go; 
 Of whiche foure beasts there be; that is to say, 
 The hare, the lierte, the wulfhe, the wild boor also." 
 
 In the time of Charles I. they had evidently been long extinct, for he 
 endeavoured to re-introduce them, and was at considerable expense in 
 order to procure a wild boar and his mate from Germany. These are 
 said to have been turned into the New Forest, where they propagated 
 greatly. Certain it is, that the breed commonly called " forest pigs," 
 are very different from the true Hampshire, and have many of the cha- 
 racteristics of the wild boar. 
 
 Throughout the whole of England the boar's head was formerly a 
 standard Christmas dish, served with many ceremonies, and ushered in 
 by an ancient chorus chanted by all present,,the words of which are 
 preserved in " Ritson's Ancient Song : — 
 
 "The bore's heed in hand bring I, 
 With " garlands" gay and rosemary, 
 I pray you all synge merily, 
 Qui eslis in convivio. 
 The bore's heed, I understande, 
 Is the " chefe " servyce in the lande 
 Loke where ever it be founde, 
 Semite cum caatico. 
 
 Be gladde, lordes, bothe more and lasse, 
 For this hath ordeyned oar stewarde. 
 To chere you all this Christmasse, 
 The bore's heed with mustarde." 
 
 Queen Margaret, wife of James IV. of Scotland, " at the first course 
 of her wedding dinner," was served with "a wyld bore's head gylt 
 within a fayr platter." 
 
 King Henry II. himself bore this ancient dish into the hall, attended 
 with trumpeters and great ceremony, when his son was crowned. 
 
 The boar's head is to the present day placed upon the table in Queen's 
 College, Oxford, on Christmas-day, but now it is neatly carved in wood 
 instead of being the actual head of the animal. This ceremony is said 
 to have originated in a tabendar belonging to that college having slain 
 a wild boar on Christmas-day, which had long infested the neighbour- 
 hood of Oxford. He is said to have been going to serve at church 
 when he met the animal, and to have slain him by thrusting a copy of 
 Aristotle down his throat. 
 
 The abbot of St. Germain, in Yorkshire, was bound to send yearly a 
 present of a boar's head to the hangman, which a monk was obliged to 
 
 .- * See Martin's Reliquia; Divi, and Sibbald's Hist, of Fire. 
 
WILD BOARS IN GERMANY. 39 
 
 carry on his own. This rent was paid yearly, at the feast of St. Vin-i 
 cent, the patron of the Benedictines, and on that day the executioner 
 took precedency in the procession of monks. 
 
 France, too, formerly had its trackless forests, through which the 
 grisly boar roved in savage grandeur — its boar-hunts — its legends of 
 sanguinary combats with these monsters. The " wild boar of Arden- 
 nes " has been the theme of many a lay and romance. But civilization, 
 the increase of population, and the progress of agriculture, have here, 
 too, been at work. Still, however, in the large tracts of forest land 
 which yet exist and supply the towns with fuel, boars are still occa- 
 sionally to be met with, although they cannot be regarded as so wild 
 or ferocious as the ancient breed. At Chantilly, within forty miles of 
 Paris, the late Prince of Conde, who died in 1830, kept a pack of 
 hounds expressly for the purpose of hunting the boar; and some Eng- 
 lish gentlemen who visited the hunting palace in the summer of 1830, 
 were informed by the huntsman that a few days previously he had seen 
 no less than fourteen wild hogs at one time. But the good old " wild- 
 boar hunt," as once existed, with all its perils and excitements, is now 
 extinct in France as well as in Germany. Where any traces of it 
 remain, they resolve themselves into a battue of a most harmless de- 
 scription, which takes place in the parks of the princes or nobles. The 
 drivers beat up the woods, the wild swine run until they come in con- 
 tact with a fence stretched across the park for the purpose, and about 
 the centre of which, at an opening in the wood, a sort of stage is raised, 
 on which the sportsmen stand and fire at the swine as they run past. 
 
 Germany being a coifntry boasting forests of immense extent, was 
 once the most celebrated of all nations for its wild boars and boar- 
 hunts ; and in many parts wild hogs are still abundant, and various 
 methods are adopted to destroy them, as well for amusement as to 
 turn their carcasses to account, which furnish those finely flavoured 
 hams called Westphalian, and generally supposed to be bears' hams. 
 
 The most simple and effectual way is to find out the haunts of the 
 boar, and place a matchlock on rests well charged, and concealed by 
 brambles near it. A rope is attached to the trigger, and carried below 
 the rests to the trunk of a tree at some little distance, so as to intersect the 
 animal's path to the forest. Over this the hog inevitably stumbles, and 
 thus discharges the piece, and receives the ball in the neck or shoulder. 
 ' The ordinary method of shooting the hog in Germany is as follows : — 
 The huntsman, or jdger, goes out with an ugly but useful animal not 
 unlike a shepherd's dog, but smaller, which is in German language 
 called a " sow-finder." The business of this creature is to seek the 
 hog, and so well trained is he that no other animal will turn him from 
 that particular scent. On meeting with the object of his search he 
 gives tongue incessantly, and with active but cautious irritation pursues 
 the boar till he is at bay; then, by continual teasing, he manages to 
 turn him sideways to his master, the shoulder affording the best aim 
 for "readily disabling him. In this situation the sagacious dog contrives 
 to keep him until his master fh-es; then if the wounded boar makes off, 
 the boar-hound (a species of btood-hound) is let loose, who pursues 
 him for miles, giving tongue, nor will he leave him even if other boars 
 come in the way.* 
 
 -r — ' — ^ — r 
 
 * Foreign Field Sports. 
 
40 THE PIG. 
 
 At the wild-boar park of the Emperor of Austria, which is at Huttels- 
 dorf, near Vienna, Mr. Howitt states that he saw " Numbers of swine 
 of all ages and sizes, from the grisly old boar to the sow and her troop 
 of suckling young ones. Here some grim old fellow as black as jet, 
 or of a sun-burnt and savage gray, lay basking in the deep grass, and 
 at our approach uttered a deep guff, and starting up, bolted into the 
 wood. Others were lying their length under the broad trees, others 
 scamperingabout with cocked tails. The sows and their young seemed 
 most savage and' impatient of our presence. Some were tame enough 
 to come at the whistle of the keeper, and scores ran voraciously when 
 he shook one of the wild cornel-trees, which grew plentifully in the 
 forest. This is a tree as large as an apple-tree, bearing in autumn fruit 
 of about the size of cherries, and of a coral red colour. The swine are 
 very fond of it, and as the trees were shook and it pattered to the ground, 
 they came running on all sides, and stood in the thickets eager for our 
 departure, when they rushed ravenously forward and devoured it." 
 
 "After all," he continues, " the wild swine here can present but a 
 faint idea of what they were in their ancient wilds. They are all of 
 the true breed, and cannot, for a moment be confounded with the tame 
 variety : there is the tusked mouth, the thick fore-quarter, the narrow 
 hind-quarter, the mane, the coarse bristles, the speed of gait, indicative 
 of the wild breed, but they appeared tame and pigmy in comparison 
 with the huge savage monsters bred in the obscure recesses of deep 
 forests and unacquainted with the sight of man. 
 
 "Hunters tell us that, notwithstanding the orders of Government to 
 exterminate swine in the open forests, on account of the mischief they 
 do to cultivated land, there are numbers in the forests in Hanover and 
 Westphalia, huge, gaunt, and ferocious as ever. These will snuff the 
 most distant approach of danger, and with terrific noises rush into the 
 densest woods; or surrounding a solitary and unarmed individual, 
 especially a woman or a child, will scour round and round them, 
 coming nearer and nearer at every circle, until at last bursting in upon 
 them they tear them limb from limb and devour them. Tame swine, 
 which are herded in these forests and become mixed in breed with the 
 wild, acquire the same blood-thirsty propensities, and will in their 
 herds surround and devour persons in a similar manner."* 
 
 The wild breed abound in Upper Austria, on the Styrian Alps, and in 
 many parts of Hungary. In the latter country, a recent author speaking 
 of them, says: "These animals have lost some little of their natural 
 ferocity, but they still fly at the approach of strangers, and in their form 
 and habits preserve all the characteristics of the true wild boar, from 
 which stock they are descended without intermixture of any other breed. 
 I am told too that their flesh has all the peculiar flavour of the wild boar. 
 This animal, in a completely savage state, is now becoming very scarce 
 in Hungary, and is only met with in the most secluded forests and in 
 the recesses of the Carpathian mountains.! 
 
 The forests of Poland, Spain, Russia, and Sweden^ still contain ani- 
 
 * Howell's Rural Life in Germany. 
 
 t Bright's Travels through Germany and Lower Hungary. 
 
 t Lloyd, in his "Field Sports of Northern Europe," gives the following account of an 
 encounter with a wild sow:— 'One day in the depth of winter, accompanied by my 
 Irish servant, I struck into the forest, in the vicinity of that place for the purpose of 
 •hooting capercali. On this occasion, however, we had no other guide Iban my pocket 
 
HUNTING THE WILD HOG IN INDIA. 41 
 
 mals of the wild boar tribe, and the inhabitants of these countries hunt 
 them with hounds, or attack them with fire-arms or with the proper 
 boar-spear. 
 
 But the most exciting accounts we now have of this sport are fur- 
 nished by our countrymen in the East, who diversify their other hunts 
 and field-sporte by occasionally chasing the wild hog. Captain Wil- 
 liamson, in his graphic volume, gives some very animated accounts of 
 the perils of this chase, as does also Mr. Johnston fe, and if any thing 
 could reconcile us to the pursuing, tormenting, and shedding the blood 
 of an animal who only puts forth his strength in self-defence, it would 
 be the bravery and presence of mind exhibited by some of the hunts- 
 men. One or two quotations will illustrate the habits of the wild hogs 
 of India, as well as the mode in which they are hunted. 
 
 " The pace and powers of" the wild hog" are not to be estimated 
 by any comparison with those of the tame one. Persons unacquainted 
 with the vigour and speed of the Jungle hog will be surprised to learn 
 that it requires a good horse to keep near a moderately sized hog, and 
 that it is by no means uncommon to see what is considered as a mode- 
 rately sized animal overthrow many horses in succession. The fact is, 
 that from April to November, during which period the canes and corn 
 are off the grounds, the wild hogs are compelled to wander from the 
 copses and long grass-jungles in which they take refuge, to greater dis- 
 tances, in search of food, by which means they are not only kept low 
 in flesh, but, from their daily exercise, get confirmed in good wind, 
 and seem rather to attack the hunter than to run away; and this is not' 
 merely during the space of a few hundred yards, but for a considerable 
 distance. I recollect being one of four well-mounled riders, who were 
 completely distanced in a chase of about three miles. 
 
 " In crossing the country early in June, about sunrise, we saw at a 
 considerable distance a hog trotting over a plain to his cover, which 
 was a large extent of brambles and copse, from which we could not 
 hope to drive him. As there appeared no chance of overtaking him, 
 we agreed to let him proceed unmolested, and to be at the place whence 
 he had come by daybreak on the next morning. We accordingly were 
 up early on the following morning, anticipating the pleasure of being 
 at his heels, but on arriving at the spot in which we had observed him 
 on the preceding day we found him nearer to his cover than before. 
 " Knowing that when hogs take the alarm they are apt to change 
 
 compass. Towards evening, and when seven or eight miles from home, we came to a 
 small hamlet, situated in the recesses of the forest; here an old wild sow and her progeny 
 made a determined dash at a brace of very valuable pointers I at that time had along with 
 me, who naturally took shelter behind us. My man had a light spear in his hand, simi- 
 lar to those used by onr lancers; this ( took possession of, and directing him to throw 
 the dogs over a fence, in the angle of which we were cooped up, I placed myself between 
 the dogs and their pursuers. The sow, nevertheless, 51 ill pressed forward, and it was 
 only by giving her a severe blow across the snout with the butt end of the spear, that I 
 stopped her further career. Nothing daunted, however, hy this reception, she directed 
 her next attack against myself; when, in self-defence, I was obliged to give her a home- 
 thrust with the point of the spear. These attacks she repeated three several times, and 
 as often got the spear up to the hilt either in her head or neck. She then slowly retreated, 
 bleeding at all pores: so savage and ferocious a beast 1 never saw in tny life. In the 
 fray 1 broke my spear, which was as well, for it was by no means strong enough to an- 
 swer the purpose for which it was intended. 
 
 " This was not a solitary instance of the ferocity of the wild swine. It was the same 
 throughout Sweden ; whenever they caught sight of my dogs, they generally charged, and 
 if they came up with them, would tumble them over and over again with their snouts," 
 4 
 
42 THE PIG. 
 
 their route and their hours, we were not surprised at this manreuvring. 
 We were still earlier on the third morning, when we took our positions 
 nearer his place of nightly resort, and had the satisfaction to find that 
 we were in time to bear him company homeward. Here, however, 
 some delay took place. The hog on his first breaking from the small' 
 jungle where we awaited him, and through which he had to pass, after 
 glutting himself in a swamp among some rye, sown extremely thick 
 for transplanting,, found that he was watched. He, therefore, after 
 trotting out a hundred yards, gave a sort of snort and returned. This 
 was precisely what we wished for. 
 
 "It was not yet. day, and the desire to intercept our prey had made 
 us push forward so as to place our people far behind. They, however, 
 came up to the number of a hundred, and after beating the cover for a 
 short time, our friend took fairly to the plain. 
 
 " As we were careful not to dispirit, and had cautiously kept from 
 that side on which we wished him to bolt, he gained upon us a little. 
 He had to go at least three miles, and the whole of the plain was laid 
 out in paddy or rice fields. 
 
 " The hog kept a-head the whole way, so that there was no possi- 
 bility of our throwing a distant spear. 
 
 " The swine generally establish themselves in cane or grain planta- 
 tions, when these are high and afford good shelter, and here they live 
 for several months; but about the middle of March, or, at the latest, 
 the beginning of April, they are obliged to shift their quarters, as the 
 cane and grains are generally cut about that time. However, they 
 often retain possession to the last moment, disputing every inch with 
 the reapers, and not rarely causing them to leave parts uncut, in the 
 hope that the hogs will evacuate them, which, if the jungles to which 
 they must betake themselves happen to be remote, they feel no great 
 disposition to do, for at this season the hog is indolent and heavy, in 
 consequence of the abundance of the excellent food to which he has for 
 five or six months been habituated. 
 
 " Hogs are often found in March with three or four inches of fat on 
 the chines and shoulders. 
 
 " It usually requires a great number of persons to drive the hogs out 
 of the sugar-canes, on account of their extent. The beaters should not 
 be more than five or six yards distant from each other, or they will turn 
 back and rush through the intervals. Small drums should be used to 
 frighten them out; sometimes this will be troublesome; it is particu- 
 larly so with a sow that has 'pijis:' she will frequently come to the 
 edge, and dash through the line of beaters again and again. The hog 
 is generally hunted on horseback, but elephants are likewise employed- 
 in this sport, in which tigers are not unfrequently dislodged from their 
 retreats. 
 
 "The how, being forced from his covert, is crowded on by several 
 horsemen with spears, which they use in the manner of javalins. They 
 pursue the animal at speed as he makes his way to the nearest cover, 
 darting their spears into his body as they come up to him. Those 
 horsemen," says Captain Williamson, " who are placed at the nearest 
 situation, should gallop round to watch the hog passing, and giving the 
 loud halloo, should dash at him at full speed, spearing as they come 
 up. Some hogs, however, are aware of the plot, having been hunted 
 before. 
 
ALTERATIONS PRODUCED BY DOMESTICATION. 43 
 
 "Many may lie seen with scars, evidently the result of wounds 
 received on former occasions, and such are extremely difficult to deal 
 with. They will break out of the line repeatedly, dash at all they 
 meet with, and eventually create such terror as effectually to discourage 
 the beaters, who thence get into groups, and, though they continue their 
 vociferation, act so timorously as to render it expedient to withdraw 
 them for the purpose of trying a fresh cover, it is very common to see 
 a plough at work at the very edge of the canes where the villagers are 
 beating for hogs; and as the bullocks employed are extremely skittish 
 and wild, it often happens that they take fright and run off with the 
 plough, which frequently is broken to pieces. The ploughman, alarmed 
 equally with his cattle, also takes to flight, as do all the peasants who 
 may see the bristling animal galloping from his haunt."* 
 
 Mr. Johnston describes another scene eminently characteristic of the 
 desperate fierceness and strength of the wild hog. He was one of a 
 party of eight persons, on a sporting excursion near Patna on the banks 
 of the Soane. Returning one morning from shooting, they met with a 
 very large boar, which they did not fire at or molest, as, although 
 several of the party were fond of hunting, they had no spears with 
 them. The next morning they all sallied forth in search of him, and 
 just as they had arrived at the spot where they had seen him the day 
 before, they discovered him at some distance galloping off towards a 
 grass jungle on the banks of the river. They pressed their horses as 
 fast as possible, and were nearly up with him when he disappeared all 
 at once. 
 
 The horses were then nearly at their full speed, and four of them 
 could not be pulled up in time to prevent their going into a deep branch 
 of the river, the banks of which were at least fourteen or fifteen feet 
 high. Happily, there was no water in, or any thing but fine sand, and 
 no person was hurt. One of the horses, that was exceedingly vicious, 
 got loose, attacked the others, and obliged them, and all the rest, to 
 recede. 
 
 A few days afterwards they went again, early in the morning, in pur- 
 suit of the same hog, and found him farther off from the grass jungle, 
 in a rhur-field, from which with much difficulty they drove him into a 
 plain, where he stood at bay challenging the whole party, and boldly 
 charging every horse that came within fifty yards of him, grunting 
 loudly as he advanced. 
 
 "The horse I rode," says Mr. Johnston, "would not go near him; 
 and when I was at a considerable distance off, he charged another horse 
 with such ferocity that mine reared and plunged in so violent a manner 
 as to throw me off. Two or three others were dismounted at nearly 
 the same time; and though there were many horses present that had 
 been long accustomed to the sport, not one of them would stand his 
 charges. He fairly drove the whole party off the field, and gently 
 trotted on to the grass jungle, foaming and grinding his tusks."f 
 
 In Morocco the wild boar is the most common and prolific of all the 
 ferocious animals found there; the sow produces several large litters 
 in the year ; and were it not that the young form the favourite food of 
 the lion, the country would be overrun with these animals. 
 
 * Williamson's Oriental Field Sports. t Johnston's Indian Field Spoils. 
 
44 THE PIG. 
 
 In the woods of America there are abundance of wild swine, pos- 
 sessing all the ferocity of the boar. The following fearful scene 
 occurred in Columbia. A party of six hunters had gone out on a 
 sporting expedition. They fell in with a herd of swine, upon which 
 four of them, less experienced than the others, immediately fired, and 
 the swine advanced fiercely to attack them. The four young men, 
 intimidated, took to flight without warning their companions, or con- 
 sidering the danger to which they were exposed. They climbed up 
 into some trees, but the other two were quickly surrounded by the 
 swine. They made a long and desperate defence with their lances, 
 but were at length dragged down. One of them was torn to pieces, 
 and the other dreadfully lacerated and left for dead by the swine, who 
 now watched the four fugitives in the trees until sunset. Then, pro- 
 bably yielding to the calls of nature, they retired. The surviving 
 hunters then came down and assisted their wounded companion into 
 the canoe, and carried off the remains of the unfortunate man who had 
 fallen in this horrible encounter.* 
 
 We have entered thus much at length into the history of the wild 
 boar, because no one can for a moment doubt that it is the parent stock 
 from which the domesticated breeds of swine originally sprung ; the 
 well known fact that all kinds breed with the boar, is in itself a suffi- 
 cient testimony ; but to this we can add that the period of gestation is 
 the same in the wild and tame sow ; the anatomical structure is iden- 
 tical ; the general form bears the same characters ; and the habits, so 
 far as they are not altered by domestication, remain the same. 
 
 Where individuals of the pure wild race have been caught young and 
 subjected to the same treatment as the domestic pig, their fierceness 
 has disappeared, they have become more social and less nocturnal in 
 their habits, lost their activity, and lived more to eat. In the course of 
 one or two generations even the form undergoes certain modifications ; 
 the body becomes larger and heavier ; the legs shorter and less adapted 
 for exercise ; the formidable tusks of the boar, being no longer needed 
 as weapons of defence, disappear; the shape of the head and neck 
 alters; and in character as well as in form, the animal adapts itself to 
 its new position. Nor does it appear that a return to their native wilds 
 restores to them their original appearance, for, in whatever country pigs 
 have escaped from the control of man and bred in the woods and wil- 
 dernesses, there does not appear to be a single instance recorded by 
 any naturalist in which they have resumed the habits and form of the 
 wild boar. They become fierce, wild, gaunt, and grisly, and live upon 
 roots and fruits; but they are still merely degenerated swine, and they 
 still associate together in herds, nor " walk the glade in savage solitary 
 grandeur" like their grim ancestors. 
 
 We shall now proceed to notice some of the accounts given of the 
 swine found in various parts of the world, previous to entering upon a 
 consideration of the breeds peculiar to our own country. 
 
 * Cochrane'* Columbia, vol. i. 
 
SWINE IN AMERICA. 45 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 Swine in America— In large towns— Original breed— Improved breed— Swine in Canada 
 — In Ohio — In Mexico — Hebrides — In Columbia— In the South-Sea islands— Swine in 
 Asia — In China and Japan— Ceylon — Hindostan — Turkey and Arabia— Swine in 
 Africa— Guinea— New Holland— Caffraria— Swine in Europe— In Malta— in Italy — 
 In Germany — In Hungary— In Russia — In Sweden— In France— Swine indigenous to 
 the Channel Islands — In Jersey — In Guernsey — In Serk— In Alderney — The Isle of 
 Man— In the Hebrides— In the Shetland Isles — In the Orkneys. 
 
 Throughout the whole of this quarter of the globe swine appear to 
 abound. They are not, however, indigenous, but were doubtless origi- 
 nally carried thither by the early English settlers, and the breed thus 
 introduced still may be distinguished by the traces they retain of their 
 parent stock; but France, Spain, and, during the slave-trade, Africa, 
 have also combined to supply America with varieties of this animal, so 
 useful to the settler in the wilds and woods, and so much esteemed 
 throughout the whole of the country, as furnishing a valuable article of 
 food. 
 
 "It appears that the American zoologists describe no fewer than six 
 species of the hog, some of them so entirely distinct in their general 
 habits and appearance as to prevent their ever breeding or even associa- 
 ting together. Five of these species need only be regarded as objects 
 of curiosity; the sixth is the common wild hog of the eastern continent — 
 which we will describe in order to illustrate the difference between a 
 good and a bad animal of the same variety ; they have long-peaked 
 snouts, coarse heads, thin chests, narrow shoulders, sharp backs, slab 
 sides, meagre diminutive hams, big legs, clumped feet, the hide of a rhino- 
 ceros, the hair and bristles of a porcupine, and as thick and shaggy as a 
 bear's ; they have no capacity for digesting and concocting their food 
 in the stomach for nourishment; there is nothing but offal, bones, rind, 
 bristles and hair, with a narrow streak of gristle underneath, and a still 
 narrower line of lean, as tough and as rank as white leather — their 
 snouts against every man, and every man's hand against them. No 
 reasonable fence can stop them, but, ever restive and uneasy, they rove 
 about seeking for plunder; swilling, grunting, rooting, pawing, always 
 in mischief and always destroying. The more a man possesses of such 
 stock the worse he is off; and he had far better sell his produce at any 
 price, than to put it into such totally worthless creatures."* 
 
 Stuart says — "Hogs are universal in this part of the world, and are 
 well and frequently fed. At first they are kept in the woods, and nur- 
 tured on chestnuts and apples ; before being killed, they have good 
 rations of Indian corn or barley-meal, and in many cases are likewise 
 well supplied with steamed food. In South Carolina the climate is so 
 mild that they are allowed to wander about the woods during the whole 
 year, feeding on the nuts, acorns, &c. which are there so abundant, and 
 occasionally eating the fallen fruit they meet with. They are very use- 
 ful in destroying snakes."f 
 
 In large towns, too, they are apparently as much at home and as com- 
 
 * A. B. Allen. t Stuart's North America. 
 
46 THE PIG. 
 
 mon as in the forests, pacing the streets, instead of the glades, and feed- 
 ing upon the offal and filth rejected by mate, instead of the fresh and 
 wholesome fruits supplied by the hand of nature. One of our country- 
 men gives an amusing graphic account of the swinish multitude m some 
 of the large towns through which he passed. 
 
 "We are going to cross here. Take care of the pigs. Two portly 
 sows are trotting up behind this carriage, and a .select party of half-a- 
 dozen gentlemen hogs have just now turned the corner. Here is a soli- 
 tary swine, lounging homewards by himself; he has only one ear, 
 having parted with the other to vagrant dogs in the course of his city 
 rambles; but he gets on very well without it, and leads a roving, gen- 
 tlemanly, vagabond kind of life, somewhat answering to that of our 
 clubmen at home. He leaves his lodgings every morning at a certain 
 hour, throws himself upon the town, gets through his day in some 
 manner quite satisfactory to himself, and regularly appears at the door 
 of his own house again at night, like the mysterious master of Gil 
 Bias; he is a free-and-easy, careless, indifferent kind of pig, having a 
 very large acquaintance among other pigs of the same character, whomhe 
 rather knows by sight than conversation, as he seldom troubles himself 
 to stop and exchange civilities, but goes grunting down the kennel, 
 turning up the news and small-talk of the city, in the shape of cabbage- 
 stalks and offal, and bearing no tails but his own, which is a very short 
 one, for his old enemies the dogs have been at that too, and have left 
 him hardly enough to swear by ; he is in every respect a republican 
 pig, going wherever he pleases and mingling with the best society, on 
 an equal if not superior footing, for every one makes way when he ap- 
 pears, and the haughtiest give him the wall if he prefer it ; he is a great 
 philosopher, and seldom moved unless by the dogs before mentioned; 
 sometimes, indeed, you may see his small eye twinkling on a slaugh- 
 tered friend, whose carcass garnishes a butcher's door-post, but he 
 grunts out "Such is life; all flesh is pork!" buries his nose in the 
 mire again, and waddles down the gutter, comforting himself with the 
 reflection that there is one snout the less to anticipate stray cabbage- 
 stalks, at any rate. 
 
 " They are the city scavengers! these pigs, ugly brutes they are ; 
 having for the most.part scanty brown backs, like the lids of old horse- 
 hair trunks, spotted with unwholesome black blotches; they have long 
 gaunt legs too, and such peaked snouts that if one of them could be 
 persuaded to sit for his profile, nobody would recognize it for a pig's 
 likeness; they are never attended upon, or fed, or driven, or caught, 
 but are thrown upon their own resources in early life, and become pre- 
 ternaturally knowing in consequence; every pig.knows where he lives 
 much better than any body could tell him. At this hour, just as even- 
 ing is closing in, you will see them roaming towards bed by scores, 
 eating their way to the last. Occasionally some youth among them 
 who has over eaten himself, or has been worried by dogs, trots shrink- 
 ingly homeward, like a prodigal son ; but this is a rare case ; perfect 
 self-possession and self-reliance, and immovable composure, being their 
 foremost attributes."* 
 
 And Mrs. Trollope piteously exclaims — "I am sure I should have 
 
 * Dicken's American Notes. 
 
SWINE IN AMERICA. 47 
 
 liked Cincinnati much better if the people had not dealt so very largely 
 in hogs ! The immense quantity of business done in this line would 
 hardly be believed by those who had not witnessed it. I never saw a 
 newspaper without remarking such advertisements as the following : 
 "Wanted immediately, 4000 fat hogs;" "For sale, 2000 barrels of 
 prime pork." But the annoyance came nearer than this. If I deter- 
 mined upon a walk up Main Street, the chances were five hundred to 
 one against my reaching the shady side without brushing by a snout 
 Or two, fresh dripping from the kennel. When we had screwed up 
 our courage to the enterprise of mountinga certain noble-looking sugar- 
 loaf hill, that promised pure air and a fine view, we found the brook 
 we had to cross at its foot red with the blood from a pig slaughter- 
 house ; while our noses, instead of meeting " the thyme that loves the 
 green hill's breast," were greeted by odours that I will not describe, 
 and which I heartly hope my readers cannot imagine; our feet, that on 
 leaving the city had expected to press the flowery sod, literally got en- 
 tangled in pigs' tails and jaw-bones; and thus the prettiest walk in the 
 neighbourhood was interdicted for ever."* 
 
 The common breed may for the most part be described as large, 
 rough, long-nosed, big-boned, thin-backed, slab-sided, long-legged, 
 ravenous, ugly animals. But latterly great improvements have been 
 made in it by judicious crossing with the Chinese and Berkshire pigs, 
 by crossing these two breeds with each other, and by careful breeding 
 from these two stocks without intermixture.f 
 
 Mr. Bement, of Albany, who has devoted great attention to the rear- 
 ing and breeding of swine, speaks in the highest terms of praise of the 
 cross between the pure Chinese breed and the original breed of the 
 country, or, " land-shads," as he termed them. He says that the 
 Chinese breed was first introduced about twenty years ago, but that 
 from their size seldom attaining more than 250 lbs., and from their 
 delicacy, they were not adapted for "a farmer's hog." But with the 
 just-mentioned cross they become all that could be wished. He thus 
 describes the " improved China hogs :" — " In colour they aTe various — 
 white, black and white, spotted, and gray and white; they are longer 
 in the body than the pure Chinese breed; small in the head and legs; 
 broad in the back; round in the body; the hams well let down; skin 
 thin; and flesh delicate andjfinely flavoured. They are easy keepers, 
 small consumers, quiet in fnsposition, not given to roam or commit 
 depredations ; and when in condition may be maintained so upon grass 
 only."i: 
 
 The best Berkshire breeds as imported into America vary somewhat 
 in size and appearance; that from which most of the present stock have 
 
 * Domestic Manners of the Americans. 
 
 t American Pigs.— In the 15th annual Fair in New York, the following account was 
 given of the Pigs: — "The swine were fairly represented in the Berkshires, Chinas, and 
 their crosses. There were some beautiful specimens of these, and if any one doubts that 
 it is the corn-crib alone that makes the pork, let him scan closely the fine forms, thin 
 hair, mellow elastic handling, delicate limbs, and quiet countenance, expressive of peace 
 with all the world, exhibited by some of the grunters inside the yard, and their Ham- 
 mish kindred without, a roaming, restless, thriftless brute, with legs reaching to the 
 back-bone, the bristles of a porcupine, the hide of -a rhinoceros, the snout of a plough- 
 share, and all the grim aspect and unthrifty look of a wolf or hyena; thrice cursing the 
 human race — a curse to their neighbours, a curse to their feeders, and a curse to their 
 eaters."— JVct York Herald. J The Cultivator, vol. ii. 
 
48 THE PIG. 
 
 been raised was taken to America in 1832. This breed has spread 
 rapidly over the country, and fetches a high price from its peculiar 
 aptitude to fatten. Its prevailing characteristics are — a fine head, a 
 dished face, rather upright ears, close shoulders and hams, and a short 
 body; animals of this kind mature very rapidly; and produce most deli- 
 cate meat. 
 
 A celebrated pig-breeder says — "The Americans are so partial to this 
 breed, that I have sold sucking-pigs weighing from 30 to 32 lbs. each, 
 when seven or eight weeks old, at 50 dollars for a sow pig, and 30 
 dollars for a boar. I sold a sow pig of eight weeks old for 70 dollars. 
 I knew a pair of pigs of this breed, killed at the age of one year and a 
 quarter, which weighed 41 stone ; thus the pig's age being 456 days, 
 and his weight 574 lbs., he must have increased at the rate of rather 
 more than 1 i lb. per day."* This breed is to be found in New Orleans, 
 Kentucky, Alabama, Albany, Saratoga, Newburn, &c. There are now 
 various improved breeds, known for the most part under the names of 
 the improvers, or of the localities in which they are found, arising from 
 crosses of the original American hog with the above-mentioned breeds, 
 or others which may have been imported from England and other 
 countries. The establishment of agricultural societies and cattle-shows 
 has contributed in the New as well as in the Old World to direct the 
 attention of farmers and breeders to all kinds of domesticated animals, 
 and the advantages which have been obtained in swine alone are suffi- 
 ciently great to prove incentives to increased care and study on the all- 
 important principles of breeding. 
 
 Head, in his journey from Halifax to Upper Canada, again and again 
 alludes to the fine pigs he saw, and the delicious pork with which he 
 was regaled by the settlers he met with in various parts. He says that 
 bears are very fond of pork, for they often get into the farm-yards and 
 carry off a squeaking struggling victim to regale themselves upon. 
 
 In Canada the breed of swine furnishes the principal supply for food 
 and exportation ; great quantities of pork being sent to New Orleans. 
 Mr. Owen has established a whiskey distillery, and fattens the swine 
 on the refuse. About 1500 barrels' of whiskey, worth 10 dollars a bar- 
 rel, were made every year in Mr. Owen'e distillery. Great numbers 
 of swine roam in the woods of Indiana, far from all human dwellings, 
 where they grow very fat upon the abundance of oak and beech mast.f 
 They are of a reddish-brown colour, with round black spots; there are 
 some quite wild, which any body is at liberty to shoot. These animals 
 are never housed, even in the vicinity of Harmony. In the depth of win- 
 ter the young ones often perish with cold, or are devoured by the mo- 
 thers ; and then dead swine will be seen lying about in all directions, 
 some partly devoured by others. The negligence and want of feeling 
 with which these animals are treated is very great, and consequently 
 they can never be expected to prosper or yield those advantages which 
 might be derived from them under proper treatment.± 
 
 * The Cultivator, vol. ii. 
 
 t In some parts where great numbers of swine are allowed to run almost wild, a tri- 
 angular yoke is Axed round thefrnecks to prevent them from breaking through fences.— 
 Weld's Travels in North America. { Maximilian's Travels in North Amerioa. 
 
SWINE IN MEXICO AND COLUMBIA. 49 
 
 Professor Silliman, in his account of Ohio, says that large numbers 
 of hogs pass the winter in the woods quite independent of the assist- 
 ance of man, subsisting on nuts and acorns. Single individuals of these 
 are occasionally destroyed by bears and wolves, but a herd of ten or 
 twenty hogs are more thai) a match for a wolf or panther. Indeed an 
 old hunter once saw a panther spring from a tree into a drove of wood 
 bogs, and scarcely had he touched the ground than the larger ones fell 
 upon him with their tusks and the weight of their bodies, and killed 
 and tore him in pieces in a few moments.* 
 
 In Mexico fine breeds of pigs are kept by many persons of wealth as 
 an article of trade as well as of consumption, and the greatest possible 
 care and attention are paid to the cleanliness and comfort of these ani- 
 mals ; nay more, the Mexican pigs may be said to possess the luxuries 
 of life, for two Indian lads are kept to sing the grunting herd to sleep. 
 These boys are chosen for the strength of their lungs and their taste 
 and judgment in delighting the ears and lulling the senses of the por- 
 cine, harmonists, and they take it by turns to chant throughout the 
 whole day ; nor does their performance appear to be unappreciated by 
 their strange audience, but jather to afford exceeding delight and grati- 
 fication.! 
 
 The New Hebrides, the Marquesas, the Friendly and Society Islands, 
 and New Guinea, abound with a breed of swine closely resembling the 
 Chinese, and these being almost the only domestic animals which the 
 natives of these islands possess, they accordingly receive great care 
 and attention. This race is small, the belly hanging, the legs short, 
 the tail almost imperceptible, and the colour gray. Its flesh is very 
 white and delicate. 
 
 COLUMBIA. 
 
 In the woods of Columbia there are numbers of swine, but for the 
 most part wild ; and the flesh of these wild ones is far superior to that 
 of the few that are domesticated, as that of the latter, from the animals 
 being often fed on stale fish and all kinds of abominations, acquires a 
 rancid and unpleasant flavour. Some of the settlers chiefly live by the 
 sale of the flesh of wild swine, which they obtain by hunting, and then 
 cure or dry it. 
 
 Experienced hunters will kill their fourteen or fifteen swine a-day, 
 and a well trained dog will often destroy two or three of these animals 
 a-day by himself. The mode of proceeding is for the dog to keep the 
 hog at bay while the hunter creeps up, and watching his opportunity, 
 throws his lance with such vigour as to pin the animal to the ground. 
 This done, he rushes upon him, seizes the lance firmly with one hand, 
 and with the other dispatches the game with his knife.:): 
 
 * Arcana of Science, 1828. f Bullock's Mexico. J Cochrane's Columbia. 
 
50 THE PIG. 
 
 In Paraguay and Brazil swine are likewise abundant, and for the 
 most part wild. 
 
 The Falkland Islands were stocked with swine by the French and 
 Spaniards, but little, if any, trace of the original breeds can now be 
 discovered in the fierce, bristly, tusked animals now found there, some 
 of the older ones of which rival the grisly boar in appearance and 
 wildness. 
 
 SOUTH-SEA ISLANDS. 
 
 The South-Sea Islands, on their discovery by Europeans, were found 
 to be well stocked with a small, black, short-legged hog; the tradi- 
 tionary belief of the human natives was, that these animals were as 
 anciently descended as themselves. The hog, in fact, is in these 
 islands the principal quadruped, and is of all others the most carefully 
 cultivated. The bread-fruit tree, either in the form of a sour paste or 
 in its natural condition, constitutes its favourite food, and its additional 
 choice of yams, eddoes, and other nutritive vegetables, renders its flesh 
 most juicy and delicious; its fat, though rich, being at the same time 
 (so says Foster) not less delicate and agreeable than the finest butter. 
 Before our missionary labours had proved so signally successful in 
 these once forlorn and benighted regions, by substituting the mild spirit 
 of Christianity for the sanguinary forms of a delusive and degrading 
 .worship, the Otaheitans and other South-Sea Islanders were in the habit 
 of presenting roasted pigs at the morais, as the most savoury and ac- 
 ceptable offering to their deities which they could bestow. 
 
 Throughout the greater part of Asia swine are to be found. The 
 extensive and magnificent forests which cover much of the Birmese 
 Empire, Siam, Cochin China, and other kingdoms of the south-east, 
 abound with hogs, as well as other pachydermatous animals. 
 
 Here are found the celebrated Siamese or Chinese breed, so much 
 esteemed throughout all parts of the world to which they have been 
 exported: distinguished for their small size, fine head and snout, com- 
 pact deep carcass, large hams and shoulders, short limbs, delicate feet, 
 fine hair and skin, aptitude to fatten and grow, and the sweet delicate 
 meat they yield. 
 
 CHINA AND JAPAN. 
 
 The Chinese and Japanese are great pig-breeders, and make the art 
 of crossing, breeding, and rearing swine, which furnish them with their 
 principal animal food, an object of peculiar attention and study. Mer- 
 chants who have resided for some time in China, and even travellers 
 who have merely been able to bestow a superficial glance on matters, 
 speak of the great care bestowed on this point; but no author appears 
 to have given any details as to the course of practice adopted. Perhaps 
 from the naturally jealous and uncommunicative disposition of the 
 Chinese, they have been unable to acquire any; and, perhaps, few have 
 thought it worth while to trouble themselves about so degraded an ani- 
 mal as the pig. However this may be, it is much to be regretted lhat 
 
SWINE IN CEYLON AND HINDOSTAN. 51 
 
 the information is so very scanty, for many valuable hints might pro- 
 bably have been thus obtained. 
 
 Tradescent Lay, the naturalist in Beechey's expedition, in his inter- 
 esting work on China, thus amusingly speaks of the natives and their 
 swine : — " There is a striking analogy between these two. A Chinese 
 admires a round face and the smooth curvatures of a tun-belly, and 
 where opportunity serves, cultivates these additions to personal beauty 
 in himself. The Chinese pig is fashioned on the same model. At an 
 early period the back becomes convex, the belly protuberant, and the 
 visage shows a remarkable disposition to rotundity. Nor is the resem- 
 blance merely personal ; in the moral character there is an amusing 
 similitude, contrariety and obstinacy being the prevailing characteristics 
 of both men and brutes." 
 
 This same author informs us that swine are rarely driven or made to 
 walk in China, but conveyed from place to place in a species of cradle 
 suspended upon a pole, carried by two men. But he says, " the diffi- 
 culty is to get the animal into this conveyance, and this is accomplished 
 by the cradle being placed in front of the pig, and the owner then 
 vigorously pulling at 'porky's tail,' and in the spirit of opposition the 
 animal darts into the place they have prepared for him. At the jour- 
 ney's end the bearers dislodge him by spitting in his face." 
 
 Mr. Lay states that " pork is very plentiful in China, but never 
 agreeable to the European eye, from its shining flabby appearance ', it 
 does not taste either like our pork, and is only tolerable when cut into 
 thin slices and fried in soy to correct the grossness of the natural juices. 
 The natives cut it in long slices or rashers, and dry it in the sun, and 
 thus prepared it is not unpleasant in flavour, although it is then by no 
 means easy to distinguish it from dogs' or cats' flesh similarly pre- 
 pared."* 
 
 In speaking of Ceylon and its neighbourhood, an intelligent traveller 
 says: — "The swine here are a long-legged ugly breed, allowed to run 
 wild and pick up whatever food they can get. I never saw at any na- 
 tive cottage or farm a pig penned or put up to fatten, and yet the natives 
 are very fond of hog's flesh, and never hold any feast or festival without 
 this meat constituting the chief and most approved dishes." 
 
 HINDOSTAN. 
 
 The existence of a breed of swine* in Hindostan and the Birmese 
 empire is mentioned by several travellers, but scarcely one gives any 
 account of them. It would seem, however, that they are identical with 
 the Siamese breed. Hogs are also enumerated as among the wild 
 beasts of Central India. Some of the Hindoo tribes use hog's blood 
 for all the purposes to which other nations apply holy-water; but pork 
 is not eaten, excepting by Europeans and the lowest caste of Hindoos. 
 In the Eastern Archipelago and the Moluccas, a breed of wild swine 
 exists bearing great resemblance to the Chinese, but rather longer in 
 the legs and lighter in the body, and affording delicious meat. 
 
 * The Chinese as they are, by Tradescent Lay. 
 
52 THE PIG. 
 
 TURKEY AND ARABIA. 
 
 In Turkey, Syria, Persia, Arabia, and the norlh-eastem parts of Asia, 
 comparatively few pigs are found, and these are of an iron-gray, black, 
 and occasionally brown hue; short-legged, small, round in the body, 
 very apt to fatten, and attaining the weight of from 350 to 400 lbs. 
 And there are two ways of accounting for this, viz.: the prevalence of 
 the Mohammedan religion, and the sandy open nature of the country; 
 for it is chiefly in well-wooded if not cultivated districts that we find 
 swine, their nature and habits alike unfitting them for dry sandy 
 deserts. 
 
 In this quarter of the globe again we meet with but few swine, until 
 we approach the south-eastern parts, and for the same reason which we 
 have just given. In Abyssinia they are to be found, but they are not 
 field in much estimation. They have been imported into New Hol- 
 land, Caffraria, and the Cape of Good Hope, but are not kept to any 
 extent, on account of the difficulty of feeding them. In most of these 
 places pork is chiefly used as food for the lower classes, and but little 
 care or attention is bestowed upon the animals ; and the breeds greatly 
 resemble the Chinese variety, but are somewhat less, being short-legged, 
 round bodied animals, of a black or dark brown colour, the bristles few 
 and almost as fine as hairs, and the tail terminated by a tuft. 
 
 The Coast of Guinea used to possess a breed of swine which have 
 been exported thence as an article of commerce, especially to the new 
 settlements 'in America and to some parts of the East Indies, and were 
 held in high estimation at that time. But the cessation of the inter- 
 course induced by the slave-trade, and the discovery of more valuable 
 breeds, have rendered these almost forgotten. These animals were 
 large in size, square in form, of a reddish colour, the body covered with 
 short bristly hair, and smoother and more shiny than almost any other 
 variety of the porcine race ; the tail very long, and the ears long, nar- 
 row, and terminating in a point. This variety is also found in Brazil. 
 
 We now find swine almost universal, and every where, more or less, 
 an object of special care and attention, both as furnishing a valuable 
 kind of animal food and an article of commerce. 
 
 Coming up the Mediterranean Sea we find the small black Maltese 
 breed, the bodies of which are almost bare and smooth, and which fatten 
 so aptly and afford such delicate pork. Spain then offers its breeds, 
 none of which are, however, held in great estimation out of their native 
 country. The chief of these is a short-headed, long, yet round-bodied, 
 dumpty-legged variety, of a reddish brown or copper colour ; the skin 
 fine and the bristles slender ; it is small in size, very prolific, and may 
 easily be fattened to an enormous weight. This breed is also found in 
 Portugal and some parts of the south of Italy ; it closely resembles the 
 
SWINE IN EUROPE. 53 
 
 Siamese pigs, and has doubtless originally sprung from them. The 
 far-famed Bologna sausages are made from the flesh of this animal. 
 
 Italy too is in some degree celebrated for its pigs, the best breeds of 
 which, like the Maltese, are small, black, destitute of bristles, and 
 delicate in flesh. The Neapolitan breed has been extensively exported, 
 for the purpose of crossing with other kinds, and has found considerable 
 favour in many parts of England. In themselves these pigs are not 
 sufficiently hardy for general use, but, crossed with rougher breeds, 
 they yield a valuable progeny, fine in form, delicate in flesh, and easy 
 to fatten. There is a much larger race of swine bred in the Duchy of 
 Parma, and generally considered to be the finest breed in Italy, in every 
 point of view. 
 
 In Palermo, Bosco, the environs of Rome, and the neighbourhood of 
 Bologna, Count Chateauvieux tells us pigs are kept. Those at Bosco, 
 on the Apennines; he describes as a good breed, which the farmers 
 fatten on chestnuts and milk, housing them in the winter and suffering 
 them to run over the mountains during the summer. At the farm of 
 Campo Morto he found a herd of 2000 pigs, of the domestic breed, and 
 black. They run all the year on the immense tract of land which ex- 
 tends towards the sea, are fatted on nuts and acorns, and yield excellent 
 meat. They are not indigenous, but have been brought thither to stock 
 the woods, and they are regarded by the proprietor of that farm as the 
 most valuable part of his stock, for their keep costs him little or no- 
 thing, and they yield a very good profit. 
 
 The pigs he found on the marshy plains of PoTesino, between Bo- 
 logna and Ferrara, he describes as large, lean, thin-flanked, and long- 
 limbed animals.* 
 
 In some of the towns of Italy certain swine are made privileged 
 animals, by undergoing some ceremonies ; they are then, to all intents 
 and purposes, citizens, and may roam the streets unmolested seeking 
 their daily food. Among the ancient statutes of Trieste, some of which 
 are now abrogated, the following may still be found : — " It shall be 
 also lawful for two pigs of the fraternity of St. Anthony to wander in 
 the dty, they having one ear cut off and the other slit. But when they 
 have pro-created, the superior or stewards of the said fraternity shall 
 provide that all the young ones, except two only, be within the month 
 next ensuing, sold or sent out of the city, under a penalty of 50 livres. 
 And if the said two pigs do any damage, the stewards shall be bound 
 to make it good, and the party complaining shall be delivered on his 
 oath, both as to the nature of the damage and its extent. And to every 
 judge of the city it shall be lawful to hear and determine all such 
 causes in a summary way, after one sole citation of the stewards." 
 
 Pursuing our way to Germany we meet with totally different ani- 
 mals," submitted for the most part to an entirely different management. 
 The common breeds of the country are every where described as huge, 
 
 * Chaleauvieuj's Letters from Italy. 
 
54 THE PIG. 
 
 gaunt, long-legged, lean-bodied, greyhound-like animals, with exceed- 
 ingly long snouts and coarse bristles, forming almost as much of a 
 mane on the neck and shoulders as those of the wild boar. 
 
 In Prussia and many parts of Poland a rather smaller, but scarcely 
 less uncouth, race are met with, of a yellow or reddish brown colour. 
 
 Thaer, in his valuable work on agriculture, informs us, that " the 
 chief breeds of pigs known in the north of Germany, and crossed in 
 various different ways, are, — the Moldavian, Wallachian, and Bothnian 
 pigs, remarkable for their enormous size, iron-gray colour, and large 
 lapping ears ; and the Polish, or, properly speaking, the Podolian pigs, 
 which are also very large, but are of a yellow colour, and have a broad 
 brown stripe along the spine." These two breeds, he says, furnish 
 the large pigs for fattening, but they require a proportionably large 
 quantity of food, and besides are not very productive, the sows seldom 
 bringing forth more than four or five at the most at a birth. 
 
 The Bavarian pigs, he states, are much esteemed for their smallness 
 of bone and aptitude to fatten ; but the flesh is not liked, it being too 
 flabby and soft. This breed is usually marked with reddish brown 
 spots. 
 
 The Westphalian is another breed very generally met with ; these 
 animals are large in size and very prolific, bringing forth ten or twelve 
 at a litter. 
 
 The next variety mentioned he designates " the English pig," and 
 describes it as being large, full, and deep in the body, and requiring 
 very substantial food. A cross between this breed and the Westpha- 
 lian is stated to produce an excellent animal. 
 
 To these he adds the Chinese breed, the Spanish or African black 
 pig, which he estimates very highly from its aptitude to fatten on in- 
 different or scanty food, its rapid growth, delicate flesh, excellent hams, 
 and the advantages derived from crossing the larger breeds with it; 
 and lastly, the German pig, properly so called. But it appears that 
 this can scarcely be regarded as a distinct breed, but rather as the re- 
 sult of numerous and various crosses, for he says : " This breed is 
 different in its characteristics in different provinces ; the colour is white, 
 black, gray, or spotted. It is of a middling size and can be supported 
 on a moderate quantity of nourishment. There is no doubt but that by 
 more attention being bestowed upon the breeding, rearing, and feeding 
 of this race, they might be materially improved, but most of the per- 
 sons who undertake the management of pigs on an extensive scale, 
 seem rather anxious to try the effect of different and new crosses than 
 to improve the old breed."* 
 
 HUNGARY. 
 
 In Hungary, Croatia, and Servia a race of swine resembling that 
 found in Turkey are met with ; small, of a dark gray colour, and short- 
 legged, yet not apparently deriving their origin from the Chinese. The 
 flesh of the swine reared in Servia is said to be more delicate than will 
 be met with any where throughout the wh'ole of Europe. 
 
 In Poland, Russia, Sweden, and the northern parts of Europe, the 
 swine yet retain all the characteristics of their ancestor the wild boar. 
 
 * Thiier's Principles or Agriculture, Trunsl. by Messrs. Johnston and Shaw. 
 
SWINE IN FRANCE. 55 
 
 They are mostly of a red, or dirty brown, or yellow colour; long in the 
 body, light and active in make, having long legs } a broad flat head, 
 erect ears, and a nervous slightly up-tnrned snout. They are wild in 
 their habits, fierce, not apt fatteners, or producing delicate meat. 
 
 In Holland and Belgium we find numerous varieties and crosses, 
 but the original breeds have large bodies and long lopping ears; the 
 sows are prolific, and if properly attended to, the animals fatten very 
 kindly. There is a variety often met with, — and much esteemed for its 
 productive powers, its disposition to fatten, and the delicacy of its 
 flesh, — which most probably derives its origin from a cross between a 
 native pig and one of the Siamese breed. This animal is of a medium 
 size, rather short on the legs, with a full round body, straight back, 
 broad flanks, and small head. The bristles are white and thinly 
 scattered over the back, but growing rather closer upon the neck and 
 towards the head. 
 
 The original breeds of France are almost all coarse ungainly animals, 
 for the most part white, excepting towards the south, and there we find 
 the native breeds very much to resemble those of Italy. " In the time 
 of Buffon the greater proportion of the hogs in the north of France were 
 white, as were likewise-those of Vivarais; while in Dauphiny, which 
 is not far distant, they were all black. Those of Languedoc and Pro- 
 vence were also of the latter colour. Black pigs still prevail both in 
 Italy and Spain. According to the great French naturalist, one of the 
 most evident marks of degeneration (an ill-applied term) is furnished 
 by the ears, which become more supple and pendent as the animal 
 changes into the domestic state. He regards the wild boar as the mo- 
 del of the species, and I think erroneously, for it can only be looked 
 upon as formed on the model best adapted to the haunts and habits of 
 a wild animal, the welfare of which requires either the instinct of a 
 cunning concealment or the possession of strength or swiftness. Now 
 concealment in a pigsty is of little avail when the day of terror comes, 
 and the obesity of a well-fed porker is, and must ever continue, en-' 
 tlrely inconsistent either with speed of foot or vigour of limb ; there- 
 fore the proper attributes of the animal in its unreclaimed and domesti- 
 cated conditions being incompatible with each other, those of the former" 
 ought not in any way to be set up or assumed as a model by which the 
 latter should be altered or improved."* Of late years French agri- 
 culturists have seen the advantages small breeds possess over large" 
 ones, and endeavoured by judicious crosses to reduce the size of their 
 pigs, and at the same time give to the breeds all the value arising from- 
 early maturity, a kindly disposition, and productiveness. M. Magne 
 says, " Our breeds of pigs are in general very defective; they are long- 
 limbed, thin-necked, narrow-chested, and have high curved backs ; they 
 are hardy, but far from precocious, fatten with difficulty, and consume 
 an immense quantity of food compared with the flesh they yield. "f 
 
 We are partly indebted to Mr. Wilson's valuable ' Essay on I>o- 
 .mestic Animals' for the following account of the present chief breeds 
 
 * Quarterly Journal of Agriculture, vol. iii. 
 
 t Traill! sur l'Eleve, Entreiien et Engraissement du Fore. 
 
56 THE PIG. 
 
 of swine in France. The most distinguishable of the present races of 
 France are the following ; — 
 
 " 1. The race of the Pays (PJIuge (by some authors called the Nor- 
 mandy breed,) which has the head small and sharp-pointed ; the ears 
 narrow and pointed; the body lengthened ; the legs broad and strong; 
 the hair coarse, spare, and of a white colour; and the bones small. It 
 attains to the weight of 600 lbs." M. Bella considers that this breed 
 are great eaters, but do not fatten kindly. 
 
 2. The race of Poitou, of which the head is long and thick, the point 
 projecting; the ears large and pendulous; the body lengthened ; the 
 bristles white and coarse; the feet broad and strong; and the bones 
 large. Its weight does not exceed 500 lbs. 
 
 3. The race qf Perigord, of which the neck is thick and short, the 
 body broad and compact, and the hair black, short, and rough. This 
 race, when crossed with the Poitou pigs, produces very good animals ; 
 and it is probable that the pied swine, so common in the south of 
 France, are descended from this cross. 
 
 4. The race of Boulogne. Of considerable dimensions, and well in- 
 clined to fatten quickly ; ears very broad ; general colour white. This 
 breed has sprung from a cross between the large English breed and one 
 of the common races of France. 
 
 Of other continental races we shall mention the Jutland swine. Of 
 these the ears are large and pendent, the body elongated, the back some- 
 what curved, the legs long. The size of this breed is considerable, as 
 from 200 lbs. to 300 lbs. (French livres) of lard are got from them in 
 their second year. They form an important branch of commerce. 
 
 The race known abroad under the name of Cochon de Siam is the re- 
 presentative of our Chineseibreed. Its ears are short, straight, and 
 flexible ; its body is covered with soft and somewhat silky hair, which 
 is stiff and thick on the head and back of the neck, and frizzly on the 
 cheeks and under-jaw ; on the other parts it is thin, and for the most 
 part hard and black. The skin is also bjack, except on the belly ; the 
 eyes are surrounded by a slight tinge of flame-colour ; their tails mea- 
 sure nine inches in length ; their bodies three feet three inches; their 
 height at the shoulder is one foot eight inches (French.) This breed 
 appears to have spread extensively over most of the southern shores, of 
 the old continent.* 
 
 To these he adds the Turkish hog, the New Guinea hog, De Witt's 
 hog, and the smooth or short-legged swine, the two latter of which 
 evidently derive their origin from a cross with the Siamese and some 
 other breed, and all of which fatten easily and to a great weight, and 
 are good breeders. 
 
 The swine in Normandy are, even to the present day, of the large 
 gaunt grizzly race, common in some of the south-eastern counties of 
 England and Germany. f Mr. Wilson informs us, that, in the time of 
 Buffon, by far the greater proportion of the swine in the north of France 
 were perfectly white, as were also those of Vivarais ; while in Dauphiny, 
 which is not far distant, they were all black. Those of Languedoc and 
 Provence were likewise black. This is a curious fact, and seems to 
 
 * Quarterly Journal of Agriculture, vol. iii. p. 48. 
 
 t Mr. Lnrimer, in his Tour ihrnugh Normandy in 1845. describes the pigs to be of that 
 gray hound-like variety so common all over the Continent. 
 
SWINE IN FRANCE. 57 
 
 prove, beyond a doubt, that the parent stock of these two opposite co- 
 lours was totally different, and also that there was little intermixture 
 or crossing among the breeds of these places, but that the races were 
 preserved pure and distinct. He also mentions that latterly a new va- 
 riety of the porcine race has been introduced under the name of" Lt Pare 
 de Nobles," which appears to have been derived from the improved 
 English breed, which originated from a cross between an Anglo-Chi- 
 nese sow, and an emancipated American boar. This answers very 
 well, and is much esteemed on account of tho delicate flavour of its 
 flesh. 
 
 In Champagne the breed of pigs are white, long-limbed, flat-sided, 
 hollow in the flanks, and having large ears. 
 
 In Quercy the breed is of a moderate size, has a small short head, 
 little ears, and a curved back ; most of these pigs are spotted, but there 
 is more of black than white in them.* 
 
 In the department of Mayenne, and along the Oudon, some very 
 valuable kinds are found, which have been carefully bred and reared 
 expressly for the purpose of improving the French breeds of pigs. 
 There are two distinct varieties, the one called the " Craon Breed," 
 which has a long body, short legs, and a back so broad that even when 
 the animals are lean the spine does not project. These fatten well and 
 easily, but do not begin to make much flesh until they are eleven or 
 twelve months old, after which they rapidly develope themselves, and 
 attain an immense weight. 
 
 The other variety is designated the "Valley Breed :'' here, too, the 
 legs are short, the body of a medium length, the back extremely broad, 
 the ears large and falling to the tip of the snout, which is short and 
 wide ; the back is covered with bristles, me tail finished with a tuft of 
 the same, and from the under-jaw two hairy appendages similar to those 
 of a goat depend. Pigs of this breed fatten well, and may be killed at 
 any-age.f 
 
 In the province of Bresse, in the neighbourhood of Lyons, of the 
 Dombes, and Carolais, and prevalent through the department of Aisne, 
 is a breed called the Bressane race. These animals are of a moderate 
 size, long in the body, round in form, short-legged, with long pendu- 
 lous ears, and of a dark or blackish colour, with a broad stripe of white 
 encircling the body ; their flesh is delicate, and of a fine flavour.^ 
 
 An attempt was made to introduce some of the English breed of 
 swine into France by a young agriculturist, and he thus narrates the 
 results : — " I began with the large Shropshire pigs. They pleased my 
 eye, and for some little time I was perfectly satisfied ; but presently I 
 began to remark, that, although they devoured an amazing quantity of 
 food, they fattened but very slowly, and seemed to derive no advantage 
 whatever from the herbage and vegetables which they found in the 
 fields. 
 
 " When killed, the flesh, and especially the fat, was exceedingly 
 course. The sows, nevertheless, yielded many pigs at each farrow, 
 which, from their size when young, sold well to persons who were tole- 
 rably rich, and knew little or nothing about the breeding of pigs. 
 
 "I next tried the small Berkshire pigs, and immediately perceived a 
 
 * M. Magne, Traite du Pore. | Revue Agricole de Juillet, 184U. 
 
 } M. Magne, Traite du Fore. 
 5 
 
 i , 
 
58 THE PIG. 
 
 very sensible improvement. They fattened quickly* procured most of 
 their nourishment from the fields* and their flesh was very superior to 
 that of the last-named breed. But as they were large, I thought to 
 effect a still greater improvement by exchanging them for the Chinese; 
 but here I fell into the opposite extreme. The Chinese were prolific, 
 fattened speedily, and almost obtained their own subsistence ; but they 
 were faulty in form, their flesh was not firm, but loose in fibre, as if 
 they had died of disease." And, accordingly, the experimenter returned 
 to some- of his best native breeds.* 
 
 In Flanders and the Netherlands the indigenous swine are long- 
 legged, narrow-backed, flat-sided, ugly, gaunt animals, difficult to fat- 
 ten ; but when in good condition making fine-flavoured, excellent pork 
 and bacon. 
 
 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 Jersey. — Great attention has here been paid to the breed of pigs, 
 which have improved by crosses and admixture with the best English 
 and French varieties. The pork is excellent; many declare it to be finer 
 and more delicate in flavour than any English pork. It forms one of 
 the chief articles of consumption during the winter months, and sells 
 at from id. to 5d. the pound. 
 
 Guernsey. — The swine here have latterly been considerably im- 
 proved by the exertions and encouragements of the Guernsey Agricul- 
 tural Society. The original breed resembled the native French and Irish 
 pigs, and were large, coarse, ungainly, and unprofitable, evidently de- 
 scended from the wild long-legged, flat-sided race; but judicious 
 crosses with the Hampshire and Berkshire breeds have now made it 
 a well-shaped, profitable annual. The Guernsey pigs of the present 
 day fatten readily and cheaply, and often attain to an enormous size. 
 One was killed not long since weighing 640 pounds (80 stone, Smith- 
 field weight,) offal not included. The flesh sold at i%d. per pound, 
 Guernsey weight, which is ten ounces heavier than an English'p&ind. 
 The pig here forms part the establishment of every cottager, and is kept 
 a close prisoner in his sty, where he is well supplied with buttermilk, 
 bran, potatoes, cabbages, and all kinds of vegetables during the spring 
 and summer, and fed almost exclusively on parsnips from September. 
 They are generally killed at about twenty months old, and weigh then 
 from 300 to 400 or 450 pounds.f Pork forms the staple food of the 
 Guernsey farmers and cottagers. 
 
 Serk. — The swine here are very similar to those of Guernsey ; if 
 there is any difference, it is that they are somewhat larger. They are 
 managed in a similar manner, fatten well, and are profitable animals. 
 
 Aldernet. — Here, too, the original large breed have been improved 
 by judicious crosses. The fat hogs reach an enormous size, sometimes 
 even outweighing a tolerably fed cow ; but 500 pounds is no uncom- 
 mon weight.:): 
 
 The Isle of Man. — Here the original breed of swine are small, wild, 
 apt to fatten, and that without much care or attention, and yielding ex- 
 
 * Annates ii' Agriculture Franchise, Numero 29. 
 
 + The author has here to acknowledge Ins obligation to Colonel Lake, of Woodlands, 
 Guernsey, for the information so kindly contributed by him. 
 t See Inglis's Channel Islands. 
 
SWINE IN THE SHETLAND ISLANDS. 59 
 
 cellent meat. Crosses liave been introduced, which perhaps have bet- 
 ter adapted the animals to the system of sty-feeding; but we question 
 whether they can be said to be improved by having been rendered more 
 dependent upon the care of man. 
 
 The Hebrides, or Western Isles. — The most common breeds 
 of these islands are generally considered to be aboriginal, and line- 
 ally descended from the wild boar. These swine are described as 
 being very small, active, and shaggy, of a grayish or dirty yellow 
 colour, grazing wild upon the hills like sheep, their sole food herbage 
 and roots, and receiving no other sustenance or shelter all the year 
 round but what is furnished them by nature, yet being in good condi- 
 tion, and affording excellent meat. When artificially fed, and carefully 
 sheltered and tended, they will attain to a very considerable bulk, with- 
 out any deterioration of the quality and flavour of their flesh.* 
 
 The Shetland Islands. — The breed of swine here very much resem- 
 ble those we have just been describing. They are Small, of a dirty 
 white or yellowish brown colour, remarkably strong in the snout, with 
 sharp-pointed ears, and an arched back, from which rises a forest of 
 stiff bristles. When poor, the flesh of these animals is coarse ; but 
 those which are properly fattened yield sweet and delicate meat, and 
 the hams, when cured, are pronounced by connoisseurs to be excellent. 
 The Shetland pigs are generally suffered to roam about and forage for 
 themselves at will, and the mischief they do is by no means inconsi- 
 derable ; for with their muscular snouts they plough up the soil, and 
 root out potatoes, carrots, and turnips, and even upturn the growing 
 corn. 
 
 Dr. Hibbert informs us that there is an^ancient law in Shetland rela- 
 tive to these animals, viz. " that none have more swine than effeiring 
 (proportional) to their land labouring;" and "that none have swine 
 pasturing on their neighbours' lands, under the penalty of ten pounds 
 besides damages." But he adds that these enactments are but little 
 regarded ; the pigs are allowed to wander where they please, and, far 
 from being a source of profit, are, from the mischief they do, an abso- 
 lute loss to the country.f 
 
 The same author describes the original Shetland pig as "a little 
 brindled monster, the very epitome of a wild boar, yet scarcely larger 
 in size than a terrier dog : — 
 
 " His bristled back a trench impaled appears, 
 And elands erected like a tit-Id of spears." 
 
 According to his account, " this lordling of the seat-holds and arable 
 lands ranges undisturbed over his free demesnes, and, in quest of the 
 earthworms and the roots of plants, furrows up the pastures or corn- 
 fields in deep trenches, destroying in his progress all the plovers', 
 curlews', and other birds' nests he meets with. He bivouacs in some 
 potato-field, which he rarely quits until he has excavated a ditch large 
 enough to bury within it a dozen fellow-commoners of his own weight 
 and size. Nor is the reign of this petty tyrant wholly bloodless; ' 
 young lambs just dropped often fall victims to his ferocity or thirst for 
 blood!" 
 
 * Walker's Hebrides. t Dr. Hibbert's Account of the Shetland Isles. 
 
gO THE FIG. 
 
 The Orkneys To describe the swine found here would be but a 
 
 repetition of what we have already said. They are small, of roving 
 habits, do much mischief, yield but poor meat unless carefully fattened, 
 and seldom reach a weight of more than sixty or seventy pounds. Low 
 informs us that the pork rarely fetches more than 2d. per pound, and a 
 butcher never thinks of giving more than 4s. or 5s. a-head for the pigs. 
 Ropes are fabricated from the bristles of these animals, by which the 
 natives suspend themselves over the most fearful precipices in search 
 of sea-fowls' eggs ; and, short as the hair or bristles are, the ropes 
 manufactured from them are said to answer better for this perilous 
 purpose than hempen ones would, being less liable to be frayed by the 
 sharp and rugged rocks.* 
 
 It is in these northern islands that several authors have spoken ot 
 swine being used as beasts of draught, but it could not have been these 
 aboriginal and diminutive breeds, we should conceive, but some of the 
 large heavy kinds imported from England or Ireland. 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 Scotland, aboriginal breed of Swine in— Little known until lately— Present races— 
 Enolakd. original breed— Swine in Yorkshire— Lincolnshire— Leicestershire— Bedford- 
 shire— Essex — Suffolk— Norfolk— Shropshire — Cheshire — Gloucestershire— Hereford- 
 
 ghire Wiltshire — Berkshire— Hampshire — and Sussex — The Chinese breed — Swine in 
 
 Ireland. 
 
 SCOTLAND. 
 
 There can be little doubt but that the aboriginal breed of Highland 
 swine are, like those found in the Hebrides, descended from the wild 
 boar, for, until within the last half-century, they retained much of the 
 form, and many of the habits and characteristics, of the wild breed. 
 They also are small, shaggy, bristled, and wild ; wandering about the 
 hills, grazing and seeking out roots and other favourite food, and re- 
 quiring no care or sustenance at the hand of man, yet keeping in con- 
 dition, and making excellent pork or bacon. The latter end of the 
 autumn is the best time to kill them, as they are then in good flesh. 
 
 Those which have been brought into the low country and artificially 
 fed, have fattened to a considerable size, and yielded fine-grained, firm, 
 well-flavoured meat. 
 
 Formerly immense herds of these small swine were reared in the 
 highlands of Scotland, and brought down to the lowland markets for 
 sale; the practice of keeping these animals gradually declined some 
 fifty or sixty years ago, but has latterly been revived since the cultiva- 
 tion of the potato has become more extensively practised. There can- 
 not, however, be a doubt that a great number of this breed of pigs might 
 be advantageously fattened upon every Highland farm where the land 
 in crop is enclosed, both on account of the little artificial food they 
 require, and the roots and various substances they will consume which 
 no other kind of stock would touch. 
 
 * See Fauna Orcadensis by tbe Rev. Ceo. Low. 
 
SWINE IN SCOTLAND. 61 
 
 But although the practice of keeping swine in the Highlands and 
 north of Scotland is of very ancient date, there are no records which 
 speak of their existence in the more southern parts of Caledonia ; in- 
 deed, if we may give credence to several anecdotes related by Mr. 
 Henderson,* they were absolutely unknown animals in several parts. 
 
 It would seem that, some hundred and twenty years since, a person 
 residing in the parish of Ruth well, in Dumfriesshire, received a present 
 of a young pig, which is said to be the first which had ever appeared 
 in that part of the country. This said pig strayed from his new home 
 one day into the adjoining parish of Carlayroc, and wandering along the 
 sea-side came upon a woman who was keeping cattle. She screamed 
 at the sight of the "strange beast," and ran off to her village, and the 
 pig after her. There she declared she had seen "the deil come out of 
 the sea, and that he had chased her, roaring and gaping at her heels." 
 One of the bravest of the villagers got a Bible and an old sword to 
 "cunger the deil;" but while he was uttering his threats, along came 
 the creature with such a loud " grumph," that the poor man fell down 
 half dead with fright, and all the rest fled, and then from windows and 
 house-tops peeped at the "monster," until one Fellow cried out that it 
 was "the gude man o' the brow's grumphy," and gradually the alarm 
 subsided. 
 
 This same pig seems to have frightened many persons at different 
 times, as did another which escaped by some means from a vessel 
 which put into Glencaple Quay, just below Dumfriesshire, and was 
 hunted as a wild beast, and at last slain with a pitchfork by a man, 
 who was termed " stout-hearted Geordy " all the rest of his life for the 
 performance of this valorous exploit. 
 
 In 1760 there was scarcely a parish in Dumfriesshire which could 
 muster twenty swine, but within ten years of that time they gradually 
 began to increase, and each farmer took to keeping one or two, and 
 from 1775 to 1780 the trade became pretty considerable. This increase 
 was chiefly owing to the exertions of Lord Graham, of Netherby, who 
 encouraged the breeding and rearing of swine among his tenants by 
 every means in his power, and was the chief institutor and supporter 
 of a market at Longtown, in Cumberland, for the sale of swine and 
 pork. 
 
 The next steps were the establishments of pig>markets in several 
 other principal towns in the southern parts of Scotland, and small pre- 
 miums offered on every market-day to the owners of the finest pig or 
 the largest number of good swine brought to the market. 
 
 When thirty or forty years ago there was not a pig to he seen, as 
 much as 400/. or 500/. worth of hogs and bacon, or pork, are now sold 
 every market-day. This alteration is ascribed by some persons to the 
 extension of the cultivation of the potato, and the consequent increased 
 facility for feeding and fattening swine; but it may, doubtless, be also 
 attributed to the increasing demand for animal food, the more extended 
 views of farmers and agriculturists of the present day, and ah appre- 
 ciation of the profit and advantages arising from the keeping of these 
 valuable animals. 
 
 There is a very good kind which are well made, white in colour, 
 
 * Henderson's Treatise on Breeding Swine. 
 
62 
 
 THE PIG. 
 
 bave short upright ears, fatten quickly and on little food, and come 
 early to maturity. Crosses with the Chinese have been tried, but 
 they produce too delicate an animal, and consequently have fallen into 
 disrepute. It would, however, be needless to enter into an account of 
 all the varieties of swine now existing in Scotland, as, in describing 
 the English breeds, we shall have to speak of all those which of late 
 years have been introduced into Scotland, and either crossed with the 
 original small, dark, prick-eared Scottish pig or with each other, or 
 retained in their natural state. Henderson says that hundreds of pigs 
 and shots (pigs from six to eight months old) are brought over from 
 England every year, and fattened in Scotland. 
 
 The original breeds of this country are now rapidly losing all traces 
 of individuality under the varied systems of crossing to which they are 
 subjected. Formerly' they might have been divided into two principal 
 classes, the small and the large breeds : the former having ears tending 
 to the upright, being dusky in hue, and greatly resembling the wild 
 
 EST mO STfcCIHIN. ^' — 
 
 THE OLD ENGLISH HOG. 
 
 boar in form; and the latter being long-bodied, long-eared animals, 
 mostly white or spotted. The former were chiefly found in Scotland, 
 and on the northern hills ; and the latter in the lower and more midland 
 counties of England, where the hog had been more domesticated. 
 
 Where individuals of the pure old breed are met with, they will be 
 found long in limb, narrow in the hack, whioh is somewhat curved, 
 
SWINE IN ENGLAND. 63 
 
 low in the shoulders, and large in bone ; in a word, uniting all those 
 characteristics which are now deemed most objectionable, and totally- 
 devoid of any approach to symmetry. The form is uncouth, and the 
 face long and almost hidden by the pendulous ears. They nevertheless 
 have their good qualities, although aptitude to fatten does not„rank 
 among the number, for they consume a proportionally much larger 
 quantity of food than they repay ; but the females produce large litters, 
 and are far better nurses than those of the smaller breeds. They are, 
 however, now nearly extinct, disappearing before the present-rage for 
 diminishing the size of the hog and rendering his flesh more delicate ; 
 points which, however desirable toa certain extent, may easily be car- 
 ried too far. Low judiciously observes: " While we should improve 
 the larger breeds that are left us, by every means in our power, we 
 ought to take care that we do not sacrifice them altogether. We should 
 remember that an ample supply of pork is of immense importance to 
 the support of the inhabitants of this country. England may one day 
 have cause to regret that this over-refinement has been practised, and 
 future improvers vainly exert themselves to recover those fine old races 
 which the present breeders seem aiming to efface." 
 
 It would be vain to attempt to particularize the breeds of swine at 
 present kept in this country^ for they are daily altering their character- 
 istics under the influence of some fresh cross ; we will therefore content 
 ourselves with enumerating those which are allowed to have been the 
 Chief and best breeds, and pointing out some of the alterations which 
 have latterly taken place in them. 
 
 YORKSHIRE. 
 
 The old Yorkshire breed was one of the very large varieties, and one 
 of the most unprofitable for a farmer, being greedy feeders, difficult to 
 fatten, and unsound in constitution. They were of a dirty white or 
 yellow colour, spotted with black, had long legs, flat sides, narrow 
 backs, weak loins, and large bones. Their hair was short and wiry, 
 and intermingled with numerous bristles about the head and neck, and 
 their ears long. When full grown and fat they seldom weighed more 
 than from 25 to 30 stone. 
 
 These have of late years been crossed with pigs of the new Leicester 
 breed ; and where the crossings have been judiciously managed and not 
 carried too far, a fine race of deeprsided, short-legged, thin-haired ani- 
 mals have been obtained, fattening kindly, and rising to a weight of 
 from 16 to 30 stone of 14 lbs. when killed between one and two years 
 old, and when kept over two years reaching even 40 and 50 stone. 
 
 Mr. Samuel Wiley, of Bransoy, to whose courtesy we are indebted 
 for the information, and who has paid much attention to the breeding 
 of swine, keeps only the pure improved Leicester breed, which with 
 ordinary feeding will, at sixteen or eighteen months old, weigh from 
 18 to 30 stone of 14 lbs. ; and, when put up to fatten, attain the weight 
 of from 30 to 32 stone. He considers them far superior to, and more 
 profitable than, the larger breeds. 
 
 Other breeders have crossed with the Chinese and Neapolitan breeds, 
 and with some considerable success — the extremes of the large arid 
 small kinds happily correcting each other. The Berkshire pigs have 
 
64 THE PIG. 
 
 also been employed as a cross, and hardy, profitable, well-proportioned 
 animal obtained. The original breed, in its purity, size, and defective- 
 ness, is now hardly to be met with, having shared the fate of the other 
 large old breeds, and given place to smaller and more symmetrical ani- 
 mals. Mr. Smith, of Hoyland Hall, Sheffield, whose kind replies to 
 our queries we have to acknowledge, is another great pig-breeder, and 
 his swine have carried off numerous prizes ; they appear to be descended 
 from a cross between the Yorkshire and Lord Western's improved 
 Essex pigs. Their chief characteristics are — smallness of bone, great 
 development of the fleshy parts, symmetry of form, and a strong pro- 
 pensity to fatten. Although'' hearty feeders, a small quantity of food 
 suffices for them. When matured they readily attain the weight of from 
 30 to 35 stone of 14 lbs. 
 
 LINCOLNSHIRE. 
 
 The true Lincolnshire pigs are white, with long straight bodies, 
 round carcasses, fine skins, and few bristles; the heads are well formed 
 and of moderate size, and the ears erect, pointing somewhat forward 
 and curling slightly at the tips ; the hair is long and fine, but scanty. 
 This breed was formerly considered as superior to any but the Berk- 
 shire in point of form and value, they being easily fattened, and the flesh 
 being tender and of a fine flavour ; with care they will reach 45 or 50 
 stone of 14 lbs. to the stone; and many, at a year and a-half old, will 
 weigh 25 or 30 stone. They certainly do not attain to their maturity 
 as early as some of the smaller breeds, but are, notwithstanding this, 
 profitable animals, and good, sound, handsome stock. A cross between 
 the Lincoln and Chinese pigs is productive of an animal presenting 
 great tendency to fatten, and a small eater. 
 
 The old breed of this county are long-legged, narrow-backed, un- 
 gainly animals, with thick skins covered with short thick hair ; the 
 head is large, the forehead wide, and the ears set far apart. They are 
 far from profitable animals, being enormous eaters, and fattening but 
 poorly ; few attain to a greater weight than 18 or 20 stone. 
 
 DERBYSHIRE. 
 
 Here there is no prevailing breed. The greater part of the pigs kept 
 in this county come from Cheshire and Shropshire, and these are either 
 left in their pure state, or crossed with some of the small English or 
 foreign breeds, according as the taste or circumstances of the farmer or 
 breeder leads him to prefer large or small animals. 
 
 LEICESTERSHIRE. 
 
 The old Leicestershire breed was a perfect type of the original hogs 
 of the midland counties ; large, ungainly, slab-sided animals, of a light 
 colour and spotted with brown or black. The only good parts about 
 them were their head and ears, which showed greater traces of breed- 
 ing than any other parts. Mr. Bakewell improved them, and the 
 variety thus obtained was called after him, and was superior in value 
 and beauty to the old stock. Within the last few years various crosses 
 have been tried, and the original breed is now fast losing all its peculi- 
 arities and defects. 
 
SWINE IN ENGLAND. 
 
 65 
 
 BEDFORDSHIRE. 
 
 There is no distinct breed in this county; the animals are mostly 
 Suffolk or Berkshire pigs, variously crossed. Some of the best kinds 
 are distinguished for their aptitude' to fatten early, and on a small 
 quantity of food. His Royal Highness Prince Albert obtained a prize 
 for some Bedfordshire pigs 41 weeks old, at the Smithfield Club Cat- 
 tle-show in 1846. 
 
 The Essex pigs, too, have been indebted for their improvement to 
 crosses with the foreign breeds, and especially the Neapolitan, and 
 with the Berkshire swine. They are mostly black and white, the head 
 and hinder parts being black, and the back and belly white; have 
 smaller heads than the Berkshire pigs, and long thin upright ears, 
 short hair, a fine skin, good hind quarters, and a deep round carcass; 
 they are also small-boned, and the flesh is delicate and well-flavoured. 
 They produce large litters, but are bad nurses. 
 
 LORD WESTERN'S ESSEX BREED. 
 
 The most esteemed breeds are entirely black, and are distinguished 
 by having small teat-like appendages of the skin depending from the 
 upper part of the neck, which are commonly termed wattles. Some of 
 these animals will attain the weight of 480 lbs., but they are not, ac- 
 cording to some breeders, quick fatteners; while others prize them for 
 their rapid growth and aptitude to lay on flesh, as well as for its excel- 
 
66 THE PIG. 
 
 lence ; it forms small and delicately-flavoured pork. Lord Western 
 has been the great improver of the Essex pigs, and his breed is highly 
 esteemed throughout the kingdom. 
 
 Some Essex pigs, at only 23 weeks old, carried off one of the prizes 
 at the Smithfield Club Cattle-show of 1846. 
 
 SUFFOLK. 
 
 The old pigs of this county are white in colour, long legged, long 
 bodied, and narrow back, with broad foreheads, short hams, and an 
 abundance of bristles. They are by no means profitable -animals. 
 Lord Western's improved Essex breed is much esteemed in Suffolk, 
 and so are the Lincolnshire hogs. 
 
 A SUFFOLK BOAR, THE PROPERTY OF HIS LATE MAJESTY WILLIAM IV. 
 
 A cross between the Suffolk and Lincoln has produced a hardy ani- 
 mal, which fattens kindly, and will attain the weight of from 30 to 40 
 and even 50 stone of 14 pounds to the stone. Another cross, much ap- 
 proved by farmers, is that of the Suffolk and Berkshire. On the whole, 
 there are few better breeds to be found in the kingdom, perhaps, than 
 the improved Suffolk pigs ; they are well-formed, compact, short-legged, 
 hardy animals, equal in point of value to the best of the Essex, and 
 superior in constitution, and consequently better adapted for general 
 keep, and especially for the cottager. The greater part of the pigs at 
 Prince Albert's farm, near Windsor, are of the improved Suffolk breed ; 
 
SWINE IN ENGLAND. 67 
 
 that is to say, the Suffolk crossed with the Berkshire and Chinese. 
 They are small in size, with round bulky bodies, short legs, small 
 heads, and fat cheeks. Those arising from the Berkshire and Suffolk 
 are not so well shaped as those derived from the Chinese and Suffolk, 
 being coarser, longer legged, and more prominent about the hips. 
 They are mostly white, with thin fine hair; seme few are spotted, and 
 all easily kept in fine condition ; they have a decided aptitude to fatten 
 early, and are likewise valuable as store-pigs. 
 
 Many of the improved Suffolk breed will, at a year or fifteen months 
 old, weigh from 12 to 15 or 16 score; at this age they make fine bacon 
 hogs. The sucking pigs and porkers are also very delicate and deli- 
 cious. 
 
 NORFOLK. 
 
 The pigs of this county do not materially differ from those of Lin- 
 colnshire, but are rather smaller. They, too, are white, fine boned, 
 long eared, and well formed, good feeders, and yielding fine meat. 
 This is especially the case in that part of the county which approaches 
 Lincoln. Various breeds and varieties, are, however, to be met with 
 in Norfolk, and among them some very inferior animals. There is a 
 small variety resembling the Chinese, and probably descended from 
 that breed, which is peculiar to this county, and much esteemed for its 
 aptitude to fatten on a small quantity of food. A cross between the 
 Norfolk and Suffolk pigs produces a fine hardy animal. 
 
 9 
 NORTHAMPTONSHIRE. 
 
 The old breed of Northamptonshire were large-bodied, large-boned, 
 bristly animals, covered wjjh white coarse hair. Their legs were short 
 and their ears very long, so much so as often to trail upon the ground. 
 They were capable of being fattened to a considerable size, but not with- 
 out great trouble and expense. These gave place to a lighter-made 
 animal, equally large, but with small bones, small ears, and greater 
 aptitude to fatten. The Bakewell Leicester pigs are highly esteemed 
 by some of the breeders and farmers of this county. 
 
 SHROPSHIRE. 
 
 This seems to have been only another variety of the Northampton- 
 shire pigs; they are coarse, ungainly animals, with long heads, pendent 
 ears, arched loins, large bones, flat sides, mSny bristles, and coarse wiry 
 hair; they are brindled, or of a dirty white gray, or drab colour, with 
 spots of black. They were capable of being fattened to a considerable 
 ;size, and might be made at two years old to weigh 40 or 50 stone ; but 
 to accomplish this an abundance of food was required. They are by 
 no means adapted for farm stock ; but brewers, distillers, and those 
 ■who have large quantities of refuse wash and grains, hold them in some 
 estimation. Latterly the breed has been very much improved, and 
 renderedmore profitable, by crossing it with the Berkshire, Chinese, 
 and other esteemed breeds, under the influence of which the most sa- 
 lient and objectionable points have disappeared, and the animals are now 
 short legged, fine haired, straight backed, and thin skinned, white, in 
 colour, and weighing 14 or 15 stone at two years old. Lord Forester of 
 
68 THE PIG. 
 
 Willy Park, and Sir F. Lawly of Monkhopton, are in possession of 
 the best breeds. 
 
 The old breed of this county were some of the largest swine in 
 England, standing from three and a half to four and a half feet high. 
 They were black and white, white, and blue and white ; long-bodied, 
 narrow-backed, slab-sided, large-boned, long-limbed animals, haying 
 large heads, drooping ears of such a size as scarcely to permit them to 
 see out of their eyes, and loose coarse-looking skins. Nevertheless 
 they fatten to an enormous weight, and without consuming a compara- 
 tively larger amount of food than many of the much more esteemed 
 English breeds. One excellent variety has been obtained by a cross 
 with a Berkshire boar. 
 
 Of late years, however, the old Cheshire breed has almost entirely 
 disappeared, andj)een replaced by a fine-boned, round-bodied animal, 
 longer from head to tail and wider across the shoulders, coming earlier 
 to maturity and easily fatten ; the form of the head, too, is improved, 
 and the eats are smaller and more shapely. These animals are chiefly 
 derived from the old Berkshire and Cheshire breeds with an occasional 
 and judicious cross with the Chinese. There is, too, a slight admix- 
 ture here and there of the Leicestershire blood. They never attain to 
 the size or weight of the old breeds, but their forms are more com- 
 pact, their flesh finer grained, and their bones smaller. They are con- 
 sidered by many persons to be equal in value in all points to any breed 
 in Europe. 
 
 GLOUCESTERSHIRE. 
 
 The Gloucestershire is another of the large old breeds, gaunt, long* 
 legged, and unprofitable, of a dirty white colour, and having wattles de- 
 pending from the neck. It has been supposed to have once been the 
 prevailing breed in England, but is now rapidly disappearing before 
 the alterations produced by the present prevailing system of crossing 
 from small breeds. 
 
 HEREFORDSHIRE. 
 
 The pigs of this county are of the large class, similar in many respects 
 to tbe Shropshire swine, and in all probability produced by a cross be- 
 tween those and some one or more of the smaller breeds ; for they are 
 smaller, finer-boned animals than the Shropshire pigs, have better 
 shaped heads and ears, are more compact in form, and have greater ap- 
 titude for fattening. They may, in fact, be fed to an enormous size ; 
 and with proper management will, at two years old, weigh two or three 
 times as much as most hogs of other breeds at the same age. No 
 farmer need wish to possess finer and more profitable animals than may 
 be found among the Herefordshire pigs ; the bacon made of their flesh 
 yields in excellence to none. 
 
 Latterly this breed has been crossed with the Berkshire, and the re- 
 sult has been a fine useful animal possessing numerous good points, 
 but not much superior to the good old stock. 
 
SWINE IN ENGLAND. 69 
 
 WILTSHIRE. 
 
 Here the old breed was one of the larger class. The Wiltshire swine 
 were long in the body, round in carcass, hollow about the shoulders, 
 and high on the rump; short-legged, large-boned, light-coloured, and 
 the ears were large and pointed. They were, like most of this kind of 
 pigs, large eaters and slow to fatten ; but when fat attained a fair aver- 
 age weight, and their flesh was fine-grained and highly esteemed, espe- 
 cially as bacon. Crosses with the Chinese and Neapolitan breeds 
 have however much improved the original race ; they are now smaller 
 boned, not so large in size, and fatten earlier and more readily. 
 
 CORNWALL. 
 
 The Cornish Breed. — Here, again, the march of improvement is 
 decidedly evident; the old Cornish hog, a large, white, long-sided, 
 heavy-boned, razor-backed animal, possessing but little aptitude to 
 fatten, is nearly extinet ; and in its place we see a compact well-made 
 pig, fattening kindly, coming early to maturity, a/id yielding in excel- 
 lence and value to few* This variety has been produced by crossing 
 the old breed with the Berkshire, Chinese, Essex, Leicester, and Nea- 
 politan pigs. These animals require little food .beyond vegetables and 
 the farm house wash, excepting at the period of fattening, when about 
 24 gallons of barley will suffice to bring them, at nine months old, to 
 the weight of from 350 to 400 pounds.. 
 
 BERKSHIRE. ' f 
 
 The Berkshire pigs belong to the large class, and are distinguished 
 by their colour, which is a sandy or whitish brown, spotted regularly 
 with dark brown or black spots, and by their having no bristles. The 
 hair is long, thin, somewhat curly, and looks rough'; the earsare fringed 
 with long hair round the outer edge, which gives them a ragged or 
 feathery appearance ; the body is thick, compact, and well formed ; the 
 legs short, the sides broad, the head well set on, the snout short, the 
 jowl thick, the ears erect, the skin exceedingly thin in texture, the flesh 
 firm and well flavoured, and the bacon very superior. This breed of 
 pigs has been generally considered to be one of the best in England, 
 on account of its smallness of bone, early maturity, aptitude to fatten 
 on little food, hardihood, and the females being such good breeders. 
 Although termed the Berkshire breed, these 'pigs* have been reared ( in 
 various parts of the kingdom ; and some .of -the very best have come 
 from Staffordshire, from the progeny of the celebrated Tamworth boar.. 
 In Leicestershire also is a very fine race of them, descending from the 
 stock of Ricjiard Astley, Esq., who devoted much care to the improve- 
 ment of the Berkshire pigs. Hogs of the' pure' original ;bre.ed have 
 been known to attain to an immense size, and weigh as much as 100 
 and 120 stone of eight pounds the stone. 
 
 One bred at Petworth measured seven feet seyen inches from the tip 
 of his snout to the root of his tail, and seven feet ten inches in girth 
 round the centre; five feet round the neck, ten inches round the thinnest 
 part of the liin^, Leg, and two feet acoss the widest part of the back. 
 He. stood. tlri£JK"j&et nine inches high ; and, what was most remarkable 
 
70 
 
 THE PIG. 
 
 in this monstrous animal, he did not consume more than two bushels. 
 and six gallons of ground oats, peas, and barley, per week. 
 
 Parkinson, in his "Live stock," vol. ii., .gives some extraordinary 
 accounts of the size and weight attained by individuals of this breed, 
 and the profit yielded by them, and also of their aptitude to fatten at 
 
 They are not, however, generally of an enormous size, being much 
 smaller than several of the older breeds; their ordinary weight averages 
 from 12 to 15 score, and some will at two years old weigh 20 score. 
 
 — Ulcr 
 
 THE BERKSHIRE SOW, THE PROPERTY OP THE LATE DUKE OF BEDFORD. 
 
 It would be impossible to give an account of the numerous'cfosses from 
 this breed ; the principal foreign ones are those with the Chinese and 
 Neapolitan swine, made with the view of decreasing the size of the 
 animal, and improving the flavour of the flesh, and rendering it more 
 delicate ; and the animals thus obtained are superior to almost any 
 others in their aptitude to fatten, but are very susceptible of cold from 
 being almost entirely without hair. A cross of the Berkshire with the 
 Suffolk and Norfolk pigs also is much approved in some^parts of the 
 country. A hardy kind is thus produced, which yields well when sent to 
 the butcher; but even the advocates of this cross allow that, under most 
 circumstances, the pure Berkshire is the best. 
 
 HAMPSHIRE. 
 
 Here there are two varieties, the one larger than the other ; in colour 
 they are either white or black and white with long necks and bodies, 
 
SWINE IN ENGLAND. 71 
 
 flat sides, and large bones. The smaller variety are more easily fattened 
 to a considerable size and weight, and make excellent bacon, bat the 
 larger kind require an extra amount of food to bring them to perfection, 
 although when this object is attained they will often weigh from 600 
 to 800 lbs. 
 
 Considerable improvement has however been latterly effected by 
 crosses of the Berkshire, Chinese, Essex, and Suffolk pigs, with the 
 large old Hampshire hog. The animals resulting from these intermix- 
 tures are better shaped and more profitable ; in fact, they bear about 
 them the characteristics of the breed from which they were obtained. 
 There is also a third variety of swine found in Hampshire, called the 
 " Forest pigs," differing materially from the true Hampshire breeds, 
 and in many points strongly resembling the wild boar, from which it is 
 not improbable they derived their descent, for the last wild boars known 
 to be at liberty in England were those turned into the New Forest by 
 Charles I., and which he obtained from Germany with the view to the 
 re-introduction of the fine old sport of boar-hunting. The Forest pig 
 is broad Shouldered and high crested; light and lean in the hinder 
 quarters ; has a bristly mane and erect ears ; is of a dark or blackish 
 colour; and lives chiefly on beechmast-and acorns. This breed is no 
 favourite in Hampshire; the animals are wild, fierce;, not apt to fatten, 
 and, from their peculiar makei do not cut up to advantage when killed ; 
 it is however now losing its distinctive characteristics, and becomnng, 
 as it were, more civilized or domesticated. Gilpin gives a very strik- 
 ing account of the sudden appearance of a herd of these semi-wild crea- 
 tures. 
 
 "We well remember an occasion when we had thrown- ourselves 
 down at the foot of a great beech-tree, whence we looked abroad, from 
 underneath its wide canopy of foliage, on a small track of sunshine, 
 which, penetrating an opening in the wood, and falling athwart the 
 ground beyond, gave a broader and deeper effect to the surrounding 
 shadows. There was not a breath of air, and not a sound was audi- 
 ble; calmly we lay in all that listlessness of a dreamy musing which, 
 to an idle mind, might seem like idleness, but which the philosopher, 
 student, or moralist knows better how to appreciate. 
 
 "Suddenly a sound like that of warlike music mellowed by distance 
 came upon our ears. We started so far up from our recumbent posi- 
 tion as to lean upon one arm and listen intently, and not without some 
 degree of awe, being almost persuaded that some wonderous fairy 
 pageant was about to gratify our sight. - 
 
 "The sound increased and grew harsher as it advanced, and as it 
 drew yet nearer the tramp of what might easily have been imagined to 
 be elfin chivalry accompanied it. At length, while we yet listened in 
 mute expectation, the leading boar of a large herd of forest pigs came 
 grunting into view, followed by all the musical members of his harmo- 
 nious detachment. 
 
 " Whether it was the cheering invigorating effects of the sunshine, 
 and whether there was something particularly savoury in the herbage 
 of that spot, we know not, but the grunting swelled into a loud chorus ; 
 their snouts became more and more busy; their ears and tails kept up 
 one continuous and joyous motion ; and their small eyes seemed to flash 
 back the sun's rays with unwonted eagerness of expression. It was 
 
72 THE PIG. 
 
 really an interesting sight ; and were it not that swine were the sub- 
 ject of it, we should, and truly, say it was as beautiful as interesting; 
 The creatures were in fine condition ; their bristles glittered like silver ; 
 their bodies were as clean as if they were as regularly washed and 
 combed as a lady's lapdog; and they seemed so full of freedom and 
 happiness, that while looking on them we felt all the romance of forest 
 life and recollections of the "merrie green wood." 
 
 " Wishing to observe and admire them more closely, we sprang up, 
 but in so doing alarmed them, and off they galloped belter skelter, 
 sauve qui pent, with a speed that none of the porcine race not ' forest 
 born' and bred could equal ; and long after every one was out of sight, 
 vanished in the mazes of the woodland, we still heard their retreating 
 trumpets gradually dying away until lost in the distance."* 
 
 SUSSEX. 
 
 The breed of this country are by some authors supposed to have 
 descended from the large spotted Berkshire swine ; while others assert 
 them to be a variety of the black-and-white Essex pig, if not the ori- 
 ginal stock. They are of moderate size, handsomely formed, thin- 
 skinned, and black and white ; not, however, spotted, but white at one 
 extremity and black at the other. The hair is fine and long, but spare ; 
 the head long and tapering ; the ears well set on and pointing forwards ; 
 the eyes quick and vivacious; and the snout fine. The chief fault in 
 their make is, that the bones are somewhat too large. They grow 
 quickly, feed well, fatten kindly, and will when full-sized weigh from 
 18 to 25 stone of 14 lbs. 
 
 Some of the finest pigs of this kind ever reared were in the posses- 
 sion of the Western family, at Felix Hall, Essex. 
 
 In speaking of the breeds of pigs belonging to this county we must 
 not omit the now extinct Rudgwick swine, which derived their name 
 from a village in Sussex, and were some of the largest hogs produced 
 in England. They fattened but slowly, and were consequently deemed 
 unprofitable, but yielded excellent meat and in considerable quantities. 
 They have, however, passed away before the alterations produced by 
 the general aim of the present system of breeding. 
 
 THE CHINESE SWINE. 
 
 Although these have been already noticed when speaking of Asia, 
 we cannot now pass them over, as they actually form one of the recog- 
 nised stock breeds of England. There are two distinct varieties, the 
 while and the black; both fatten readily, but from their diminutive size 
 attain no great weight. They are small in limb, round in body, short 
 in the head, wide in the cheek, and high in the chine; covered with 
 very fine bristles growing from an exceedingly thin skin; and not 
 peculiarly symmetrical, for, when fat, the head is so buried in the neck 
 that little more than the tip of the snout is visible. The pure Chinese 
 hog is too delicate and susceptible of cold ever to become a really pro- 
 fitable animal in this country ; it is difficult to rear, and the sows are 
 not good nurses; but one or two judicious crosses have in a manner 
 naturalized it. ^ 
 
 This breed will fatten readily, and on a comparatively small quantity 
 
 * Gilpin's Forest Scenery. 
 
SWINE IN ENGLAND — CHINESE SWINE. 
 
 73 
 
 of food; and the flesh is exceedingly delicate, bat does not make good 
 bacon, and is often too fat and oily to be generally esteemed as pork. 
 They are chiefly kept by those who rear sucking-pigs for the market, 
 as they make excellent roasters at three weeks or a month old. Some 
 authors point oat five, some seven varieties of the Chinese breed, but 
 these are doubtless the results of different crosses with oar native kinds ; 
 among these are black, white, black and white, spotted, and blue and 
 white, or sandy. Many valuable crosses have been made with these 
 
 "=^T="j : - ; ■ =- 
 
 CHINESE PIS. 
 From a Sow sent direct from China to William Ogilvy, Esq., Hon. Sec. Zool. Soc. 
 
 animals ; for the prevalent fault of the old English breeds having been 
 coarseness of flesh, unwieldiness of form, and want of aptitude to fatten, 
 an admixture of the Chinese breed has materially corrected these de- 
 fects. Most of our smaller breeds are more or less indebted to the 
 Asiatic swine for their present compactness of form, the readiness with 
 which they fatten on a small quantity of food, and their early maturity ; 
 but these advantages are not considered by some persons as sufficiently 
 great to compensate for the. diminution in size, the increased delicacy 
 of the animals, and the decrease of number in the litters. The best 
 cross is between the Berkshire and the Chinese. 
 
 Here the hog is, in the fullest sense of the word, a domesticated ani- 
 mal. The Irish pig is born in the warmest nook of his master's cabin,' 
 reared among the children, and often far better fed and more carefully 
 6 
 
74 THE PIG. 
 
 tended than the ragged urchins who play around him, for the peasant 
 will half starve himself and children in order to have more food for his 
 pig ; and while the former have only potatoes, and few enough of them, 
 the porker frequently gets not only a good meal of potatoes, but some 
 porridge, or bran, or refuse vegetables in addition. He is in fact the 
 chief person in the household ; on him the poor man reckons for the 
 payment of his rent or the purchase of the necessaries of life. Swine 
 abound in all parts of Ireland ; scarcely a peasant's cot but numbers a 
 pig among the family; and the roads, lanes, and fields in the neigh- 
 bourhood of every village, and the suburbs of every large town, are 
 infested with a grunting multitude. 
 
 Until lately, however, notwithstanding the value set on these ani- 
 mals, the real Irish pig was a huge, gaunt, long-legged, slab-sided, 
 roach-backed, coarse-boned, grisly brute; with large flapping ears 
 which almost wholly shrouded the face ; of a dirty white, or black and 
 white colour; with harsh coarse hair, and Tbristles that almost stood 
 erect. It was also far from being a profitable animal, requiring a very 
 considerable quantity of food, and when fat producing only coarse- 
 grained meat* But since the facility of export has become greater, 
 considerable improvement has been effected by the introduction of 
 Berkshire and Chinese boars and sows, and crossing the old .breed 
 pretty extensively with these. Thus the unwieldiness of size and 
 coarseness of bone have been diminished, and greater aptitude for fat- 
 tening communicated, which latter qualification is invaluable to the 
 poor peasant. There is, however, great room for still farther improve- 
 ment, and we trust that before long some enterprising individuals will 
 devote their energies to the task, and thus become the means of be- 
 stowing a great benefit) on the peasantry of the " sister-isle." 
 
 Steam navigation has wonderfully increased the trade in pigs between 
 England and Ireland, for we find that in 1821 only 104,501 of these 
 animals were brought into Liverpool; while in 1837, 595,422 were 
 imported. The cost ef conveyance has been so materially decreased 
 by the facility of steam-boat and railway conveyance, that this is not at 
 all to be wondered at. 
 
 Irish pork or bacon is not so fine-grained or so finely flavoured as the 
 English ; and although imported in considerable quantities, sells for a 
 much lower price than our own. This has been attributed by some to 
 the pigs being entirely fattened on potatoes, but it is also referable to 
 the innate coarseness of the animals themselves. 
 
 CHAPTER VIL 
 
 The Skeleton of Ihe Hog— Skull and.Snout— Teeth— Brain—Apopleiy— Inflammation of 
 the Brain— Pnrenilis— The Spinal Cord— Epilepsy— Palsji and Paralysis— Tetanus— 
 Rabies— Nasal I Catarrh-The Larynx.— The Pharvnx— The Os Hyoides-Straneles and 
 auinsy— The Chest— Diseased valves of the Heart— The Bronchial Tubes— Inflamma- 
 tion of the Lungs or Rising of the Lights— Pleuro-Pneumonia— Epidemics. 
 
 A very slight acquaintance- with that: complicated and beautiful 
 structure which we term the animal economy, will be sufficient to con- 
 vince; us. that any rational method of investigating or treating disease 
 
ANATOMY OF SWINE. 75 
 
 must be founded upon an acquaintance with the general construction of 
 the frame, the derangements and alterations to which it is liable, and a 
 concise notion of the various systems or sets of organs of which the 
 body is composed.- Without this amount of knowledge it will be im- 
 possible correctly to interpret those signs of alteration of strncture or 
 function which constitute the symptoms of disease, and indicate its 
 nature and seat. 
 
 If we would understand how to regulate the working of some com- 
 plicated machine, we must not content ourselves with a mere cursory 
 glance at its exterior, but closely inspect the different parts ; make our- 
 selves acquainted with their shape-, situation, and arrangement; inquire 
 into the principles upon which the whole is constructed, — its mode of 
 action, and the offiees which, each part was destined to perform. Pro- 
 ceeding thus, we shall arrive at a knowledge of the best means of pre- 
 serving it from injury, repairing any accident that may happen to it, 
 and maintaining it in a fit state for the efficient discharge of the duties 
 it was intended to perform. 
 
 The animal economy consists of parts or organs, differing from each 
 other in structure and function, yet all so intimately connected together, 
 and so mutually dependent upon each other, that the co-operation of 
 the whole is necessary to a state of perfect health ; and if any one part 
 suffer injury the neighbouring organs sympathize with it to a greater 
 or less extent, and the working of the whole system is impaired. In 
 order to arrive at a proper understanding- of the functions of any one 
 part of the body, we must study the whole ; there is no other way of 
 obtaining that insight into disease which will furnish us with a clear 
 idea of the precise nature and seat of a malady, and the course of treat- 
 ment most likely to be attended with success. The uninformed empiric 
 who deals about his nostrums at random, is far more liable to put an 
 end to the life of his patient than to arrest the progress of the disorder. 
 Such men should never be allowed to tamper with' the meanest animal. 
 It is only to those who, from close study and long practice, have ac- 
 quired an accurate knowledge of the anatomy, diseases, habits, and 
 general management of domesticated animals, that their medical treat- 
 ment can with safety be entrusted. 
 
 It is, however, by no means our intention in this work to give a 
 formal treatise on the anatomy, physiology, and diseases of the pig, 
 but simply to lay before our readers a tolerably comprehensive sketch 
 of the general structure of the animal, and the alterations and evils to 
 which certain parts are liable, and this divested as much as possible of 
 all the technicalities of professional language. A description of the 
 different parts, their form, situation, action, and functions, as well as 
 their admirable adaptation to the ends for which they were designed, 
 will lead us to a consideration of the diseases incidental to them— to 
 the treatment proper to be adopted — and to some account of the various 
 operations which it may occasionally be requisite to perform. In short, 
 we would present them with a practical digest of all that is yet known 
 relative to this too much neglected branch of veterinary science ; one 
 that shall serve as a book of reference in cases of doubt or emergency, 
 and aid in introducing those great truths and leading doctrines, which 
 form the groundwork upon which the practice of every branch of me- 
 
76 THE PIG. 
 
 dical science ought to be based, into the last strongholds of ignorance 
 and empiricism. 
 
 In entering upon the anatomy and diseases of swine we may be said 
 to take possession of a new and almost untrodden field, one as yet 
 scarcely recognised as belonging to tiny earlier occupants; and here, 
 in the onset, it will be as well to observe that, careful and lucid as we 
 shall endeavour to make our descriptions, we should only mislead the 
 agriculturist or grazier if we were to encourage him to believe that they 
 will enable him wholly to dispense with a veterinary surgeon. Far 
 from it ; we would rather persuade him to seek at once the assistance 
 of the well-educated and scientific practitioner, who, from close study, 
 practical experience, and surgical skill, is qualified successfully to 
 grapple with the most obscure and fatal diseases. We would enable 
 him to assist the veterinary surgeon in his often arduous task, by giving 
 him that information as to the previous symptoms, habits, &c., of the 
 patient, which can alone enable him to proceed with certainty, and will 
 tend to save the life of many a valuable animal ; and, lastly, we would 
 warn him against empirics. 
 
 Swine, from having been, until very lately, considered as a subordi- 
 nate species of stock, have not yet, to any extent, become sharers in 
 the benefits which an improved system of agriculture, and the present 
 advancing state of veterinary science, has conferred upon other do- 
 mesticated animals. When any thing goes wrong in the piggery the 
 farmer too often, instead of exercising that shrewd sense which he turns 
 to so good an account in almost every other instance, either sends for 
 the butcher, or consigns the sick tenants of the Sty to the care of an 
 ignorant "pig-doctor," whose whole pretensions to leech-craft rest on 
 the possession of some antiquated recipe, which he uses indiscriminately 
 as a grand panacea for " all the ills swine's flesh is heir to," or on the 
 traditionary lore he inherits from some ancestor famous in his day for 
 certain real or supposed wondrous cures. The treatment adopted in 
 such a case is usually of a very summary nature:" a drench is admi- 
 nistered, the principal ingredients of which consist in whatever abomi- 
 nations happen to come to hand first when this learned practitioner is 
 summoned. The unlucky patient's tail is next cut off, or he is bled 
 " between the claws," and the " doctor," after some learned clinical 
 remarks to the bystanders, swallows the customary mug of beer, and. 
 leaves his patient to contend with his disease and the remedy, one or 
 the other of which in most cases speedily brings the matter to a con- 
 clusion, unless, with all the obstinacy inherent in a pig's nature, he 
 lives on in spite of both. The following anecdote, which appeared in 
 one of the daily papers, is strikingly illustrative of the rough practice 
 of the "village pig^doctor:" — 
 
 " A poor weaver laid the following complaint before the magistrate. 
 He kept a pig, which, appearing to be unwell, he asked a pig-doctor to 
 come and see it. The man came, examined the animal, stated that.it 
 had got ' a bit of a cold,' but he conld soon give it a drink that should 
 cure it. The price of this drink was to be Is. 2d., and the poor man. 
 agreeing to pay for it, the pig-doctor gave the animal some warm water, 
 and promised to bring the pig-medicine in the evening. So beneficial 
 were the effects of the water, that the pig was shortly running about as 
 brisk as ever he was in his life. The drink was sent in the evening in 
 
ANATOMY OF SWINE. 
 
 77 
 
 a broken-necked bottle, which was violently forced into the animal's 
 mouth, in spite of the remonstrances of the owner. In the struggle the 
 bottle was still more broken, and the pig's mouth bled very much. 
 The poor man, however, paid the Is. 2d., but tin the following morn- 
 ing on going into the pig-sty found hi? pig lying dead. On its being 
 opened three pieces of the glass bottle were Found sticking in the 
 windpipe." 
 
 Many similar instances of barbarity as well as gross ignorance might 
 be added, but a narration of them would be of no practical benefit, and 
 therefore we proceed at once to our legitimate subject. 
 
 SKELETON OF THE PIG. 
 
 THE HEAD. 
 
 A. Maxilla inferior, vel posterior— lower 
 jaw. 
 
 B. Dentes— the teeth. 
 
 C. Ossa nasi— the nasal bones. 
 
 D. Maxilla superior, vel anterior— upper 
 jaw. 
 
 E. ,Os frontis — the frontal bone. 
 
 R Orbiculus— the orbit or socket of the eye. 
 G. Os occipitis— the occipital bone. 
 
 THE TRUNK. 
 
 H. Atlas— the first vertebra of the neck. ( 
 
 I. Vertebra colli, vel cervicales — the ver- 
 tebra; of the neck. 
 
 J. Vertebra!- riorsi, vel dorsales— the ver- 
 
 ' lebraj of the back, 
 K. Vertebra lumborum, vel lumbales— 
 
 the vertebra? of the loins. . 
 L. Ossa coccygis— the bones of the tail. 
 
 FORE EXTREMITY. 
 
 a. Scapula— the shoulder blade. 
 
 b. Humerus— the round shoulder bone, 
 e. Sternum — the breast bone. 
 
 d.- Ulna— the elbow. 
 
 e. Radius— the bone of the fore-arm. 
 
 /. Os naviculars — the navicular hone. 
 g. g. Phalanges, vel ossa pedis— the first 
 
 and second bones of the foot. 
 A. Phalanges, vel ossa pedis — the bones of 
 the hoof. 
 
78 THE FIG. 
 
 HIND EXTREMITIES. 
 
 i. i. Pelvis (ossa innominata)— the haunch n. n. Os naviculare— the navicular bone. 
 
 bones. o. o. Dipiti.vel phalanges (ossa pedis)— the 
 j. j Os femoris— the thigh-bone. first digits of the foot. - 
 
 k. k. Patella— the stifle-bone. p. p. Digiti, vel phalanges (ossa pedis^lhe 
 /. I. Tibia— the upper bone oftbe leg. second digits of the foot. 
 
 m. m. Tarsus, (one of which is the (N) os 
 calcis)— the bock bones. 
 
 THE SKULL AND SNOUT. 
 
 As the skull of the hop; differs in many respects from that of the horse, 
 ox, sheep, or dog, we shall now proceed to notice those points of dif- 
 ference. 
 
 From the point of the occiput to the tip of the nasal bone the profile 
 presents an almost unbroken sloping line. The position of the orbit of the 
 eye is lateral, giving to the animal a side, rather than a forward range 
 of vision. The space occupied by the orbital processes of the frontal 
 bone in the ox and horse, is in the hog supplied by a cartilage. The 
 frontal bones unite together early, and the parietals appear to form but 
 one piece. The frontal sinuses proceed to the occiput, and are only 
 separated from each other by some longitudinal or somewhat oblique 
 bony layers which do not entirely intercept communication ; these and 
 the sphenoidal sinuses render the cerebral cavity narrow, in fact the 
 size of it is only half that of the cranium viewed from the exterior. 
 The ethmoid and turbinated bones are larger and more fully developed 
 in the hog than in the ox or sheep, in fact they occupy an intermediate 
 grade between those of the horse and dog, being larger than those of the 
 former, and smaller than those of the latter; they are spiral, complicated, 
 cellular, and offer an extensive surface for the expansion of the olfac- 
 tory nerve ; the ethmoidal fosset is very much sunk, of moderate size, 
 divided by a very salient crest, and riddled with numerous holes. 
 
 The nasal bones of the hog are situated low down in the face, flat- 
 tened, and well adapted to the situation and wants of the animal. 
 They are attached to the frontals in a slightly curved direction across 
 the face, by a strong denticulated suture. All communication between 
 them and the lachrymal bones is cut off by the interposition of a pro- 
 jection of the frontals on either side ; the suture between them and the 
 superior maxillary is mortised ; the anterior maxillary sends up a broad 
 deep process more than half the length of the nasal bones, and the 
 suture here is exceedingly strong. The bony nasal opening is but 
 small, not one-sixth of the size of that of the sheep, and the apices of 
 the bone form one sharp but rapidly widening point, which is carried 
 forward to the anterior extremity of the maxillary. The suture between 
 the nasals themselves is often so intricate, that before the animal is two 
 years old the upper part of it is perfectly obliterated, and the nasal 
 cavity appears as if only covered by one bone. A very slight compari- 
 son of the face of this animal with that of any other will prove that 
 strength is the object here in view; strength towards the inferior part 
 of the bone. In point of fact the snout of the hog is his spade, with 
 which, in his natural state, he digs and grubs in the ground for roots, 
 earth-nuts,, worms, &c. And to render his implement more perfect 
 an extra bone is added to the nasal bone. This one is short and trifi* 
 
SKULL AND SNOUT. 79 
 
 cial and placed directly before the nasal bones, with which, and with 
 the edges of the anterior maxillary, itis connected by strong ligaments, 
 cartilages, and muscles. This bone has been termed the spade-bone, 
 snout-bone, an(l by some writers the vomer, from its supposed resem- 
 blance to a ploughshare. By it and its cartilaginous 1 attachments is 
 the snout rendered strong as well as flexible, and far more efficient than 
 it could otherwise be ; and the hog often contrives to give both farmers 
 and gardeners very unpleasant proofs of its efficiency, by ploughing up 
 deep furrows in newly sown fields, and grubbing up the soil in all 
 directions in search of his living and dead food. 
 
 The palatinebones constitute the crescentic and posterior border of the 
 palate and nasal cavity; they do not advance further than just before 
 the last mqlar tooth, instead of occupying a considerable portion of "the 
 palate. The palatine processes consist merely of bony laminae. 
 
 As roots and fruits buried in the" earth form the natural food of the 
 hog, his face terminates in a stong muscular snout, insensible at the 
 •extremity, and perfectly adapted for turning up the soil. There is a 
 large plexus of nerves proceeding down each side of the nose, and 
 ramifying over the nostril, and in these doubtless reside that peculiar 
 power which enables the hog to detect his food though buried some 
 inches below the surface of the ground. The olfactory nerve too is 
 large, and occupies a middle rank between that of the herbivorous and 
 carnivorous animals ; it is comparatively larger than that of the ox : 
 indeed few animals, with the exception of the dog, are gifted with a 
 more acute sense of smell than the hog. We have already spoken of 
 the sow which was taught to hunt partridges, and proved as sure 
 a finder and as staunch a backer as any pointer ever bred. To the 
 acute sense of the hog are epicures indebted for the truffles which form 
 such a delicious sauce, for they are the actual finders. A pig is turned 
 into a field and suffered to pursue his own course and watched. He 
 stops and begins to grub up'the earth, the man hurries up, drives him 
 away, and secures the truffle, which is invariably growing under that 
 spot, and the poor pig goes off to sniff out another, and another, only 
 now and then beingallowed by way of encouragement to reap the fruits 
 of his research. And how many a school-boy has by watching a hog 
 along the hedge sides, and driving hLm away just as he began to dig, 
 secured a fine juicy earth-nut. 
 
 The muscles, too, of the snout of the hog require some notice. Ac- 
 cording to Cuvier there are four principal muscles proceeding to it ; the 
 superior of these proceeds, from the lachrymal bone, which occupies a 
 rather large rhomboidal space upon the cheek, and its tendon bears 
 upon the snout, but does not approach sufficiently near to it to unite 
 with it. The next two are situated immediately beneath, and proceed 
 from the maxillary bone; these are partially united, but their tendons 
 pass on separately, one on the one side, and one on the other of the 
 extremity of the snout ; and the fourth and smallest passes obliquely 
 beneath the tendons of the others, from the nasal bone towards the in- 
 sertion of the second and third muscles. These longitudinal muscles 
 are enveloped in annular fibres, which appear to be a continuation of 
 the orbicularis of the lips, and give to the snout its extreme flexibility. 
 
.80 
 
 THE TEETH. 
 
 The hog has fourteen molar teeth in each jaw ; six incisors and two 
 canines; these latter are curved upwards, and commonly denominated 
 tushes. The molar teeth are all slightly different in structure, and in- 
 crease in size from first to last ; they bear no slight resemblance to 
 those of the human being. The incisors are so fantastic in form as to 
 baffle description, and their destined functions are by no means clear. 
 Those in the lower jaw are long, round, and nearly straight; of those 
 in the upper jaw four closely resemble the corresponding teeth in the 
 horse, while the two corner incisors bear something of the fleur delis 
 shape of those of the dog. These latter aTe placed so near to the tushes 
 as often to obstruct their growth, and it is sometimes necessary to draw 
 them, in order to relieve the animal, and enable him to feed. 
 
 It is seldom that it becomes necessary to ascertain the age of the hog 
 by inspecting his teeth, nor is it by any means an easy task to do so, 
 but still it may occasionally be interesting, and, with reference to those 
 intended for breeding, important to be able to do so when necessary. 
 
 The calculation of the age of the hog by means of reference to the 
 mouth has not yet been carried beyond three years ; no writer seems to 
 have gone much beyond the protrusion of the adult middle teeth of the 
 lower jaw. 
 
 The hog is born with two molars on each side of the jaw ; by the 
 time he is three or four months old he is provided with his incisive 
 milk teeth and the tushes ; the supernumerary molars protrude between 
 the fifth and seventh month, as does the first back molar; the second 
 back molar is cut at the age of about ten months, and the third gene- 
 rally not until the animal is three years old. The upper corner teeth 
 are shed'at about six or eight months, and the lower ones at about 
 seven, nine, or ten months old, and replaced by the permanent ones. 
 The milk tushes are also shed and replaced between six and ten months 
 old. The age of twenty months, and from that to two years, is denoted 
 by the shedding and replacement of the middle incisors, or pincers, in 
 both jaws, and the formation of a black circle at the base of each of the 
 tushes. At about two years and a half or three years of age the adult 
 middle teeth in both jaws protrude, and the pincers are becoming black 
 and rounded at the ends. 
 
 After three years the age may be computed by the growth of the 
 tushes ; at about four years, or rather before, the upper tushes begin to 
 raise the lip ; at five they protrude through the lips ; at six years of 
 age the tushes of the lower jaw begin to show themselves out of the 
 mouth, and assume a spiral form. These acquire a prodigious length 
 in old animals, and particularly in uncastrated boars ; and as they in- 
 crease in size they become curved backwards and outwards, and at 
 length are so crooked as to interfere with the motion of the jaws to such 
 a degree that it is necessary to cut off these projecting teeth, which is 
 done with the file or with nippers.* 
 
 » Traits de l'Age du Cheval, du Breuf, du Mouton, du Coien, et du Cochon, par N. F. 
 et-J. Girard. 
 
BRAIN APOPLEXY. 8 1 
 
 THE BRAIN. 
 
 This important organ is not so large as from an external view of the 
 cranium we should be led to suppose, the frontal and sphenoidal sinuses 
 contracting the limits of the cranial cavity and rendering it narrow ; it 
 is; however, considerably larger in proportion to the size of the animal 
 than that of the ox or sheep, being about l-500th part of the weight of 
 the animal, while that of the ox is only l-800th part, and that of the 
 sheep only l-750th part. The irregularities of the'surface, or those 
 prominences and depressions which define the organs in phrenology, 
 are more marked in the pig than in the horse, taking the size of the 
 animal into consideration, but not so much marked as in the dog. 
 
 The brain of the hog, like that of our other domesticated animals, is 
 composed of two substances differing materially in appearance and 
 structure ; the one is of a pale gray or ashy hue, and termed the cortical 
 or cineritious substance, and the other, from its pulpy nature and from 
 being found deeper in the brain, the medullary substance. 
 
 These two distinct component parts of the brain are allowed by all 
 scientific men to be intended for the discharge of two distinct functions. 
 The mind or reasoning power is supposed to reside in the cineritious 
 portion ; and hence the preponderance of that substance in the human 
 brain; while the medullary portion is merely the recipient of outward 
 impressions upon the senses. There is very little difference between 
 the proportions of these two substances in the brain of the hog and that 
 of the sheep ; if any thing, the hog has more of the cineritious portion 
 than the ox; a proof, physiologists would say, that his reasoning 
 powers or moral faculties are greater. We have already endeavoured, 
 we know not how successfully, to vindicate him from the charge of 
 utter stupidity and unteachableness so generally brought against him, 
 and pleaded the slight intercourse, compared with that enjoyed by other 
 animals, which he has with man as the cause of it. A philanthropist 
 once declared his intention of "bringing up a pig in such a way as 
 should tend to develope his whole nature, and give him a fair chance 
 of acting out his character, and showing what a pig was capable of 
 being." We may smile at such an Utopian idea, but are we by any 
 means certain that under different treatment swine might not become 
 intelligent and capable of attachment T There are anecdotes enough to 
 prove them possessed of memory, attachment, and social qualities ; but 
 at present the system of treatment affords no scope for the development 
 of any but mere brute and gluttonous instincts. ,. 
 
 As this is a disease which is chiefly induced by plethora,'laziness, 
 want of exercise, high feeding, and such like causes, it is not to be 
 wondered at that it is frequent among swine ; and in by far the majority 
 of cases it is fatal; for either the animal dies suddenly without any 
 precursory symptoms, or the progress of the attack is so rapid that be- 
 fore help can be obtained or remedies administered all is over. Where, 
 however, the apoplexy does not destroy its victim in a short space of 
 time, it may be subdued and the animal temporarily cured; but only 
 for awhile ; it invariably dies soon afterwards of inflammation of the 
 
82 THE PIG. 
 
 brain. Sometimes apoplexy will run, like an epidemic, through a 
 whole piggery, and where this is the case the causes of it must be 
 diligently sought out and carefully removed. 
 
 The precursory symptoms which prognosticate apoplexy are dullness, 
 disinclination to move, heaviness of the head, an uncertain and stag- 
 gering gait, wildness and inflammation of the eyes, with apparent loss 
 of sight, no appetite, and general numbness. The treatment must be 
 prompt and energetic: bleeding from the palate; Epsom salts and 
 sulphur as purgatives; or emetic tartar dissolved in water to induce 
 vomiting. , Strict attention to diet will be requisite for some time after- 
 wards. No stimulating food should be given ; the water should be 
 slightly nitrated, and the animal bled at least every three months. 
 
 INFLAMMATION OF THE BRAIN. 
 
 Inflammation both of the substance and of the membranes of the 
 brain is by no means of unfrequent occurrence, apd almost invariably 
 follows an attack of apoplexy. It is also induced by heating or ex- 
 citing or indigestible food, as an over-feed of grains, of new corn, &c. 
 The precursory symptoms are dullness, redness of the eyes, and disin- 
 clination to move ; but as the inflammation becomes more intense the 
 animal runs wildly to and fro, seems blind and unconscious where he 
 is going, runs against every thing ; the pulse is small and rapid ; and 
 the breathing slightly accelerated. The first thing to be done is to 
 bleed, from the palate if possible ; if not, or if sufficient blood cannot 
 be obtained from there, let incisions be made in the ears, and these re- 
 peatedly washed with warm water, as such a proceeding materially in- 
 creases the bleeding. Magn. sulph. withgiriger should be given in- 
 ternally as a purgative. Enemas (clysters) have also a beneficial ef- 
 fect, and then the animal should have repeated cooling doses of sulphur. 
 Castor oil and jalap have been given as purgatives ; and the system 
 stimulated by the application of a blister to the throat. 
 
 PHRENITIS. 
 
 This is a disease very much resembling the last mentioned, and is 
 often called brain-fever ot frenzy ; it arises pretty much from the same 
 cause ; all excitants of the system, all things which tend to drive the 
 blood to the head, will induce it. The symptoms are prostration of 
 strength, blindness, frenzy, and often convulsions. The treatment must 
 consist in copious bleedings and strong purgatives, which should be 
 followed up by doses of sulphur to keep the bowels open. Croton oil 
 with tincture of ginger has been given in extreme cases, and with bene- 
 ficial effects. The dose for a moderate sized animal is about two mi- 
 nims of croton oil and one dram of tincture of ginger. 
 
 SPINAL CORD. 
 
 Next to the diseases of the brain follows a consideration of those 
 arising from the spinal cord. This proceeds from the brain to the tail, 
 and is divided by a central line on the upper and under surface through- 
 out its whole extent, forming it into two separate columns, each of 
 which has been proved to possess a distinct and separate function, the 
 
DISEASES. 83 
 
 inferior surfaces being connected with voluntary motion, and the cen- 
 tral ones on the upper surface with sensation. 
 
 The. pig occasionally exhibits all the symptoms of epilepsy in their 
 most frightful intensity, and whoever has carefully marked the habits 
 of swine when not confined to the sty will easily be able to account for 
 this ; for, obtuse and stupid as it is the custom to denominate them, 
 there, is more excitability and nervousness in these animals than in 
 many that have the credit of being more delicately organised. Note 
 the manner in which they are affected by the approach of wind or 
 storms — how they run about in a state of highly nervous excitement 
 with straw in their mouths ; note the sympathy and terror a whole herd 
 will exhibit while one of them is undergoing the operation of spaying 
 or ringing, how they squeak in concert with his cries; see them at a 
 fair under the irritation of strange scenes and noises, and we shall find 
 sufficient indications of a, susceptibility of impression to account for 
 swine being peculiarly subject to epilepsy. 
 
 The prognostics are constant grunting, restlessness, acceleration of 
 breathing, pallor of the skin, and a staggering gait. Then the animal 
 suddenly falls as if struck by lightning, and for -a few moments lies 
 perfectly motionless ; after which convulsions come on gradually, in- 
 creasing in intensity until they are fearful to behold ; the countenance 
 is distorted; the neck curved in every direction; and the legs alternately 
 drawn up to the body, and extended with momentarily increasing 
 rapidity. The eyes protrude, the pupils are distended, and the balls 
 roll about. The tongue is protruded and fixed between the clenched 
 jaws ; the teeth grind together, foam and saliva flow from the mouth. 
 The pulse is wiry and small at first, then hard and bounding, and, as 
 the intensity of the fit decreases, irregular and intermittent. Through- 
 out the whole of the fit the animal remains perfectly unconscious, and 
 as he recovers gets up, tries to hide himself in the litter or in a corner 
 of the sty, and looks terrified and wild ; then gradually the impression 
 passes away, and he creeps out and begins to eat again. The seizure 
 of one pig is often but a prelude to that of the greater number of those 
 contained in the sty. The fits often succeed each other rapidly, two 
 or three occurring in one day ; and the cries uttered by the animals while 
 in them are distressing in the extreme. 
 
 Medical treatment can only be resorted to in the intervals between 
 the fits, and is seldom successful. It consists of cold effusions applied 
 to the head, bleeding, and energetic purgatives, followed up by low 
 diet, perfect quiet, and cooling medicines. The best way of keeping 
 the head cool is to tie a piece of cloth about it, and then keep this con- 
 stantly wet. A very efficient cold lotion for this purpose may be com- 
 posed of a pint of vinegar to two quarts of water, and one ounce of sal 
 ammoniac. Salts and calomel may be given as purgatives. 
 
 It is often difficult to determine what are the precise causes of epi- 
 lepsy ; the immediate one is generally some excitant or stimulant act- 
 ing on a system predisposed by cerebral inflammation, or by intestinal 
 Irritation arising from worms, or other sources, to take on disease. 
 
 We quote a case communicated by Mr. Cartwright, of Whitchurch, 
 
84 THE PIG. 
 
 to whom we are indebted for much useful information relative to the 
 diseases of swine : — 
 
 " In 1825, 1 saw a pig that was taken ill in the following manner : — 
 He was a little stupid and dull, and now wandered about the sty un- 
 consciously for a few minutes, and then appeared to be quite well ; 
 but in a few days after he became worse : he would move forwards until 
 he came to one Wall, and then retreat backwards until be came to the 
 other wall ; and made a grunting and squealing noise all the time the 
 fit was on him, which was usually a few minutes, and sometimes 
 longer; and he had them every quarter of an hour, and even pftener. 
 His fits continued to increase ; when he had been thus for about five 
 days he began, after so backing himself, to fall down at full length, 
 stretch out his legs and tumble about, and appear as if dying, and 
 make a shrieking noise as if in great pain, and seem to be blind. His 
 pulse was very quick and full during the fits, but subsided a great 
 deal when they were over. He ate at intervals between the fits when 
 food was put to him. He continued in this latter bad state for three 
 or four days, and got well in a few days after. I gave him salts arid 
 calomel during his illness, bled him in the tail and ears and between 
 his claws; but little blood, I fancy, was obtained from all the places ; 
 and I kept his head wet with cold water. 
 
 "About the same time a miller in this neighbourhood lost five or 
 six in a similar way, but I had not an opportunity of opening any of 
 them."* 
 
 PALSY OR PARALYSIS. 
 
 This is by no means a disease of frequent occurrence in our own 
 country. It is treated of by French writers, who attribute it to low 
 marshy situations, bad or damaged food, or the avarice of the pig-owner, 
 who, in order to fatten the animals more rapidly, gives them highly 
 stimulating food, which irritates the intestinal canal, and through it the 
 spinal cord. Eric Viborg, an authority quoted byHurtrel D'Arboval, 
 recommends wholesome food, clean straw, a dose of common salt as a 
 purgative, and drenches of common salt and gentian.f 
 
 But there is a kind of partial palsy which is caused by the presence 
 of cysticercus cellulose/, a hydatid peculiar to the pig. M. Dupuy gives 
 the following case Which came under his observation : — 
 
 " Palsy of the hind limbs, with loss both of motion and feeling-, was 
 observed in a pig eighteen months old. On carefully examining him 
 after death, the muscles were discoloured and softened., There were 
 in the psoas muscles numerous cysts enclosing hydatids. Other cysts 
 with their parietes more thickened and fibrous inhabited the muscles 
 surrounding the trochanter, containing likewise hydatids. These para- 
 sites are also found in the lungs, the liver, and the cortical substance 
 of the kidneys. 
 
 "Between the internal surface of the cyst and the hydatid was a fine 
 white powder, resembling pulverized bones. The spinal marrow was 
 softened about the lumbar and sacral regions, and the membranes were 
 slightly reddened, particularly about the roots of the lumbar nerves."£ 
 
 * Veterinarian. t .Hurtrel D'Arboral, Dictionnaire de JMecine Vetrrinaire. 
 
 X Journal Tbeorttique et Pratique. 
 
RABIES. 85 
 
 It is generally the hinder parts of the pig which are paralyzed, either 
 wholly or partially; in the former case the animal is. totally unable to 
 rise, in the latter he totters in his gait and falls when attempting to 
 walk. Paralysis frequently accompanies chronic disease of the diges- 
 tive organs, and is attended with loss of appetite, acceleration of the 
 pulse, and swelling of the tongue. This disease is seldom obstinate; 
 a removal of the predisposing cause, good nourishing food, a clean and 
 well-ventilated sty, moderate exercise, and gentle purgative or cooling 
 medicine, will generally restore the animal to perfect health in a short 
 space of time. 
 
 TETANUS. 
 
 This disease, which is commonly denominated Lockedrjaw, is by no 
 means an unfrequent malady among pigs. The symptoms are at first 
 spasmodic motion of the head and of one or more of the extremities, 
 grinding the teeth and rigidity of the jaws. This is soon followed by 
 stiffness of the neck and greater part of the frame, and an unnatural up- 
 raised position of the head. The castration of young pigs will fre- 
 quently produce this disease, especially if the animal is too well fed 
 for a few days after the operation. It also often appears among pigs that 
 are driven far to market, especially if when heated by travelling or ex- 
 posure to the sun, they are suffered to roll themselves in ditches or 
 streams, as they will endeavour to do. Bleeding, warm baths, lotions, 
 &c., friction with stimulating oils, purgatives if they can be got into 
 the mouth, if not enemas and anodynes, are. the most efficient remedies. 
 But the disease is too often fatal, and runs its course very speedily ; if 
 the animal survives the first twelve or eighteen hours some hopes of his 
 eventual recovefy may be entertained. 
 
 RABIES. 
 
 Swine are by no means exempt from this frightful disease; there are 
 numerous cases on record in which they have been inoculated by the 
 bite of rabid dogs, and Hiibner relates a case of inoculation from the 
 bite of a rabid fox. The symptoms of rabies in the hog are peculiarly 
 interesting at times from the resemblance many of them bear to those 
 of the human being. At first there is dulness and indisposition, and 
 the pig is continually licking the bitten part. Subsequently some are 
 exceedingly ferocious, snapping at every body, gnawing every thing 
 which comes in their way, dashing themselves against walls, or leaping 
 over all obstacles. Others, again, are dull, stupid, refuse their food, 
 stagger when they attempt to rise, and are paralyzed in the hinder parts. 
 There is no absolute dread of water, but evident inability to drink. An 
 animal that we saw went to the trough, smelt at the food, and brought 
 his nose nearly into contact with it, then started back, trembled vio- 
 lently, and elevated his snout high in the air. Once or twice he at- 
 tempted to take portions of meat and vegetable from the wash, but the 
 attempt was always accompanied or followed by universal rigour and 
 shuddering, during which the food was dropped from the mouth, evi- 
 dently proving that the organs of deglutition were powerfully, affected. 
 The animal is in a highly nervous state, and the sensibility of the 
 skin is so excessive, that even if bis mother licks him he screams with 
 agony, and buries himself in the litter, uttering shrill squeaks on the 
 approach of any one, or springs up into the air if he hears a loud noise, 
 
86 THE PIG. 
 
 and falls down again in convulsions, There is in general no great 
 secretion of saliva in these animals, and the delirium which characterizes 
 rabies in the dog is rarely seen, or when met with is less evident and 
 distinctive. . 
 
 As yet this disease has been but little studied in pigs. Mr. rnt- 
 chard, V. S. of Wolverhampton, gives the following interesting ac- 
 count of some cases he met with : — 
 
 " A rabid dog entered the farm-yard of Mr. George Strongitharm ot 
 Calderfield, near Walsall, on the 27th of December, 1835, and attacked 
 some pigs, which making a considerable noise, aroused Mr. S. and his 
 servants from their heds, and they proceeding with their guns already 
 loaded, discovered him, and succeeded in destroying him. Two of the 
 pigs had evidently received wounds in their noses from the dog, which 
 soon got well, no curative or preventive measures being had recourse 
 to, and without much irritation or swelling taking place. After a fort- 
 night had elapsed, nothing outward being observable in them, they 
 were again turned into the yard to their old companions. 
 
 "A day or two after, on the entrails of a sheep being thrown to the 
 pigs, all came and partook of it except the two that had been bitten. 
 One of these was found dead in the litter, with a quantity of froth and 
 slaver about his mouth ; the other, on coming out of his bed into the 
 air, immediately jumped up on all four legs like the bound of a deer, a 
 yard at least from the ground, and threw from his mouth a portion of 
 thick slaver and froth. Upon being again placed in the sty hewas 
 much convulsed, and. made a shrill squeaking noise, his mouth was 
 rilled with saliva, and held continually open nearly half an inch, except 
 when champing his under jaw, which he frequently did with consider- 
 able twitching of the superficial muscles. He refused to eat or drink, 
 gradually got worse, and died on the third day. 
 
 "Three weeks after another of the pigs was taken ill. The symp- 
 toms were much the same. The effect of water was tried, and upon 
 being thrown upon him caused him considerable distress, so that he 
 leaped into the air and dashed his head against the wall, appearing quite 
 delirious. He died on the second day. Not long afterwards another 
 pig was attacked, the symptoms being similar to those in the former 
 cases, only more violent; he died twenty»four hours afterwards, nothing 
 having been done to disturb him. None of the pigs ate or drank any 
 thing after they were first taken ill."* 
 
 And the case we are now about to quote was communicated by Mr. 
 Heaton, a human surgeon: — 
 
 " About May, 1829, while visiting" a patient, I was told that in a sty 
 at the bottom of the yard there was a mad pig. Thither I repaired, 
 when I was informed by its owner that the animal had been bitten about 
 three weeks before by a strange dog, which had passed through the 
 yard, and who was at the time, by those who saw it, declared to be 
 mad ; the dog appeared to be greatly alarmed and proceeded with swift- 
 ness; it was afterwards seen for the last time in some fields at the 
 outskirts of the town. From the statement of the man it would appear 
 that, on the morning of the day previous to that on which I saw the 
 pig, the animal began to exhibit symptoms of great oppression at the 
 
 ; — * 
 
 * The Veterinarian for 1835. 
 
RABIES. 87 
 
 prsecordia; to this succeeded, gradually inability to stand, fearful cries, 
 and general uneasiness when disturbed, foaming at the mouth, and a 
 disposition to eat whatever came in the way, &c. At six o'clock^in 
 the afternoon of the second day I first saw it, covered with straw and 
 apparently quiet, until the rattling of the sneck of its door seemed to 
 awaken the most painful apprehension, and its mental agony seemed 
 almost insufferable. The sense of sight seemed no less acute than that 
 of hearing, which was manifested by the animal's convulsive efforts to 
 hide even its head beneath the straw; this accomplished, it became 
 somewhat tranquil, and was constantly devouring its own litter,' ex- 
 crement, &c &c. Its eyes had the suspicious glance of those of a 
 phrenitic patient, its breathing was preternaturally quick, and its efforts 
 to stand wholly abortive. In 'this state it continued two hours, when 
 half a pint of train oil was attempted to be poured into its mouth, the 
 greater part being wasted, and the animal instantly expired. I regret 
 that the approaching night, and the man's desire to bury the carcass, 
 restricted the post-mortem examination, which merely went to show 
 that upon the division of the costal cartilages the lungs protruded, as 
 if too large for the cavity of the thorax, and, being cut into, poured 
 forth a frothy mucus, resembling in colour anjd consistence soap lather; 
 the stomach and duodenum were filled with the matters above described 
 to have been eaten, not however impacted, probably owing to the pre- 
 mature death. I have little doubt from the symptoms that, had the 
 examination gone so far, the vessels of the brain and spinal cord would 
 have been found injected. The splash of water certainly caused dis- 
 quietude; but, inasmuch as noise of any sort produced similar effects, 
 it is doubtful whether aversion to fluids existed,; and yet the circum- 
 stance of death instantly following the oil-draught,, would wawant the 
 belief that spasms of the muscles of deglutition, with the temporary 
 closure of the glottis, occasioned suffocation and death." 
 
 Among all the numerous cases of rabies which we have m-efewith in 
 the course of our practice, we have never had the opportunity of exa- 
 mining the'post-mortem appearances of a rabid pig; but it seems to be 
 generally admitted by those who have done so that there is invariably 
 inflammation about the glottis, and very considerable inflammation of 
 the villous coat of the stomach, especially about the pylorus, towards 
 the cardia, and on the surface of the two rugaee; in some parts the 
 inflammation had almost merged in mortification. The stomach is 
 generally filled with every kind of filth and' rubbish, and the bladder 
 distended with urine. 
 
 The disease generally appears in the third oir fourth week after the- 
 animal has been inoculated, but it has been known to lie dormant for 
 two months. 
 
 Incision of the part and the application of the oautery as soon as pos- 
 sible after the animal has been bitten, are the only preventive means : 
 cure there is none when once the disease has made its appearance, and 
 those who rely on the infallible nostrums of some learned "pig-doctor," 
 will find themselves disappointed ; the symptoms may be alleviated by 
 certain drugs, but rabies is incurable. 
 
 We are not aware that rabies has ever been known to be communi- 
 cated by the bite of a pig, but Julian Palmarius states- that he has- seen 
 
88 THE PIG. 
 
 horses, cattle, and sheep, become rabid from eating the straw in which 
 rabid pigs had lain; and Dr. Shackmann corroborates the fact.* 
 
 It has been a much disputed point whether or not the flesh of animals 
 which have died rabid can be eaten with safety. Two eminent scien- 
 tific men in Paris ate of such flesh without experiencing any bad ef- 
 fects. The carcass of an ox that had been bitten by a rabid dog, and 
 had exhibited all the symptoms of rabies, was cut up and sold, but it 
 did not appear that any of those who ate of it experienced the slightest 
 inconvenience. Again, at the Royal Veterinary School at Alford, the 
 tongue of a rabid horse was given to a dog ; the animal devoured it, and 
 lived on in perfect health. 
 
 But the opposite party bring forward as many authenticated facts in 
 support of the contrary opinion, and the one with which we now chiefly 
 have to do is narrated by Schenkius: "A tavern-keeper, in the duchy 
 of Wurtemberg, served up the flesh of a pig that had died rabid to some 
 customers who were dining at his inn. All those who partook of it 
 were shortly afterwards attacked with rabies." Pierre Borel records a 
 very similar case.f 
 
 We should most strongly urge the prudence of abstaining from the 
 flesh of all rabid animals, and not only of abstaining from it ourselves, 
 but putting it out of the reach'of other animals ; and the best way to do 
 this isto bury the carcass six^or eight feet under ground, cover it care- 
 fully and closely up, and plant the spot with thorns. 
 
 NASAL CATARRH. 
 
 We have already spoken of the formation of the nose or snout of the 
 pig, and will now proceed to describe a disease vulgarly called the snuffles 
 or sniffles. It is characterized by defluxion from the nose in the first 
 place, and its advance is so gradual as to be almost imperceptible. But 
 it gains ground daily — attacks the respiratory passages-^cough and 
 sneezing come on — there is evident difficulty of swallowing, and the 
 respiration is impeded by the mucus formed. After some time the 
 membrane of the nose becomes thickened, the nostril swelled and de- 
 formed, and the snout drawn on one side. Blood is often discharged 
 from the nostril, and when this has been the case all the symptoms are 
 abated and the animal seems relieved for awhile. Butit too frequently 
 happens that this discharge or hemorrhage returns again and again, 
 each time in increasing quantities, until the strength of the animal be- 
 comes so undermined that notwithstanding the utmost care and the 
 most nourishing diet, he dies of exhaustion, or perhaps, as it may be 
 more properly termed, consumption. 
 
 This disease, which strongly resembles glanders and distemper, is 
 like them hereditary, and may be communicated from either the male 
 or female parent. If also results from exposure todamp or cold. 
 
 Emetics and tonics are the best means of combating it. A solution 
 of sulphate of copper in doses of from three to five grains morning and 
 night will sometimes eventually effect a cure, assisted by strict atten- 
 tion to diet and regimen. But in by far the majority of cases the dis- 
 
 * Palm., de Morb., Conlag., and Shackmann, on Hydrophobia, 
 t Delal'ond's Sanitary Police of all Domesticated Animals. 
 
THE LARYNX. 89 
 
 ease runs its course and terminates fatally, for it has generally gained 
 the upper hand before much notice is taken of it. 
 
 THE LARYNX. 
 
 This instrument of voice consists offive cartilages united to one 
 another by a ligamentous substance, by distinct articulations, and by a 
 seemingly complicated but really simple muscular apparatus. In form 
 it is an irregular oblong tube, exceedingly flexible, and capable of 
 adapting. itself to all the natural or morbid changes of the respiratory 
 process, and to the production of all the various intonations of sound or 1 
 voice by which the animal expresses his emotions. It is placed' at the 
 top of the windpipe, guards the exit from the lungs, and prevents the 
 passage of food into the respiratory canals. 
 
 The Ericoid cartilage constitutes the base and support of this organ, 
 and serves in great measure as a bond of union to the rest. 
 
 Placed above and resting upon this are the Arytenoid cartilages, pro- 
 longations of which rest upon the Chordas vacates, and influence their 
 action. The vocal ligaments take an oblique direction across the larynx 
 in the pig instead of a straight one, so that the angle is at a considerable 
 distance from the thyroid cartilage. They have also a curious, slanting 
 direction, the anterior angle being depressed and the arytenoid portion 
 elevated. About the middle of the chords vocales, and immediately 
 above them, are two sacculi, which are generally supposed to be con- 
 cerned in the act of grunting. From the anterior parts of the larynx 
 'springs the epiglottis, a heart-shaped cartilage placed at the extremity 
 of the opening into the windpipe, with its back opposed to the pharynx ; 
 its use is this : food passing from the pharynx in its way to the oesopha- 
 gus presses down the epiglottis, which, "closing the aperture of the 
 larynx, prevents any portion of the food from entering it. As soon as 
 the food has passed, the elasticity of the epiglottis, assisted by that of 
 the membrane at its base, and still more by the power of the hyo-epi- 
 gloltideus muscle, enables that cartilage to rise up and resume its natu- 
 ral position. 
 
 The thyroid cartilage envelops and protects all the rest, and shields 
 the lining membrane of the larynx, which vibrates under the impulse 
 communicated by the passage of the air, and gives the tone or voiee. 
 
 In the larynx of the hog we find that beautiful adaptation of means to 
 the end. The space between the arytenoid cartilages is less, compa- 
 ratively speaking, than in the horse or dog, speed not being required 
 in swine. The epiglottis too is larger than in the ox, sheep, or horse, 
 and differently constructed ; it is more flexible, from the cellular liga- 
 mentous substance at the base of it being looser; and from its increased 
 size, and the curved direction of its edges, it not only covers the open- 
 ing into the windpipe, but in a manner embraces the arytenoid cartilages 
 when pressed down by the passage of food, a formation admirably 
 suited to an animal who is constantly plunging his nose and muzzle 
 into mud or dirt, and who by blowing into his food in the peculiar way 
 pigs are apt to do in order to stir up the sediment would otherwise be 
 constantly getting some irritating and noxious matters into his wind- 
 pipe. The inferior cornu of the thyroid bone is comparatively more 
 developed in the hog than in other domesticated animals. 
 1 
 
90 
 
 THE PHARYNX. 
 
 The pharynx, to which we just now alluded, is a membranous, mus- 
 cular, funnel-shaped bag, extending from the root of the tongue to the 
 larynx and aesophagus, wide in front and becoming gradually narrower 
 until it terminates in the aesophagus. Its office is to convey the food 
 from the mouth to the upper part of the gullet, and this it performs by 
 means of its lining muscles. Properly speaking, we ought perhaps to 
 have noticed it when speaking of the digestive system, but as we are 
 proceeding from the head to the neck we have included it in this di- 
 vision of our subject. 
 
 THE OS HYOIDES. 
 
 This is a body which embraces the thyroid cartilage of the larynx, 
 and give support and protection to it, and also affords attachments to 
 the hyo-glossus longus muscle, or that which draws the tongue into the 
 mouth ', the brevis, which fulfils a similar office ; the hyo-pharyngeus, 
 which dilates the pharynx; the anterior constrictor pharyngeus, which 
 contracts the pharynx, and several others. 
 
 This bone in the human being is supposed to resemble the Greek 
 letter upsilon ; in the horse it may be compared to a spur, but in the 
 swine it is different. This animal requires a freer use of the tongue. 
 The shorter cornua are stronger than in the horse, or even the ox and 
 dog ; the central one is less developed, and the longer cornua is thin . 
 and insignificant. There is also considerably less ligament interposed 
 between this bone and the thyroid cartilage, which it almost closely 
 embraces. We will now proceed to a consideration of the diseases of 
 the throat and neck. 
 
 STRANGLES 0« QUINSY. 
 
 These diseases are of very frequent occurrence, and,, as they are 
 rapid in their progress, generally exceedingly fatal. They chiefly at- 
 tack fattening hogs. 
 
 The. glands agder the throat .begin to swell, and thus affect not only 
 the respiratory organs but the act of swallowing: impeded respiration, 
 hoarseness, and debility then supervene ; the pulse becomes quick and 
 unequal, the head to a certain extent palsied, the neck swells, tumefies, 
 and rapidly goes on to gangsene; the tongue hangs from the mouth, 
 and is covered with slaver* and the animal gradually sinks. In the 
 commencement of the disease very simple treatment, as cooling medi- 
 cines, attention to diet, and care and warmth, will often suffice to eheck 
 it; but when the swelling, impeded respiration, and difficulty of swal- 
 lowing has eome on, recourse must be had to more energetic treatment. 
 Bleeding and purgatives are first indicated ; setons and puncture of the 
 swollen glands have also been recommended:, and in extreme cases 
 there is no reason why we should not have recourse to blisters and ex- 
 ternal stimulants as counter-irritants. 
 
 A diseased animal should never be allowed to remain among healthy 
 ones, as this malady is so infectious that it may almost be regarded* as 
 an epizootic. 
 
strang1.es. '91 
 
 ■ Mr. Cartwright, veterinary surgeon, of Whitchurch, who has paid 
 much attention to the diseases of swine, gives the following account of 
 some fatal cases of inflammation of the glands of the throat in the 
 "■Veterinarian :" — He says that he had six pigs attacked at nearly the 
 same period. Their respiration was very quick; they husked and 
 foamed at the mouth. They could not bear to be pressed on the throat, 
 and swallowed liquids with difficulty. To some of them jalap was 
 given, and to others castor and goose oil. One was blistered under 
 the throat, and all bled by cutting off their tails. They died in the 
 course of eight and forty hours from the commencement of the disease. 
 On examination he found much inflammation under the jaws and 
 throat, and also much of swelling with effused serum. In some of 
 their windpipes, and the branches of the bronchia, there was a great 
 quantity of mucus, but no apparent inflammation. In one the heart ap- 
 peared to be inflamed, but most probably sympathetically. 
 
 Columella thus speaks of these diseases: — "Such swine as have 
 swellings of the glands under the throat must be let blood under the 
 tongue ; and when it has flowed abundantly, it will be proper that their 
 whole mouth be rubbed over with bruised salt and wheat-meal. Some 
 think it a more present and effectual remedy when they pour into each 
 of them, through a horn, three cupfuls of garum, or salt-fish pickle ; 
 then they bind cloven tallies, or cuttings of fennel-giant with a flaxen 
 cord, and hang them about the necks so that the swellings shall be 
 touched with the fennel-giant cuttings.* 
 
 If we may judge by the writings of the ancients, the most prevalent 
 diseases among pigs were those of the glands of the throat; Didymus 
 gives a long and accurate description of them. 
 
 Hurtrel D'Arboval also gives an account of a disease of the glands 
 of the throat, which he denominates Poit 'pique, maladie piquanle, or 
 soie, and states it to be peculiar to swine : he thus describes it:. — 
 
 It is situated on one or both sides of the neck, between the jugular 
 rein and the tracheal artery. On the part affected is seen a raised tuft 
 of hairs, differing from any of the others, being hard, rough, dull, and 
 discoloured, and exceedingly painful to the touch ; and if one be pulled 
 out the skin comes away with it. At first there is only a slight de- 
 pression or concavity of the part ; but the skin soon becomes red, then 
 voilet-coloured, the hairs conglomerate, the parts become softened, 
 tumefied, and even proceed to mortification. Meanwhile the animal be- 
 trays symptoms of thirst, there is dulness, loss of appetite, and grind- 
 ing of the teeth. As'the malady progresses the patient becomes inert, 
 deaf, insensible to blows, lies down constantly, and totters and falls if 
 compelled to rise ; the flanks heave, the mouth is hot and full of slaver, 
 the tongue red and inflamed, the lower jaw convulsed, and the con- 
 junctiva injected ; the animal utters plaintive moans, and if not speedily 
 relieved dies of suffocation, from the effects of the pressure of the tu- 
 mour upon the air-passages. 
 
 D'Arboval attributes this disease to the irritation caused in some of 
 the cntical tissues by the abnormal growth of the tuft of hair, which 
 uniting with some internal sympathetic irritation induced by heating 
 food, damp litter, hot ill-ventilated sties, or such like prejudicial in- 
 
 * Columella's Husbandrie, book vi. 
 
92 THE PIG. 
 
 fluences, acts locally and determines this disease of the glands. Other 
 French writers believe it to be epizootic and, to arise from certain mi- 
 asmatic influences. 
 
 Tonics, acidulated drinks, warmth, cleanliness, strict attention to 
 diet, and the application of actual cautery to the root Of the evil — the 
 tuft of hair — is the treatment prescribed.* 
 
 THE CHEST OR THORAX. 
 
 In the human being this constitutes the superior, and in quadrupeds 
 the anterior portion of the body ; it is separated from the abdomen by 
 the diaphragm. This latter is of ^museulo-membranous nature, and is 
 the main agent in respiration ; in its quiescent state it presents its con- 
 vex surface towards the thorax and its concavity towards the abdomen. 
 The anterior convexity abuts upon the lungs, the posterior concavity is 
 occupied by a portion of the abdominal viscera. The diaphragm of the 
 pig resembles that of the ox and sheep. 
 
 The chest is divided into two cavities by a membrane termed the 
 mediastinum, which evidently consists of a duplicature of the pleura or 
 lining membrane of the thorax. The pleura is a serous membrane pos- 
 sessed of little or no sensibility, and acted upon by but few nerves. It 
 is smooth and polished ; covers the bony wall of the thorax from the 
 spine to the sternum, and from the first rib to the diaphragm, and 
 dilating and forming a kind of bag which spreads over and contains the 
 whole of the lung. 
 
 The lungs form two distinct bodies, the right being somewhat larger 
 than the left one; they are separated from each other by that folding 
 over of the pleura termed the mediastinum, and hence may be said to 
 be enclosed in separate bags, or to have distinct pleuras. Each lung is 
 subdivided. The right one consists of three unequal lobes, the smallest 
 of which is again subdivided into numerous lobules, differing in num- 
 ber in different swine. The left lung consists of two lobes, and the 
 scissure between these is not very deep. 
 
 Beneath the left lung the heart is situated and partially enclosed in 
 another membranous bag termed ihe pericardium, which closely invests, 
 supports, and protects it. The heart has two sides, the one devoted to 
 the circulation of the blood through the lungs, and the other to its cir- 
 culation through the frame generally. Each side is divided into two 
 compartments, the one above, the other below, which are termed the 
 auricles and ventricles. The right auricle as well as ventricle is larger 
 than the left and its parietes are thinner. The longitudinal tendinous 
 cords of the ventricle are more firm and distinct in the pig than in the 
 ox or sheep, and the fleshy prominences shorter. The tendinous cords 
 of the left ventricle are few in number, large, and ill defined. The 
 aorta of the pig separates almost immediately after its comrnencement 
 into two trunks, the smaller of which leads forwards and gives forth 
 those arteries which in other animals arise from the cross of this artery ; 
 and the other, which is longer in diameter, inclines backwards: these 
 are usually termed the anterior and posterior aorta. ,,,,. 
 
 The beating of the heart may be felt on the left side, whence also the 
 
 * Hurlrel D'Arboval's Diclionnaire de Mfaleciue Vetiirinaire. 
 
DISEASE OF THE HEART. 93 
 
 pulse may be taken, or from the femoral artery which crosses the inside 
 of the thigh in an oblique direction. In swine in a state of health the 
 pulsations are from seventy to eighty in a minute. 
 
 DISEASED VALVES OF THE HEART. 
 
 This appears to be a more common malady than is generally sus- 
 pected, for in repeated cases of sudden death, where a post-mortem 
 examination has been made, there has been found fleshy excrescences 
 or tumours on the tricuspid valves. We believe Mr. Cartwrighl, whose 
 name we have already mentioned, was one of the first persons who 
 drew attention to this disease. The only marked precursory symptoms 
 appear to be inappetency and very shortly before death difficulty of 
 breathing and evident distress. In one pig that died thus suddenly, 
 Mr. Cartwright found several uneven warty excrescences, some as large 
 as marbles, growing from the edge of the auricula-ventricular valves 
 of the left side; also several small papillary growths, all of which 
 served three parts to close up the ventricular opening. 
 
 In another case he found a loose, jagged, warty excrescence growing 
 from the whole surface of the tricuspid valves, closing up, in a great 
 measure, the ventricular opening, anil projecting at least half an inch 
 into the left auricle. In a third the valves of the left auricle were 
 thickened, schirrGus, and presented a ragged uneven surface. The 
 orifice of the ventricle was almost Closed up by this diseased substance, 
 and a portion had forced its way into the aorta. This disease was 
 always found in the left side of the heart, and in no case did it extend 
 beyond the circumference of the valves; the lining membrane of the 
 heart always remained intact.* 
 
 BRONCHIAL TUBES. 
 
 Swine are very susceptible of bronchitis, and also liable to worms in 
 the bronchia, both of which affections manifest themselves under the 
 form of cough, inappetency, and loss of flesh. The former may be 
 subdued by bleeding and cooling medicines, as sulphur, cream of tartar, 
 or pulv. antimoniaHs : the latter almost invariably cause the death of 
 the animal from the irritation they create and the inflammation which 
 is thus set up. 
 
 INFLAMMATION OF THE LUNGS. 
 
 This disease is perhaps more generally known under the term of 
 rising of the lights .- it is one of the most prevalent and too often the 
 most fatal of all the maladies that infest the sty. It has been supposed 
 by some persons to be contagious, by others to be hereditary, but there 
 does not appear to be any actual foundation for either of these opinions. 
 By far the most probable supposition is, that it arises from some atmo- 
 spheric influences or agencies which create a tendency to pulmonary 
 affections, and these, acting upon a system heated and predisposed to 
 disease by the mode of feeding adopted in most piggeries, give a serious 
 and inflammatory character to fhat which would otherwise be merely a 
 simple attack of catarrh ; or it may arise from some irritating influence 
 
 * The Veterinarian, 1841. 
 
94 THE PIG. 
 
 9 
 
 in the food itself, or from damp, ill-ventilated sties: -whatever be its 
 cause, it generally runs through the whole piggery when it does make 
 its appearance. The prominent indications of disease are loss of appe- 
 tite, incessant and distressing cough, and heaving at the flanks. 
 
 As soon as the first symptoms are* perceived the animal should be 
 bled ; the palate perhaps will be the best place in this case to take 
 blood from; purgatives must then be given, but cautiously; Epsom 
 salts and sulphur will be the best, administered in a dose of from two 
 to four drachms of each, according to the size of the animal. To these 
 may succeed sedative medicines : 
 
 Digitalis . . . two grains. 
 
 Put v. Antimonialis . . six grains. 
 
 Nilrc . . . halfadnichm. 
 
 forms a very efficient and soothing medicament for moderate-sized pigs, 
 and will often produce very satisfactory effects ; cleanliness, warmth, 
 and wholesome cooling nutritious food, are likewise valuable aids in 
 combatting this disease. But whatever measures are taken they must 
 be prompt, for inflammation of the lungs runs its course with rapidity 
 and intensity, and while we pause to consider what is best to be done, 
 saps the vital energies of the patient. 
 
 In Wurtemberg there is a law of warrantry for this disease, extending 
 over a period of four weeks and three days. 
 
 Columella advises the insertion of a piece of lung-wort into the flaps 
 of the ears of swine affected with disease of the lungs. We should 
 be sorry to rely solely upon the effect of this "simple but efficient 
 remedy."* 
 
 PLEURO-PNEUMONIA. 
 
 This disease often breaks out among pigs as well as horses, cattle, 
 and sheep, and commits great devastation. We shall quote some ac- 
 counts of its progress, treatment, and post-mortem appearances given 
 by English and foreign veterinarians, by whom it is classed under the 
 head of 
 
 EPIDEMICS. 
 
 M. Saussol narrates that during the summer of 1821 nearly all the 
 swine in the neighbourhood of Mazametwere attacked by a violent and 
 mortal disease that spared neither age nor sex, fat nor lean. He rates 
 its ravages at about one-fifth of every four hundred patients. 
 
 The first symptoms were inappetency, thirst, dulness, groaning, and 
 seeking of moist places ; then followed hardness of the belly, heat of 
 the skin, constipation, diminution of the urine, difficulty of respiration, 
 heaving of the flanks, and short cough; the eyes were full of tears and 
 the mucous membranes inflamed. All these symptoms came on in the 
 course of twelve hours. If the disease continued the succeeding symp- 
 toms were still more alarming; the animals begun to stagger about, the 
 , limbs were stretched out in an unnatural position, rattling in the throat 
 came on, they supported themselves against the wall, and only fell to 
 die a few minutes afterwards. Death usually came about the third day, 
 and was in some cases preceded by convulsions of the face and ex- 
 tremities. 
 
 * Columella's Husbandrie. 
 
EPIDEMICS. 95 
 
 Treatment. — Copious bleedings from the sacro-coccygean arteries and 
 veins, or if these did not yield blood enough, amputation of the tail, hot 
 baths, a seton covered with blistering ointment inserted in the chest, 
 camphorated and laxative drenches, and a decoction of borage, mallows, 
 and lettuces, slightly acidulated, to drink. 
 
 Causes* — Exposure to the heat of the sun, -want of water, feeding on 
 dry plants ; returning, home in the evening exhausted, receiving a hearty 
 feed, and being then shut up in ill-ventilated sties without drink until 
 morning. 
 
 Preventive treatment. — Troughs of acidulated nitrated water placed in 
 the sties and frequently renewed ; non-exposure to the heat of the day, 
 means of bathing, bleeding, cleanliness, and "Ventilation ; moderate feed- 
 ing, and gentle exercise after the sun had set. These precautionary 
 measures, M. Saussol says, arrested the progress of the disease. 
 
 Post-mortem appearances. — The thoracic cavity was filled with bloody 
 limpid fluid ; the lungs much inflamed; the pleura thickened, inflamed, 
 and injected ; the diaphragm covered with black patches of the size of a 
 shilling ; the mucous coat of the intestines slightly inflamed ; the wind- 
 pipe and bronchial tubes full of reddish froth ; the brain covered with 
 reddish serosity.* 
 
 The next account we come to gives a description of a somewhat dif- 
 ferent epidemic which occurred in Aveyron and its environs, attacking 
 both the respiratory and digestive organs, and running its course with 
 astonishing vigour and rapidity, frequently sweeping off all the inhabi- 
 tants of a piggery in from twelve to fourteen hours, and in the more 
 virulent cases in less than half this time. 
 
 Symptoms. — In the worst cases these are sudden loss of appetite, 
 small and frequent pulse, haggard eyes, the conjunctiva inflamed, the 
 mouth open,. red; and filled with foam, the respiration laborious, plaintive 
 cries, convulsions, palsy of the hind limbs, and involuntary discharge 
 of highly fetid faeces. ' Death here is the inevitable termination, and 
 that in a short time. But where the progress of the disease is less 
 rapid the symptoms assume a milder form, and medical aid is available 
 and often beneficial. Pregnant sows escape the attack of this malady, 
 but as soon as they have farrowed they lose this immunity and they 
 and their young take it. It also seems to spare leprous swine. It ap- 
 pears at all seasons of the year, but is most malignant in the summer 
 and at the commencement of autumn. There can be no doubt as to its 
 contagion, and from some experiments made, it can be reproduced in 
 other animals by inoculation, particularly in sheep. The flesh of pigs 
 that have died of this disease has been given to dogs and eaten by them 
 without producing any bad effects. 
 
 Causes. — Unwholesome food, ill-ventilated sties, want of attention to 
 cleanliness, exposure -to heat, wet, Or cold, are the predisposing causes ; 
 and probably some miasmatic influence develops the disease. 
 
 Treatment. — In the most virulent cases almost all modes of treatment 
 are unsuccessful ; or if they do succeed in rescuing the animal from 
 death, he generally falls into a state of marasmus, or becomes paralytic. 
 In the milder cases the following means have often proved efficient : — 
 Seton in the chest ; a decoction of sorel, with camphor, nitre, and calo- 
 mel, as a drench ; emollient injections, slightly acidulated ; stimulating 
 
 * Journal tie Medecine Vfilerinaire, 1832. 
 
,96 THE PIG. 
 
 frictions of the dorsal and lumbar regions, or bathing these parts with 
 hot vinegar ; and water thickened with oat or barley meal as the sole 
 diet and drink. Venesection is here dangerous, tending only to under- 
 mine the strength of the patient, this disease being evidently one which 
 alters, decomposes, and vitiates the blood. Acetate of ammonia, ad- 
 ministered in doses proportionate lo the size of the patient, has been of 
 service. Purgatives should be avoided, as they are of very uncertain 
 benefit. Directly an animal is attacked he should be removed from the 
 others, and placed in some comfortable place. 
 
 Prevention. — Strict attention to diet, cleanliness, ventilation, and com- 
 fort; and a plentiful supply of clean water, both for the animals to drink 
 and to bathe themselves in. In cold and rainy weather they should be 
 kept in their sties-; and during the heat of summer their drink should 
 be slightly nitrated, acidulated, or salted. Whey is an excellent thing 
 for those that are weakly. Small doses of camphor and nitre, with the 
 addition of a few grains of calomel, administered in some cooling vege- 
 table decoction, is a useful preventive. If one pig is attacked he should 
 be removed, and the others taken out. while the sty is well fumigated.* 
 In 1838 we have accounts of an inflammatory epizootic among pigs, 
 rapid and fatal in its course, and attacking by preference store pigs 
 rather than those put up to fatten. 
 
 Syinptoms. — Prostration of strength, difficulty of breathing, discharge 
 from the mouth and nostrils, constant cough, and reddish hue of the 
 skin. These went on increasing in intensity until death put a period 
 to them, which usually occurred in from three days to three days and 
 a-half after the commencement of the attack. 
 
 Treatment. — Bleeding and laxative medicines, stimulating frictions 
 of the trachea and parietes of the thorax, seemed to be the most efficient 
 remedies. Doses of tartarized antimony and Hydrarg. Sub. Mur. in 
 three grains of each, administered every twelfth hour, produced vomit- 
 ing, and appeared to give ease. Sulphate of magnesia relieved those 
 cases in which there was constipation. 
 
 The causes seemed obscure. The epidemic prevailed in the sum- 
 mer; but whether it arose from the warmth of the weather, from want 
 of a sufficient supply of water, or from dry and heating food, was not 
 at all evident.f 
 
 Paulet has described a very similar epidemic among swine, which 
 frequently prevails in one or the other of the arrnndissements of the 
 south of France. He describes it as highly inflammatory, rapidly going 
 on to gangrene, and exceedingly contagious, but is at a loss to what 
 cause to attribute it. 
 
 The precursory symptoms are, according to him, restlessness, cough, 
 loss of appetite, dulness, and a weak tottering gait. These gradually 
 go on increasing in intensity until the seventh or eighth day, when they 
 have become very marked. Then alternations of heat and coldness of 
 the body come on ; the ears droop and are cold, the head is heavy, and 
 the tongue becomes discoloured ; the breath is fetid, and there is a co- 
 pious discharge of mucus from the nostrils. The skin is tinged with 
 red, but the hue is not very evident excepting under the belly : the ani- 
 
 * Recueil do Medecine Veteriuaire, ]834. 
 t Veterinarian for 1838. 
 
EPIDEMICS. 97 
 
 raal appears to be in great suffering, and cries out pitifully. This 
 general inflammation of the integuments rapidly goes on to gangrene, 
 which alteration is evidenced by the livid violet hue of the diseased 
 surfaces. Death then rapidly follows. 
 
 He too prescribes Bleeding, and from the ears and veins of the belly, 
 while many authors condemn it as debilitating. The only thing he re- 
 commends besides is thin oatmeal gruel, acidulated with white-wine 
 vinegar ; for he appears to consider the malady to be so fatal that medi- 
 cal treatment avails nothing against it. Here, however, we cannot but 
 deem him wrong; many of the most virulent, and, if neglected, fatal of 
 the diseases to which our domesticated animals are subject, will yield 
 to the influence of a judicious course of treatment, and many a valuable 
 animal has been saved by the skill and attention of a veterinary surgeon. 
 We should recommend laxative drenches, stimulating frictions, warmth 
 and cleanliness, and a seton in the chest. 
 
 In the epidemic which prevailed in 1841 throughout the greater part 
 of England, swine were affected, as well as horses, cattle, and sheep, 
 and often took it before any of the rest of the stock, but in general had 
 it more mildly. This malady was of a highly contagious, inflammatory 
 character, and affected chiefly the mucous and secretory tissues. When 
 once it entered a farm-yard it spread rapidly, until every ox, sheep, or 
 pig was infected, and in some instances it passed to the human being. 
 Damp, wet weather appeared most favourable to its development; and 
 from all accounts it seems to have arisen from some atmospheric agency. 
 
 /Symptoms.— Lameness of one or more of the feet, accompanied with 
 heat around the hoof and lower part of the leg; discharge of saliva 
 from the mouth and nostrils ; champing or grinding of the lower jaw ; 
 ulceration of the mouth and tongue, extending even to the snout; dul- 
 ness, inappetency, constipation, rapid emaciation, and cough. 
 
 Treatment. — The ulcerated portions of the feet and the detached 
 pieces of horn should be carefully pared, and the parts daily washed 
 with a solution of blue vitriol, or smeared with warm tar ; the mouths 
 also dressed with a strong solution of alum ; and from an ounce and a 
 half to two ounces of Glauber salts, dissolved in water, and given in 
 their food. Where the malady was attacked in its onset, these simple 
 remedies sufficed to produce convalescence in from fourteen to one-andr 
 twenty days. 
 
 Post-mortem appearances. — There were patches of inflammation 
 throughout the whole of the intestines, both externally and internally ; 
 the liver was sound ; the heart flabby and soft; the lungs shrivelled, 
 flattened, and diminished to one-half their natural size, and in some 
 cases hepatized ; the diaphragm, pleura, and bronchial tubes of a green- 
 ish hue, and evidently gangrenous. 
 
 The flesh of pigs that had died of this epidemic was eaten by some 
 persons without their suffering any ill effects; nevertheless the experi- 
 ment was hazardous.* 
 
 * Veterinarian for 1841. 
 
98 THE PIG. 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 Anatomy of the Stomach — Gullet— Intestines— Duodenum— Jejunum— Ileum— Ccecum 
 and Colon : Diseases to which these parts are liable — Enteritis— Colic— DiarrbtEa — 
 Garget of the Maw — Anatomy of the Liver and Spleen: Splenitis — Rupture of the 
 Spleen — Absorption of the Spleen — Peritoneum — Worms— The Bladder and its dis- 
 eases — Protrusion of the Rectum. 
 
 THE GULLET. 
 
 The gullet, or cesophagus, is a musculo-merabranous tube, commencing 
 at the pharynx, passing down the throat on the left side of the wind- 
 pipe, entering the chest in company with that tube* penetrating through 
 the folds of the diaphragm, and terminating in the stomach through an 
 orifice termed the cardia. 
 
 THE STOMACH. 
 
 The stomach of the hog is a much more simple apparatus than that 
 of the ox and sheep; it is a truly omnivorous one, and beautifully 
 adapted by its pyramidal appendage and glandular structure, as well as 
 by the villous mucous membrane with which it is lined, for the diges- 
 tion of the heterogeneous food which it is destined to receive, being 
 perhaps more analogous to that of the horse than to any other animal. 
 In form it is globulous. Its large blind cavity is very voluminous, 
 and is surmounted in front by a hood-like appendage. The narrow 
 long portion which abuts on the pyloris greatly resembles this hood- 
 shaped appendage. On each side of the cardia are two transversal 
 folds, and the cardia itself is half way. between the pyloris and the 
 large cavity. 
 
 The stomach has three coats, — the outermost, or peritoneum, which 
 constitutes the common covering of all the intestines ; the muscular or 
 fibrous coat, which acts upon, and mingles the food, and prepares it 
 for digestion ; and the mucous or villous coat, which is peculiarly de- 
 veloped in the pig, and into which open the mouths of numerous little 
 vessels, conveying the gastric juice to the semi-digested food, and by 
 its action converting it into apultaceous fluid, commonly called chyme. 
 
 THE INTESTINES. 
 
 The intestines of the hog bear a stronger resemblance to those of the 
 human being than we find in any other animal. They a,re sixteen times 
 the length of the body of the animal, and the proportions of the small 
 intestines to the large are as three to one. They are composed of four 
 coats or layers. The outer or peritoneal one is formed of that mem- 
 brane which invests and retains in its proper position every portion of 
 the contents of the belly. The second layer is muscular, and by its 
 action propels the contents of the stomach gradually onwards. The 
 office of the third is to lubricate the innermost coat, and for this pur- 
 pose, it is supplied with numerous glands surrounded by cellular tis- 
 sue. The fourth or lining coat is soft, villous, and in a healthy state 
 always covered with mucus. The food, having been sufficiently con- 
 verted into chyme by the action of the stomachs, is gradually propelled 
 through the pyloric orifice by 
 
ANATOMY OF THE STOMACH. 99 
 
 THE DUODENUM, 
 
 or first intestine, where it is submitted to the influence of two fluids, 
 the one secreted by .the pancreas, the other by the liver, and the com- 
 bined action of which separates the nutritious from the worthless por- 
 tion, causing the former to assume the appearance of a thick whitish 
 fluid, and the latter that of a yellow pulpy substance. It next passes 
 into 
 
 THE JEJUNUM AND ILEUM, 
 
 where it undergoes still further alteration, and whence a considerable 
 portion of it is taken up by the lacteal vessels which open into these 
 two small intestines, and conveyed away to nourish the frame, and be- 
 come mingled with the blood and supply the waste in it. These in- 
 testines are of equal diameter in the pig throughout their whole extent, 
 and the termination of the jejunum and commencement of the ileum is 
 by no means distinctly defined ; the latter is, however, longer than the 
 former, and opens into 
 
 THE CffiCUM, 
 
 with a valvular opening close to the aperture into the colon. The 
 coecum is a kind of bag supplied with numerous secretory glands, 
 which furnish it with a fluid which once more acts upon those portions 
 of the digested food which reach it, extracting from them any nutritive 
 portions which may chance still to remain. The matter having reached 
 the base of this intestine, is returned by the muscular action of its coat, 
 and being prevented by the valve from re-entering the ileum, passes 
 into 
 
 THE COLON, 
 
 the longest of the large intestines, some of the convolutions of which 
 equal the stomach in size, while others are as small as the small in- 
 testines. Here the watery parts of the mass are extracted, and the re- 
 siduum or hard fecal- portion is retained for awhile, and finally ex- 
 pelled through the rectum. It will be readily imagined that this com- 
 plicated and beautiful process must occasionally become deranged by 
 various causes, and that hence will arise different diseases of a more or 
 less serious nature. This is, however, less the case in swine than in 
 most of our other domesticated animals, from the circumstance of their 
 stomachs and intestines being prepared by the softening power of their 
 highly mucous villous lining for the reception and digestion of a hete- 
 rogeneous mass of food, which to other animals would be actually poi- 
 sonous ; rendering it evident that, although the hog in a state of nature 
 is a herbivorous animal, he was also destined to become omnivorous 
 for the service of man. 
 
 This disease consists in inflammation of one or more of the coats of 
 the intestines, and is capable of being produced by various irritating 
 causes, as the foul air of badly ventilated sties, unwholesome food, &c. 
 
 The symptoms are dulness loss of appetite, constipation, spasms, or 
 
100 THE PIG. 
 
 convulsions, continued restless motion, either to and fro, or round and 
 round, staggering gait, evident symptoms of suffering. 
 
 The most successful treatment is warm baths, dry litter, and gene- 
 ral warmth and comfort ; and internally, purgatives and enemas. Cas- 
 tor oil, calomel, or rhubarb, are the best purgatives for cases of this na- 
 ture, and the enemas should be of an emollient oleaginous- nature. 
 The diet should be restricted to the simplest and lightest food ; oatmeal 
 porridge, skim-milk, or whey are the best things. 
 
 The following are cases of gastro-enteritis, apparently combined with 
 a cerebral affection, which Mr. Cartwright, from whose observation of 
 disease we have so frequently drawn, gives in the " Veterinarian " for 
 1841:— 
 
 " On the 27th of June last, I was sent for to see a small pig belong- 
 ing to Mr. Hont, of Whitchurch. It was about three months old, ap- 
 peared to be unwell, and refused its food. It forced its head against 
 any thing it came in contact with, and sometimes would walk rourjd 
 and round repeatedly. It stood up most of the day, and was much . 
 swollen. Open the bowels with castor oil. 
 
 " 28th. — No better. It now lay down on its breast and fore legs, 
 and continued in this posture the greater part of the day. Its respira- 
 tion was increased. Repeat the aperient, and administer enema. In 
 the course of the afternoon it died. 
 
 " Examination. — On the villous portion of the stomach, within the 
 greater curvature, was a patch, at least three inches in circumference, 
 of intense inflammation of the mucous membrane of the intestines. 
 The inflammation did not occupy one continuous space, but there were 
 patches of it from four inches to a foot in size in places that were other- 
 wise tolerably healthy. The inflammation was also in irregular circu- 
 lar streaks round the intestine, of one-eighth of an inch in width. 
 There was a small similar patch of intense inflammation on the mu- ' 
 cous coat, at the blind end of the coecum, as well as in the stomach. 
 
 " The rectum had been ruptured by the owner by too forcible clys- 
 tering. There was, perhaps, half an ounce of serum within the peri- 
 cardium. The brain and all other parts were sound. A portion of 
 feecal matter had oozed out through the ruptured part of the rectum, 
 and there was nearly two quarts of effusion in the cavity of the abdo- 
 men. 
 
 " Observations. — It appears that three large lettuces had been eaten 
 by this pig the day before, when he appeared quite well. Did they 
 cause the disease in his head (if any,) and in the bowels ? What pro- 
 duced the violent inflammation in his stomach ? He had had no other 
 medicine than the 01. Ricini to produce any fatal purgative action, and 
 his bowels were quite relaxed." 
 
 "In the month of May last, I was. called to look at a pig of Mr. 
 Kempster's that had been ill a couple of days. . It was lying down in 
 a high state of fever, and breathing laboriously ; and would not, I think, 
 have lived long. It had been in a similar state most of the day, and 
 had a large quantity of pulv. jalapae given to it. I ordered it to be 
 killed. 
 
 " Examination, — I could discover nothing amiss except a patch of 
 inflammation, as in the last case, in the stomach, and some in the in- 
 testines." 
 
MARRHCEA. 101 
 
 "1 was sent for on December 20th, 1835, to see two pigs belonging 
 to a Mr. Parker, of Whitchurch. 
 
 " Symptom*. — In one there was great stupor, and indifference to move 
 about. He was very weak and would fall on his knees Or on his side ; 
 in short, we could do what we would with him. The other was turn- 
 ing round half his time, or forcing his head against any thing he came 
 in contact with. Sometimes he would fall upon his knees, or shake 
 his head convulsively. The head and ears were hot, the pulse very 
 quick, the respiration natural. The abdomen of one was very 
 slightly distended, and the sides of the other were flat. I advised that 
 both should be killed. ; 
 
 " Examination. — The stomach of 1 the first was filled with half-di- 
 gested meat, composed of ground oats, barley, and potatoes, but there 
 was no distention or disease in it. ,Tbe small intestines looked in- 
 flamed, and on laying open the abdomen, and cutting into them, they 
 were found to be so. On the mucous membrane of the large intestines 
 there were many eminences or tubercles, similar to those that are found 
 in the stomachs of horses and produced by bols, with a small cavity in 
 their centre. The lungs were congested, in their anterior small lobes, 
 but otherwise sound. 
 
 "The small intestine of the other was also inflamed, but not so much 
 as in the first pig ; there was likewise a great deal of secretion in them. 
 All other parts of the body were sound ; I had no opportunity of exa- 
 mining the head. 
 
 " These pigs ate their supper over night as well as usual, as may be 
 known by their stomachs being filled. On th& Thursday preceding, 
 they had had thrown into the tub of meat from which they were fed a 
 quantity of refuse brine, made of salt and saltpetre. They had been 
 used for curing some bacon, and on the next day the servant said the 
 pigs had not eaten their meal as well as usual. 
 
 The hog is frequently attacked by this malady, which generally 
 arises from unwholesome food, cold, or wet filthy sties; and is evi- 
 denced by restlessness, cries of pain, rolling on the ground, &c. A 
 dose of castor oil proportionate to the size of the patient, with perhaps 
 a little of ginger in it, and administered in warm milk, will generally 
 give speedy relief; or if the first should not, the dose must be repeated. 
 Some practitioners recommend Glauber's or Epsom salts, but we-con- 
 sider oleaginous purgatives to be best adapted for attacks of colic. 
 
 DIARRHCEA. 
 
 This is a disease very common among all our young domegticated 
 animals, and one that is also repeatedly met with in older ones; a 
 scanty allowance, or unwholesome food will produce it, as will also 
 over feeding or too nutritious diet. It consists in a frequent discharge 
 of the faecal matter in a thin or slimy state, but not actually altered, and 
 arises from inflammation or congestion of the mucous lining of the in- 
 testines. What we conceive to be an attack of diarrhoea, is often only 
 an effort of nature to throw off some offensive matters, and will cease 
 of itself in the course of twenty-four hours ; but where it goes on for. 
 any length of time, it must be taken seriously in hand, as it will other- 
 
102 THE PIG. 
 
 Wise weaken the animal and impair its value. The best remedy for it 
 is the compound commonly called calves' cordial, viz. : — 
 
 Prep, chalk .. . . one ounce. 
 
 Pow. cafechu . . half an ounce. 
 
 Pow. ginger. . two drachms. 
 
 Pow. opium . . . ' half a drachm. 
 
 Mixed and dissolved in half a pine of peppermint water. 
 
 From half an ounce to an ounce of this mixture, according to the size 
 of the animal, should be given twice in the day; and strict attention 
 paid to the diet, which should consist as much as possible of dry fari- 
 naceous food. 
 
 GARGET OF THE MAW. 
 
 This is a disorder arising from repletion, and is found alike in older 
 animals and in sucking pigs. Its symptoms strongly resemble those 
 of colic. The remedies, too, are purgatives. Epsom salts is here, 
 perhaps, as good a thing as can be given, in doses of from a quarter of 
 an ounce to an ounce. It might as well be termed indigestion, for such 
 it actually is, the stomach being overloaded with food. In sucking 
 pigs it usually arises from the coagulation of milk in the stomach. 
 
 THE LIVER. 
 
 This organ in swine does not appear to be so subject to disease as it 
 is in most of our other domesticated animals; we have only, therefore, 
 to glance at its use and, anatomy as we pass. It is smaller in swine 
 than in sheep, and larger than we find it in the dog, in accordance with 
 that anatomical law, which seems to be in force in all animals ; namely, 
 that the size of the liver shall be in inverse proportion to that of the 
 lungs. It is situated in the anterior part of the abdomen, and its upper 
 surface rests against the concavity of the diaphragm. Its office is to 
 receive the blood that is returned from the intestines, separate from it 
 and secrete the fluid termed bile, and then forward the residue of the 
 blood onwards to the lungs, where it undergoes the usual aeratino- Dro- 
 cess, and becomes transmuted into arterial blood. 
 
 The fluid or bile thus secreted, when in a healthy state, and not in 
 undue proportion, stimulates the mucous membrane, and increases the 
 peristaltic motion of the intestines, excites the secretion of that mucus 
 requisite to preserve these parts in a healthy state, hastens the process 
 of separating the nutritious from the innutritious parts of the food, and 
 facilitates the escape of the faecal matters. It also acts chemically upon 
 the various substances which are devoured by the animal, and is the 
 chief agent in neutralizing the acidity which some of these would 
 otherwise create. The liver of the pig has four distinct lobes. 
 
 THE SPLEEN. 
 
 In the hog the spleen is very long, and nearly of a uniform breadth 
 and thickness throughout its whole extent. It lies on the left side of 
 the abdomen, and is attached to the stomach by the folds of the epi- 
 ploon. Its texture is almost like that of a sponge in appearance, con- 
 sisting of innumerable cells of every size and form, yet it is firm to the ' 
 touch. In colour it is a dark, deep reddish brown. 
 
SPLENITIS. 103 
 
 There has been much dispute as to the functions and use of this organ. 
 Some persons, arguing from its situation, contend that it is a powerful' 
 agent in the process of digestion; but this is strongly negatived by the 
 fact, that it has been removed from some animals which have existed 
 for a considerable time afterwards, without apparent injury to that func- 
 tion. Others, again, and with more probability, assume that it has to 
 do with the colouring and conversion of the chyle into blood as it passes 
 through the mesentery, where it becomes mixed with the Ted coagula- 
 ble fluid furnished by the spleen. But with these physiological ques- 
 tions we have at present nothing to do : our purpose is simply to con- 
 sider it with a view to understanding and treating those diseases of 
 which it is not unfrequently the seat. Little attention has hitherto 
 been paid to them, probably from their symptoms being somewhat ob- 
 scure; but, nevertheless, different morbid affections of the spleen are 
 by no means uncommon among the lower domesticated animals. This 
 viscus is often ruptured, distended with blood, inflamed, or softened, 
 from the effects of different causes, but chiefly of damp, heat, or foul 
 air. 
 
 SPLENITIS. 
 
 Swine suffering under this malady are restless and debilitated, shun 
 their companions, and bury themselves in the litter. There is loss of 
 appetite and excessive thirst, so excessive that they will drink up any 
 thing that comes in their way, no matter how filthy. The respiration 
 is short; they cough, vomit, grind the teeth, and foam at the mouth; 
 the groin is wrinkled, and of a pale-brownish hue, and the skin of the 
 throat, chest, and belly (which latter is hard and tucked up,) is tinged 
 with black; 
 
 The remedies are copious blood-letting, gentle purgatives, as Epsom 
 or Glauber's salts, followed up by cooling medicines. . Cold lotions of 
 vinegar and water to bathe the parts in the neighbourhood of the spleen, 
 or a cold shower-bath applied by means of a waterhig-pot are also effi- 
 cacious in these cases. 
 
 Columella, in his quaint style, thus treats of this disease: — 
 
 " Also the pain of a distempered spleen uses to plague them; the 
 which chiefly happens when there chances to be great droughts, and, 
 as the Bucolic poem speaks — 
 
 When nn all aides the apples scattered lie, 
 Each under its own tree; 
 
 for it is an insatiable cattle the swine, which beyond all measure 
 eagerly seek after that which is sweet. They labour and are affected 
 in the summer and early autumn with a swelling or growth of the- 
 spleen, from the which they are relieved if troughs be made of tamarisks 
 and butcher's broom, and filled with water, and set before them when 
 they are thirsty ; for the medicinal juice of the wood being swallowed 
 with the drink, puts a stop to the intestinal swelling." 
 
 The great difficulty here is, how troughs can be made of the museus 
 (butcher's broom.) In all probability the true meaning is, that the 
 troughs should be lined with the branches of this plant; and the tama- 
 risks signifies doubtless the tamaricus e trwnco mentioned by Pliny, lib. 
 xxiv. 9, where he speaks of canals and troughs being made of the 
 
104 THE PIG. 
 
 tamarix. Translators are given occasionally to make similar mistakes 
 or alterations of text. 
 
 RUPTURE OF THE SPLEEN. 
 
 We quote this case from the " Veterinarian" for 1841 : — 
 " A pig belonging to Mr. Roberts of Whitchurch, died after having 
 only t>een ill for a day or so, and that unattended by any definite symp- 
 toms. On post-mortem examination the spleen was found to be of 
 about three or four times its natural size, and completely congested. 
 In one place there was a small rupture surrounded with coagulated 
 blood. All the other viscera were perfectly sound." 
 
 ABSORPTION OF THE SPLEEN. 
 
 This case is also derived from the same source, and we present it to 
 our readers as a testimony of the different forms of disease which occur 
 in the spleen of the swine. 
 
 "A fat pig, weighing fifteen score, was killed, and upon cutting it 
 up, the spleen was found to be almost entirely absorbed. It was of the 
 usual length, but not above half an inch in width or the eighth of an 
 inch in thickness in any part, and weighed but seven drachms. What 
 there was of it, however, appeared to be perfectly sound, and was sur- 
 rounded by a considerable portion of adepts." 
 
 PERITONEUM. 
 
 This portion of the contents of the abdomen is composed of cellular 
 tissue, and amply supplied with absorbent vessels; its office is to sepa- 
 rate the different viscera from each other, to envelop them, and to attach 
 them to and support them in their proper position. It is subject to at- 
 tacks of inflammation, technically termed 
 
 PERITONITIS, 
 
 the symptoms of which closely resembles those of splenitis; and the 
 causes too are very similar, being chiefly improper food , repletion, or expo- 
 sure to extremes of temperature. Oleaginous purgatives are here the 
 only ones which are admissible, and emollient clysters ; great attention 
 must also be paid to the diet, and nothing of an acrid or indigestible 
 nature given to the animal. This disease is too often fatal, gradually 
 wasting away its victim. The post-mortem appearances are as follows : 
 the intestines have become so adherent to each other that it is scarcely 
 possible to believe that any false membranes were ever interposed ; the 
 peritoneal surfaces present evidences of inflammation, and are often 
 covered with confluent ulcerations resembling those seen in glanders 
 of the horse; there is considerable inflammation of the muscular coat 
 of the intestines, and the whole of these parts are thickened and cor- 
 rugated. 
 
 WORMS IN THE INTESTINES. 
 
 These entozoaria are very troublesome in swine, and often exceed- 
 ingly fatal. The spiroptera strongylina is of the kinds most common to 
 
VESICAL CALCULI. 105 
 
 the hog, but the ascarides taenia and echinorhinc are likewise often found 
 in considerable numbers. 
 
 The presence of worms may be inferred when the animal eats vora- 
 ciously and yet continues lean and out of condition ; coughs, runs rest- 
 lessly about, uttering squeaks of pain, becomes savage, snapping at his 
 companions and destroying all rabbits and poultry that come in his way. 
 The excrements are generally hard and highly coloured, the eyes sunken, 
 the animal becomes daily more debilitated, and frequent attacks resem- 
 bling colic tend still further to weaken him. Too often he dies ; for 
 before these symptoms have been noticed the evil has generally attained 
 to such a height as to be beyond the power of medicine ; for these para- 
 sites, and the echinorhinc especially, multiply with incredible rapidity. 
 
 Drastic purgatives constitute the most efficient means of combating 
 worms ; but they must be cautiously administered, as they are but too 
 apt to dissolve and force away with them the lining mucus of the in- 
 testinal canals. Turpentine is exceedingly destructive to worms, and, 
 although to many of our domesticated- animals a dangerous medicine, it 
 may be administered with perfect safety to the hog. Common salt may 
 also be given with advantage, and should be mingled with the food. 
 Nor must it be supposed that because no worms are seen to come away 
 from the animal the treatment may be discontinued, or that there are 
 none ; hundreds of them die in the intestines, and there become digested 
 and decomposed, and go through the same processes as the food. 
 
 THE BLADDER. 
 
 This organ seems to be but little subject to disease in swine. Its 
 position beneath, the rectum and genital organs contained in the pelvic 
 cavity protects it in all animals from external injuries; and the pig 
 not being exposed to those causes which render the horse and dog 
 peculiarly liable to disease of the bladder, namely, speed, long and fa- 
 tiguing exercises, &c, seems to be comparatively exempt from it. 
 
 There is, however, a case narrated in the " Veterinarian," by Mr. 
 Reid, V. S., which we shall quote. 
 
 VESICAL CALCULI. 
 
 " A barrow-pig that to the seventh month had manifested perfect 
 health, from that period fell rapidly away (although its appetite re- 
 mained unimpaired,) so much so in fact that in two months more it 
 was a mere bag of bones, and the owner had it destroyed. He attri- 
 buted this decline to a difficulty in passing its urine, which distressed 
 the animal to such a degree that every time it wanted to stall it quite 
 moaned with pain, rolling upon its back, arising, and again posturing 
 itself for stalling, arching its spine, and making violent efforts, which 
 too often were ineffectual. At other times, and indeed oftenest, he after 
 much straining succeeded in passing a little urine, but this was speedily 
 followed by fresh efforts. Occasionally, after having rolled about and 
 laid on its back, it obtained relief by a flow of urine in a full stream. 
 The urine was at all times perfectly clear." 
 
 This account was sufficient to draw Mr. Reid's attention to the pre- 
 sence of vesical calculi. He regretted that he had not been called in 
 8 
 
106 THE PIG. 
 
 during the life of the animal, that he might have made it the subject of 
 operation, and requested permission to examine the carcass. 
 
 The bladder was half full of limpid urine, in which floated th« stone. 
 The internal coat of the bladder about the inferior part exhibited slight 
 blushes of inflammation. All around the neck it was deeply inflamed, 
 and thence the reddening spread about an inch into the urethra. The 
 peritoneum also exhibited a light tint. 
 
 INVERSION OF THE BLADDER. 
 
 A sow littered in the morning and brought forth ten pigs without any 
 apparent difficulty, and immediately afterwards something resembling 
 the bladder, and which appeared to be about half full, came out. The 
 owner seeing that it did not eome away, became alarmed and sent for 
 the pig butcher, who said it was the womb, and that it must be put 
 back, which he accordingly endeavoured to do, and having passed two 
 or three stitches of small twine across the labia to retain the parts, left 
 the animal. Mr. Neale, V. S. of Burbage, happening to hear of the 
 occurrence, called to see the sow. He found the vagina considerably 
 protruded, or at least that there was a protrusion of the size of a man's 
 fist, and in a sloughing state there. She appeared, however, in good 
 condition, got up without apparent pain or difficulty, and was sucking 
 her young well. The urine was flowing drop by drop. As the owner 
 declined having any thing done to her, Mr. Neale ordered the parts to 
 be bathed with a decoction of bark. Four months afterwards she was 
 killed for bacon, and weighed 160 lbs. Upon opening her the uterus 
 was found to be perfectly healthy, the vagina as clean as possible, and 
 the tumour reduced by sloughing to the size of a lemon ; the bladder 
 was completely gone. The kidneys were full of white purulent matter 
 of about the consistence of cream. The uterus led directly from the 
 kidneys to the protruded part, at the inside of which and just below the 
 anus was a formation of matter about the size of a hen's egg. There 
 was not the slightest trace of inflammation in any of the surrounding 
 parts.* 
 
 PROTRUSION OF THE RECTUM. 
 
 This is an evil of not unfrequent occurrence in swine, arising chiefly 
 from obstruction of the intestines. Where the cause is simply obstruc- 
 tion an operation will remedy it; but as the obstruction is too frequent- 
 ly attended with rupture of some of the intestines, it will perhaps be 
 as well to have the animal slaughtered at once, especially if it ]3 in 
 tolerably good condition. 
 
 There is little doubt but that umbilical and congenital hernia are of 
 frequent occurrence among swine ; but as yet the attention devoted to 
 the diseases of these animals has been so slight that we dare not ven- 
 ture positively to assert the fact. 
 
 * The Veterinarian for 1838. 
 
DISEASES OF THE SKIN. 107 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 The Skin and its Diseases— Gangrenous Erysipelas— Lice— Leprosy— Mange— Measles— 
 Desquamation of. the Skin. 
 
 The skin of the hog, like that of most other animals, is composed of 
 three separate parts or layers. The first or exterior of these is the 
 cuticle or scarf skin, which covers the whole surface' of the body and 
 protects the more sensitive parts from the injuries which might result 
 to them from immediate contact with external agents. It is a thin, 
 tough, callous texture, perforated with innumerable holes or pores, 
 through which pass the hairs and bristles, and whence exude those 
 transpirations by means of which the, body throws off all vapours. in- 
 jurious to the system. Chemical analysis has proved it to be chiefly 
 composed of gelatine, and consequently insoluble in water of common 
 temperature. This layer is considerably tougher and denser in the hog 
 and other of the pachydermata than it is in the horse, ox, and most of 
 our domesticated animals. 
 
 Beneath this is the rete mucosum, a soft expansion of tissue which 
 overspreads, and can with difficulty be separated from the layer below 
 it. Its-purpose appears to be to protect the terminations of the blood- 
 vessels and nerves of the skin, which it in a manner envelopes or covers. 
 This layer determines the colour of the body and of the hair. 
 
 The third and undermost part is the cutis vera or true skin, an elastic 
 texture composed of innumerable minute fibres crossing each other in 
 all directions, fitting closely to every part of the frame,'yielding by its 
 elasticity to all the motions of the body, and interposing its dense, firm 
 structure between the more vitalparts of the system and external in- 
 juries. Innumerable blood-vessels and nerves pass through it, and 
 appear upon its surface in the form of papillae; it is in fact far more 
 sensitive than the muscles or flesh. 
 
 The skin varies in density in different breeds of swine. In some of 
 the large, old breeds it is thick, coarse, tough, and almost as impene- 
 trable, in comparison, as the hide of a rhinoceros ; while in many of 
 our smaller breeds, and particularly in those which have a considerable 
 admixture of Asiatic blood, and in the Chinese pigs themselves, it is 
 soft, fine, and delicate, and bears no slight degree of resemblance to 
 the skin of the human being. It is not to be wondered at that a struc- 
 ture so delicately organised as the one we have been describing should 
 be subject to disease. In the hog it is peculiarly so ; many of the most 
 serious maladies to which he is subject have their seat in the skin: it 
 were a point well worthy of study to inquire into the reason of this fact, 
 but as the present work is devoted to practice rather than theory, we 
 must leave it to abler hands, and pass onwards to a consideration of 
 some of the most prevalent diseases of the skin in swine. 
 
 GANGRENOUS ERYSIPELAS. 
 
 This disease which is frequently spoken of by the ancient writers, as 
 prevailing' to a greater or less extent, and often almost as an epidemic 
 
108 THE PIG. 
 
 among sheep and swine, is now of rare occurrence. Poulet thus de- 
 scribes the symptoms : — 
 
 "The first of these, which last some five or six days, are uneasiness, 
 inquietude, depression,, loss of appetite, and inertness. About the 
 seventh or eighth day these gradually increase in intensity; the limbs 
 totter, the body is alternately hot and cold, the ears droop and are cold, 
 the head appears heavy, the tongue is discoloured, the breath fetid, a 
 thick mucus flows from the nostrils, and the whole of the skin becomes 
 tinged with an erysipelatous redness, whioh is most evident under the 
 belly; the animal utters almost incessant screams of pain. This in- 
 flammatory state of the integuments rapidly merges into decided gan- 
 grene, and the whole of the diseased surface becomes of a livid blue or 
 violet hue. The skin is first covered with blister^ containing a thin 
 reddish watery fluid ; and as these break the gangrenous dark coloured 
 scabs are formed. The disease is however by no means of so fatal a 
 character in swine as it is in sheep, probably from the former being the 
 stronger animals. A little blood should be taken from the ears, once 
 at any rate, and the bleeding should be repeated if it appears at all 
 necessary. A dose or two of Epsom salts, cooling drinks slightly 
 acidulated, and strict attention to diet, and cleanliness, are generally 
 all that will be requisite. Should the skin appear to be very irritable, 
 a little sweet oil may be rubbed over it, or some sulphur made into a 
 kind of ointment with sweet oil or palm oil ; but local applications are 
 not generally requisite." 
 
 Exposure to great heat or oold, or any sudden transition from one 
 extreme of temperature to another, are supposed by some authors to be 
 the oauses of this disease; while others, and we think with justice, 
 attribute it to unwholesome or putrid food, and to general inattention 
 and neglect. 
 
 UCE. 
 
 Pigs, when allowed to wallow in the mire, and to dwell in filthy 
 sties, 'are very apt to engender these disgusting vermin, which eat 
 into the skin and render it scabby and ulcerated, and by the irritation 
 they keep up worry and fatigue the animals, and effectually prevent 
 them from thriving. Eric Viborg states that these vermin sometimes 
 burrow their way into the flesh and come out through the eyes, nostrils, 
 or mouth, or have even been known to be voided in the urine. 
 
 The first step to be. taken towards effecting a cure is thoroughly to 
 cleanse the skin from every particle of dirt, and to clean outand white- 
 wash the sties and put in fresh dry litter. 
 
 Mercurial ointment, turpentine, or tobacco-water, are the most effi- 
 cient agents in the destruction of these unwelcome parasites. A little 
 sulphur or Ethiop's mineral and bay-salt may be given internally. 
 
 The preventive means are strict attention io cleanliness both in the 
 sties and in the animals themselves. Whenever a pig is observed to 
 be lousy, which will quiekly be perceived by his rubbing himself 
 against the gates, trees, and walls, he must be immediately separated 
 from his companions, or they too will become infested with lice, if they 
 are not already so. 
 
 Parkinson is of opinion that " the cause of vermin infesting animals 
 clearly arises in a general way, from had feeding, which occasions 
 
LEPROSY. 109 
 
 weakness of the blood ; for," says he, "if an animal be ever so lousy, 
 by giving him strong food for a few days the vermin will disappear, 
 probably because the rich blood is poison to them." He considers that 
 a free access to water for bathing, and also occasional exposure to heavy 
 rain, is not only necessary to the general health of swine, but a most 
 excellent preservative against vermin.* 
 
 This disease has apparently existed in swine from the remotest pe- 
 riods, and Tacitus gives it as his opinion that it was because the hog 
 was subject to leprosy that the Jews were forbidden to eat of its flesh. 
 It consists in the development of certain vesicles, or whitish granula- 
 tions, in all parts and portions of the cellular tissue; which vesicles 
 have been proved to be neither more nor less than a species of worms 
 termed the cysticercus cettulosa, supposed by some French authors to be 
 of the same species as that found in the brain of sheep. There 
 are however considerable differences between these two. The cysti- 
 cercus is found in all the cellular tissues and soft parts throughout the 
 whole of the body ; in the fat, in the adipose matter, in the interstices 
 between the muscles, in the viscera, and, in short, in every crevice into 
 which they can insert themselves. The thigh or ham has been men- 
 tioned by some authors as the principal seat of these vesicles, but they 
 are also found on the shoulders, around the jaws, along the neck and 
 belly, and even underneath and around the root of the tongue, where 
 alone can any outward lesions indicative of leprosy be in general dis- 
 covered ; and even here they are not constant, but are chiefly evident 
 in those animals in which the disease has attained to a great height. 
 The progress of leprosy is very insidious, and the early symptoms so 
 little marked that a practised eye only can detect them. 
 
 In the onset all that is observable is a certain marked stupidity or 
 obstinacy in the animal ; a state of languor and apparent general debil- 
 ity ; an evident thickening of the skin ; a slight adhesion of the bristles ; 
 a tendency in the hair to fall of, caused by the development of a greater 
 or less quantity of those vesicles of which we have spoken, as being 
 scattered in different parts of the fatty tissue, either on its surface or in 
 the interstices of the muscles ; under the coats of the viscera, or on the 
 sides of the tongue. 
 
 In its successive progress this disease attacks the animal economy 
 more or less profoundly without the functions appearing otherwise 
 troubled. There is ulceration of the cellular tissue, and even of the . 
 organs that surround or penetrate it: the animal does not however 
 appear to be generally and seriously ill. Far from losing his ap- 
 petite, he is occasionally extremely voracious. He does not appear to 
 suffer in the lungs ; his breath is not embarrassed, nor is his voice 
 hoarser than usual. 
 
 Such is at least what may be observed to take place when the leprous 
 vesicles are not numerous. It is when they increase in quality and the 
 disease increases that they begin to affect the health of the patient. He 
 then becomes indifferent to everything; moves'about slowly ; totters 
 as he walks : his eyes are dull ; the buccal membrane is pale, and some- 
 
 * Parkinson's Live stock, vol. ii. 
 
110 THE PIG. 
 
 times strewed with violet spots. The expired air is fetid, the breathing 
 slow ; the pulse small and irregular, the bristles easily plucked, and 
 sometimes a little blood accompanies them. Strength begins to aban- 
 don the patient; he can no longer sustain himself on his hind legs ; the 
 posterior part of the trunk becomes paralyzed, the body exhales an un- 
 pleasant smell ; the skin is thicker, and the cellular tissue is raised in 
 different parts, especially about the kernals of the neck. There is swell- 
 ing about the roots of the hair, which often proceeds to ulceration; the 
 skin comes off in patches; large tumours are developed; the teeth are 
 ground convulsively together ; the tongue is dark coloured, hot, thick- 
 ened, and covered with slime ; the body swells ; the animal utters feeble 
 cries of pain, and seldom survives many hours. 
 
 This is a very obstinate disease, probably from its having usually taken 
 so great a hold of the system before it is suspected, and numerous have 
 been the medicaments recommended for it. Antimony, sulphur, small 
 and repeated doses of Epsom salts, and general bleedings, seem to be 
 the course of treatment most likely to be attended with success; and 
 these must be aided by strict attention to diet and cleanliness ; cooling 
 wholesome food alone should be given, and water, in which barley- 
 meal has been dissolved. Nothing of a rich or heating nature should 
 be allowed to come within reach of the animal. As external applica- 
 tions, mercurial ointment may be moderately applied to the ulcerated 
 parts, or the common mange ointment composed of sulphur and anti- 
 mony.- 
 
 In all probability the reason why this and many other diseases of 
 swine have hitherto been regarded as incurable, is that men of science, 
 educated veterinarians, have as yet given but little of their attention to 
 these useful animals, and deemed the study of their diseases and of the 
 means of treating them beneath their notice. Nor is the owner without 
 his share of blame, for he too often either abandons the poor brute to its 
 fate, or calls in the aid of the pig-butcher or some ignorant empiric. 
 
 In France the pig-gelder, or langueyeur des pores, is the privileged 
 medical attendant of swine. He attends daily wherever there are any 
 pigs to be sold, and examines the tongue to see that in its frsenum there 
 is no worm or cysticercus, the presumed cause of leprosy. Should he 
 find, or fancy that he finds, some little vesicles on the sides of the 
 tongue, he pierces them with his scissors, and bruises them with a 
 silver coin, a proceeding which, according to him, will infallibly cure 
 the animal and effectually preserve it from leprosy. But should it, as 
 is too often the case, unfortunately happen that in the struggle attending 
 this operation the animal receives some serious injury, of which it after- 
 wards dies, the langueyeur's excuse is, that the bechigos or vesicles 
 were in a state of inflammation, and consequently incurable when he 
 first saw them. 
 
 There have been numerous opinions advanced relative to the predis- 
 posing causes of leprosy ; some authors attribute it to exposure to the 
 inclemency of the weather, insufficient food, and damp marshy locali- 
 ties ; and urge in support of their opinion that the disease was much 
 more prevalent and fatal when swine were turned into the woods and 
 forests during certain periods of the year to seek their own food than it 
 is now when they are comfortably lodged and more care devoted to their 
 feeding. Others have attributed it to some pernicious qualities in the 
 
MANGE. Ill 
 
 water which the animals drink, or in the food which is given to them; 
 and with both these parlies we are inclined to agree, and to attribute 
 this disease in a great measure to vitiation of the blood. 
 
 The wild boar appears to be exempt from it; nor is leprosy known 
 in America, Russia, or Spain, if we may believe the testimony of 
 various authors and travellers. 
 
 Some have asserted it to be hereditary; but there are numerous facts 
 on record in which some of the progeny of a perfectly healthy boar and 
 sow have proved leprous, while a diseased sow has produced sound 
 and healthy young. 
 
 Another question has likewise been much discussed, namely, the 
 propriety or safety of eating the flesh of pigs that have died of this 
 disease. These animals, however good condition they may appear to 
 be in, are rather bloated than fat; the flesh is soft, and flabby, and 
 tasteless, and will not keep ; the bacon pale in colour and wanting con- 
 sistency. Soup made with such flesh is white, greasy, and insipid, 
 and has been known to produce vomiting and diarrhoea. We are not 
 aware that there are any records of disease or other evil resulting from 
 the eating of the flesh of leprous pigs ; nevertheless it stands to reason 
 that it cannot be wholesome and should not be made use of, for although 
 no immediate ill effects may follow the eating of it, we cannot tell what 
 insidious evils such vitiated and diseased food may engender in the 
 human frame. 
 
 This cutaneous affection, which was formerly attributed to want of 
 cleanliness or to some peculiar state of the blood, is now generally 
 admitted to arise from the presence of certain minute insects termed 
 acari. It is identical with the scab in sheep and the itch in the human 
 being, which also were supposed to arise from corruption of the blood 
 or acrid humour subsisting in it, or from filthiness, but which arise 
 from this scabious insect. As far back as the twelfth century these 
 acari scabiei were described by an Arabian physician ; subsequently 
 they were noticed and described by several German and Italian writers, 
 and in 1812 and 1814 Herr Walz, a German veterinarian, and M. 
 Gohier, an eminent French veterinary surgeon, found these insects in,, 
 and gave drawings of, and described those peculiar to, almost all our 
 domesticated animals. 
 
 There is a very interesting translation from a pamphlet by Dr. Hert- 
 wig, given in the "Veterinarian" for 1838, in which a detailed account 
 of the habits and history of these insects will be found. 
 
 The hog does not appear to suffer so much from mange or scab as 
 the horse, sheep, and dog; in swine the pustules are usually chiefly 
 developed under the arm-pits and on the interior of the thighs; They 
 at first consist simply of red»spots, vesicles, or pimples; but these 
 gradually become connected together by minute burrows, or furrows 
 existing beneath the skin, and eventually unite in the form of large 
 scabs, which the animal, irritated by the itching, rubs into large blotchy 
 sores. 
 
 Where the mange is recent, a tolerably slrong decoction of tobacco 
 or digitalis will often prove an efficacious wash for the diseased parts, 
 or a solution of corrosive sublimate; but if the eruption is of long 
 
112 THE PIG. 
 
 standing and has degenerated into scabs, a solution of arsenic in the 
 proportion of one ounce to a gallon of water, or, what is still better, 
 sulphur and mercurial ointment in the proportion of an ounce of the 
 former to a drachm of the latter, carefully and thoroughly rubbed into 
 the skin, must be resorted to. A decoction of soot has also been re- 
 cently discovered by an eminent French physician to be exceedingly 
 ^efficacious in cases of cutaneous disorders. Two handfuls of soot are 
 boiled during half an hour in a pint of water, the fluid is then strained 
 off, and the lotion when cold used two or three times in the day. Cre- 
 osote has also been used with success in the treatment of cutaneous 
 eruptions. If the animal is in high condition, blood should be taken, 
 and two cr three doses of cooling physic given, or sulphur mingled 
 with the food. Strict attention must be paid to cleanliness, and the 
 animal kept apart from the rest of the herd. Mange is both hereditary 
 and infectious. There are numerous instances of its having been com- 
 municated from one animal to another of a different species, and even 
 to the human being. 
 
 In Austria, if mange appears in the hog within eight days after the 
 sale it is presumed to have existed at the time of the said sale, and the 
 animal is returnable to the vendor; and when it can be proved that he 
 ■was aware of the unsoundness he not only has to return the purchase- 
 money, but also to indemnify the purchaser for any loss or inconve- 
 nience he may have sustained, besides paying a fine equal to one-tenth 
 of the value of the animal. 
 
 That the actual disease, namely, the scab and the irritation, arises 
 from the presence and proceedings of the acari, there can be no shadow 
 of doubt; but the question is, whence do these acari arise 1 Are they 
 the product of some morbid state of the skin arising from constitutional 
 derangement, or created by miasma or affluvia! We find mange in 
 animals that are fed on too stimulating food, we also find it in others 
 that are neglected and badly fed. How can these contradictions be 
 reconciled? Here is a vast field for scientific research and experiment. 
 As every grain of earth, and every drop of water, and every particle of 
 air, is peopled with living beings, developed by certain causes, it is by 
 no means an improbable theory to suppose that the germs of the acari may 
 exist in a dormant state in the skin, and only be called into actual life 
 by some of the vitiating influences which neglect or mismanagement 
 produces, and once existing they follow the law of every created be- 
 ing, and propagate and multiply, and pass from one animal to another 
 either by actual contact or by the intermediation of some other substance 
 which both had touched. We admit, however, that this is mere the- 
 ory, and call upon our professional brethren to aid us by their researches 
 in our endeavours to discover the actual truth. 
 
 This is rather a sub-cutaneous than an actual disease of the skin, con- 
 sisting in a multitude of small watery pustules developed between the 
 fat and the skin, and indeed scattered throughoutthe cellular tissue and 
 adipose matter. It has, by many, been regarded as a milder form of 
 leprosy ; and so far as our present limited knowledge will allow us to 
 judge, this supposition appears by no means an erroneous one. 
 
DESQUAMATION OF THE SKIN. 113 
 
 The external appearances attending it are the development of reddish 
 patches, somewhat raised above the surface of the skin, on the groin, 
 the arm-pits, and the inside of the thighs at first, and subsequently on 
 other parts of the body. The attendant symptoms are acceleration of 
 the pulse, heat of the skin, cough, discharge from the nostrilR, loss of 
 appetite, nausea, swelling of the eyelids, feebleness of the hinder ex- 
 tremities, and the formation of blackish pustules under the tongue : even- 
 tually the skin usually comes off in patches. 
 
 The measles in swine is seldom fatal, and will gradually yield to 
 the simplest cooling treatment, or even to mere attention to diet, tem- 
 perature, and ventilation. Didymus tells us that Democrates prescribed 
 bruised asphodile roots to be mingled with the food given to hogs, as 
 an excellent remedy for this disease.* It sadly injures the quality of 
 the meat, rendering it insipid, flabby, pale, and indisposed to take the 
 salt. We should say that the flesh of measly pigs is positively un- 
 wholesome, although perhaps there are no cases on record in which it 
 is proved that bad effects have resulted from the use of it. 
 
 The following was a remedy for this disorder used by the ancients: — 
 "A hog having measles must be put into a sty and kept there three 
 days and nights without food. Then take five or six apples, pick out 
 the cores and fill up the holes thus made with flour of brimstone ; stop 
 up the holes and cast in the apples to the measly hog. Give him first 
 one or two, then one or two more, and then, as being hungry he will, 
 eat them, give him all. Let him have nothing more to eat until the 
 next day, and then serve him so again. Thus use him for five or six 
 days, and he will become as well and as wholesome as ever." In our 
 opinion it is one very likely to be beneficial. 
 
 In, Bavaria, Wurtemburg, and Baden, there is a warranty of four 
 weeks and three days given against measles and other cutaneous erup- 
 tions in swine. 
 
 It yet remains to be discovered whether measles in swine is an epi- 
 demic, like that disorder in. the human being, or whether it is heredi- 
 tary, or whether, as many suppose, it arises from the development and 
 presence of a variety of the cysticercus. 
 
 DESQUAMATION OF THE SKIN. 
 
 The following singular case, communicated to " The Veterinarian" 
 by Mr. J. Sherwood, of Sittingbourn, appears to us not unworthy of 
 record here. 
 
 " A few weeks ago the skin became hard on either side about nine 
 or ten inches from the spine, and afterwards kept gradually separating 
 towards the. centre of the spine from the shoulder to the insertion of 
 the tail. The bailiff cut off portions from time to time of the weight 
 of nearly 10 lbs. in order to make the load with which the animal was 
 encumbered the lighter, until the last week, when the hog lay down, 
 and after taking his rest with his brethren (for he fed and looked as 
 well as the rest, with the exception of the load on his back) he got up 
 and left the substance behind him. It consisted of the entire skin so 
 far as it had sloughed, with about two inches of adeps adhering to it 
 
 * Didymus, ful. 470. 
 
114 THE PIG. 
 
 in the middle, getting gradually thinner towards the sides, and weigh- 
 ing 20 lbs., which, added to the portions before removed, made a total 
 of 30 lbs. The hog is now computed to weigh twenty score. He had 
 not any medicine administered, as he did well the whole of the time." 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 Operations — Bleeding— Castration — Catching and Holding— Drenching— Ringing 
 
 This is a most useful and necessary operation, and one which in many 
 diseases is of vital importance. The common and vulgar mode of 
 getting blood from the pig is by cutting off portions of the ears or tail ; 
 but these modes of proceeding should only be had recourse to when 
 local and instant blood-letting is requisite. The jugular veins of swine 
 lie too deep and are too much imbedded in fat to admit of their being 
 raised by any ligature about the neck; it is therefore useless to attempt 
 to puncture them — we should only be striking at random. Those veins, 
 however, which run over the interior surface of the ear, and especially 
 towards its outer edge, may be opened without much difficulty : if the 
 ear is turned back on to the poll, one or more of them may easily be 
 made sufficiently prominent to admit of its being punctured by pressing 
 the fingers on the base of the ear near to the conch ; when the necessary 
 quantity of blood has been obtained, the finger may be raised and it 
 will cease to flow. 
 
 The palate veins which run on either side of the roof of the mouth 
 are also easily opened by making two incisions, one on each side of the 
 palate, about halfway between the centre of the roof of the mouth and 
 the teeth. The flow of blood may be readily stopped by means of a 
 pledget of tow and a string, as in the horse. 
 
 M. Gohier, who had considerable practice in bleeding swine, was of 
 opinion that the cephalic and sephena veins might be opened without 
 any great exertion of skill by any one who possessed a little knowledge 
 of anatomy. The lancet should be used somewhat obliquely, and a 
 sufficient quantity of blood having been obtained, the flow arrested in 
 the usual manner. 
 
 Mr. Cupiss recommends the brachial vein of the fore-leg (commonly 
 called by farriers the p/a/e-vein) as a favourable place for bleeding. 
 This vein runs along the inner side of the fore-leg under the skin, and 
 the best place for puncturing it is about an inch above the knee, and , 
 scarcely half an inch backwards from the radius. No danger need be 
 apprehended from cutting two or three times if sufficient blood cannot 
 be obtained at once. The vein will become easily discernible if a liga- 
 ture is tied firmly round the leg just below the shoulder. 
 
 Columello tells us " to let blood from the ear," or " strike a vein be- 
 neath the tail at the distance of two inches from the buttocks, where it 
 attains sufficient size for the purpose, and it must first be beaten with 
 the sprig of a vine; then, when swelled up by the stroke of this rod, 
 opened with a lancet, and, after enough blood has been drawn, the vein 
 must be bound up with the rind of the willow or elm-tree." 
 
CASTRATION OR SPAYING. 115 
 
 This operation should always be performed with the lancet if possi- 
 ble : in cases of urgent haste, when no lancet is at hand, a small penknife 
 may be used ; but the fleam is a dangerous and objectionable instrument. 
 
 CASTRATION OR SPAYING. 
 
 This operation is performed on many of our domesticated animals, 
 with the view of increasing their docility and usefulness, and on others 
 to dispose them to fatten and attain to earlier maturity; it consists in 
 removing the testicles of the male, and the ovaries, and sometimes a 
 more or less considerable portion of the uterus, of the female. 
 
 Pigs are chiefly castrated with a view to fattening them, for it is gene- 
 rally asserted that a sow that has not been spayed will never gain flesh : — 
 
 " The plaguy pias nre never worth their meat. 
 They neither feed nur are they fit to eat" — 
 
 when left in a state of nature, says an old north-country rhyme ; and 
 doubtless castration has the required effect, and therefore is less objec- 
 tionable when performed on the pig, than when the horse or dog is sub- 
 jected to it ; for at the same time that it increases the quiescent qualities 
 of the animal, it diminishes his courage, spirit, and nobler attributes, 
 and even affects his form. The tusks of a castrated boar never grow 
 like those of the natural animal, but always have a dwarfed, stunted 
 appearance. 
 
 If possible, this operation should be performed in the spring or 
 autumn, as the temperature is then mote equable, and care should be 
 taken that the animal is in perfect health. Those which are fat and 
 plethoric should be prepared by bleeding, cooling diet, and quiet. Pigs 
 are castrated at all ages, from a fortnight to three, six, and eight weeks, 
 and even four months old. There are various modes of performing 
 the operation: we will begin by quoting those described by Professor 
 Vatel:— * 
 
 " Castration by simple division of the spermatic cord. — If the pig is 
 not more than six weeks old, an incision is made at the bottom of the 
 scrotum, the testicle pushed out, and the cord cut without any precau- 
 tionary means whatever. But when the animal is older, there is reason 
 to fear that hemorrhage to a greater or less extent will supervene ; con- 
 sequently it will be advisable to pass a ligature round the cord a little 
 above the spot where the division is intended to take place. 
 
 " Castration by tearing the cord. — Swine are thus operated on by some 
 cutters : — An assistant holds the pig, pressing the back of the animal 
 against his chest and belly, keeping the head elevated, and grasping all 
 the four legs together ; or, which is the preferable way* one assistant 
 holds the animal against his chest, while another kneels down and se- 
 cures the four legs. The operator then grasps the scrotum with his 
 left hand, makes one horizontal incision across the base of it, opening 
 both divisions of the bag at the same time. Then laying down his 
 knife, he presses the testicles out with his finger and thumb, grasps 
 them between his teeth and. tears them out. He then closes the wound 
 by pressing the edges gently together with his fingers ; the tearing 
 prevents all hemorrhage, and the wound speedily heals. This mode 
 
 * Vatel'a Eleineris de I'atheologie Veterinaife. 
 
116 THE PIG. 
 
 of operation is sometimes performed on animals two and three years 
 old. Some break the spermatic cord without tearing it: they twist it, 
 and then pull it gently and firmly until it gives way. 
 
 " Castration by sawing or scraping. — Here a portion of the base of the 
 scrotum is cut off, the testicles forced out, and the cord sawn through 
 by a somewhat serrated but blunt instrument. The hemorrhage, if any 
 there be, is arrested by introducing ashes into the wound. The animal 
 is then dismissed, and nothing further done with him. Fromage de 
 Feagre has castrated many pigs of three or four months old by dividing 
 the spermatic cord in this way. This mode of operating, however, 
 should only be practised on very young animals. 
 
 " Castration by ligature. — Here a waxed cord is passed as tightly as 
 possible round the scrotum above' the epididymes, which completely 
 stops the circulation, and in a few days the scrotum and testicles will 
 drop off. This mode of operating should never be performed on pigs 
 more than six weeks old, and the spermatic cord should always be first 
 of all uncovered." 
 
 We cannot approve of the tearing or gnawing the testicle with the 
 teeth; it is a disgusting practice, and inflicts unnecessary pain on the 
 patient: the use of a blunt knife is far preferable, as this lacerates the 
 part equally as much without so bruising it and rendering it painful ; 
 and it is the laceration only we require, in order to prevent the subse- 
 quent hemorrhage which would occur if the cord were simply severed 
 with a sharp instrument. 
 
 The castration by ligature requires great nicety and skill, otherwise 
 accidents will occur, and considerable pain and inflammation be caused. 
 Too thick a cord, a knot not tied sufficiently tight, or a portion of the 
 testicle included in the ligature, will prevent the success of the opera- 
 tion. 
 
 The most fatal consequence of castration is tetanus, induced by the 
 shock communicated to the nervous system by the torture of the 
 operation. 
 
 In spaying the sow the animal is laid upon its left side and firmly 
 held by one or two assistants ; an incision is then made into the flank, 
 the fore-finger of the right hand introduced into it, and gently turned 
 about until it encounters and hooks hold of the right ovary, which it 
 draws through the opening; a ligature is then passed round this one, 
 and the left ovary felt for in like manner. The operator then severs off 
 these two ovaries, either by cutting or tearing, and returns the womb 
 and its appurtenances to their proper position. This being done, he 
 closes up the womb with two or three stitches, sometimes rubs a little 
 oil over it, and releases his patient, and all generally goes on well ; for 
 the healing power of the pig is very great, as the following fact will 
 testify : — 
 
 Mr. Thomson, veterinary surgeon at Beith, N. B., was castrating a 
 pig, and while cutting through the peritoneum one of the assistants 
 lost his hold, and the animal sprang up. The scalpel was plunged 
 deep into the belly, entered one of the convolutions of the ileum, and 
 divided one of the guts almost through, besides making a wound in the 
 mesentery. Mr. Thomson sewed up the mesentery with a fine needle 
 and thread and restored it to its place, and secured the side with firm 
 stitches — not, however, with much hope of seeing his patient recover. 
 
CATCHING AND HOLDING THE PIG. 117 
 
 But, to his surprise, two days afterwards little appeared to be the mat- 
 ter, and in a short time the animal was well.* 
 
 The after treatment is very simple. The animals should he well 
 littered with clean litter, in sties weather-tight and thoroughly venti- 
 lated; their diet should be attended to; sour milk or whey, with bar- 
 ley-meal, is an excellent thing to give at these times ; it is well to con- 
 fine them for a few days, as they should be prevented from getting into 
 cold water or mud until the wound is perfectly healed, and also from 
 creeping through hedges or fences. 
 
 The best age for spaying a sow is about six weeks ; indeed, as a ge- 
 neral axiom, the younger the animal is castrated the better it gets over 
 the operation, which is seldom attended by fatal results. Some per- 
 sons, however, have two or three litters from their sows before they 
 operate upon them ; where this is the case the consequences are more 
 to be feared, as the parts have become more susceptible, and are conse- 
 quently more liable to take an inflammation. Lisle says : — " Where 
 this is done, it is best to spay a sow two or three days before her litter 
 of pigs are weaned, because then, if harm follows the operation, the 
 young ones will draw off the venom."f 
 
 The following extraordinary expertness at pig-spaying is worthy of 
 mention : — Mr. J. Bowman, V. S. at Howden, undertook for a wager 
 to spay one hundred sows and pigs in two hundred minutes. That 
 number being procured, and umpires chosen from among the neighbour- 
 ing practitioners, Mr. B. commenced at ten o'clock in the morning at 
 the Wellington Inn. 
 
 The first eleven were disposed of in twelve minutes; the next five- 
 and-forty in fifty-nine minutes and thirty seconds ; and the remaining 
 four-and-forty in seventy-nine minutes and fifty seconds; thus com- 
 pleting the task in two hours, thirty-one minutes, and twenty seconds, 
 being forty minutes and forty seconds within the given time, and 
 averaging a minute and a-half for each one. 
 
 The ninety-third occupied only fifty-six seconds. The task would 
 have been completed in even less time, but the forty-fifth pig, from 
 some malformation of the ovaria which made it difficult to extract it, 
 took six minutes to operate on.£ 
 
 CATCHING AND HOLDING THE MS. 
 
 Swine are very difficult animals to obtain any mastery over, or to 
 operate on or examine. Seldpm tame or easily handled, tbey are at 
 such periods most unmanageable, kicking, screaming, and even biting 
 fiercely. Hurtrel d'Arboval recommends the following means of get- 
 ting hold of them : — " Fasten a double cord to the end of a stick, and 
 beneath the stick let there be a running noose in this cord ; tie a piece 
 of bread to the cord and present it to the animal, and when he opens 
 his mouth to seize the bait, catch the upper jaw in the noose, run it 
 tight, and the animal is fast."§ 
 
 Another means is to catch one foot in a running noose suspended from 
 some place., so as to draw the imprisoned foot off the ground j or to en- 
 velope the head of the animal in a cloth or sack. 
 
 * The Veterinarian fur 1*44.. t Lisle'a Husbandry. 1 The Veterinarian for 1838- 
 $ Uictionnairi> dt Afcdeciue et de Chirurgerie Veteri naire, vol. i. 
 
118 
 
 THE PIG. 
 
 But, so far as it can he, all coercion should be avoided, for the pig; 
 is naturally so averse to being- handled, that in his struggles he will 
 often do himself far more mischief than the disease we seek to investi- 
 gate or remedy would effect. 
 
 DRENCHING. 
 
 Here again the observations with which we closed the preceding pa- 
 ragraph are applicable, for there are more instances than one on record 
 in, which the pig has, in his struggles, ruptured some vessel and died 
 on the spot, or so injured himself as to bring on inflammation and sub- 
 sequent death. Whenever it is possible, the medicine should be 
 mingled with a portion of food, and the animal thus cheated or coaxed 
 into taking it. Where this cannot be done, the following is the best 
 method : — 
 
 Let a man get the head of the animal firmly between his knees, 
 without, however, pinching it, while another secures the hinder parts. 
 Then let the first take hold of the pig's head from below, raise it a 
 little, and incline it slightly towards the right, at the same time sepa- 
 rating the lips on the left side so as to form a hole into which the fluid 
 may be gradually poured, not more being introduced into the mouth at 
 a time than can be swallowed at once. Should the beast snort or 
 choke, the head must be released for a few moments, or he will be in 
 danger of being strangled. 
 
 The operation of ringing is performed in order to counteract the pro- 
 pensity swine have to dig and furrow up the earth. The operator is 
 usually the village farrier or blacksmith — 
 
 " And pigs he rung, iiirJ hells he hung, 
 And horses shod and cured." 
 
 The ring is passed through what appears to be a prolongation of the 
 septum, between the supplemental, or snout-bone, and the proper nasal. 
 The animal is thus unable to obtain sufficient purchase to use his snout 
 with any effect without causing the ring to press so painfully upon the 
 part that he is speedily compelled to desist. But the ring is apt to 
 break, or it wears out in process of time and has to be replaced. The 
 operation is most painful, and the shrill squeaks of the animal under- 
 going it cause it to be a perfect nuisance to the neighbourhood. 
 
 John Lawrence gives the following directions concerning this ope- 
 ration : " The snouts of pigs should be perforated at weaning-time, after 
 they shall have recovered from castration ; and it will be necessary to 
 renew the operation as they become of large growth. It is too gene- 
 rally neglected at first; but no pigs, young or old, should be suffered 
 to roam at large unrung. It should be ascertained that the sow's rings 
 are sufficiently strong previously to her taking the hog, on account of 
 the risk of abortion from the operation being renewed while she is in 
 pig. Care must be taken by the operator that he go not too close to 
 the bone, and that the ring turns easily." 
 
 The far better mode of proceeding is, when the pig is young, to cut 
 through the cartilaginous and ligamentous prolongations by which the 
 
BREEDING. 119 
 
 supplementary bone is united to the proper nasals. The divided edges 
 of the cartilage will never unite again, and the snout always remain 
 powerless. 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 Breeding : Principles of— Choice of the Boar and Sow — Best Breeds — Age at which the 
 Sow may be used for Breeding— Proper Age for the Boar to commence at — Period of 
 Gestation— Fruitfulness of Sows — Treatment of them during Pregnancy — Abortion— 
 Parturition— Caesarian Operation — Monstrosities — Treatment of the Sows while 
 Nursing— Treatment of the Young while Sucking — Weaning and after Treatment — 
 Prolific power of Swine. 
 
 We now approach one of the most difficult and important divisions of 
 our subject' — breeding. 
 
 The object of the farmer or breeder is to produce and retain such an 
 animal as will be best adapted to the purpose he has in view, be that 
 the consumption of certain matters Which could not be otherwise so 
 well disposed of; the converting into hams, bacon, and pork ; or the 
 raising of sucking-pigs and porkers for the market. Almost all farmers, 
 nay, we might almost say, every cottager who has a bit of ground, 
 keep one or more pigs to devour the offal and refuse which would other- 
 wise be wasted; and the farmer finds a sufficiency for their keep, while 
 the cottager begs wash and other matters, or turns the beast out into 
 the lanes to forage for himself. But this is a matter totally distinct 
 from "breeding swine." In the former case thennimal or animals are 
 purchased young, for a small price (each person buying as many as he 
 considers he shall have food enough for,) and then sold to the butcher 
 when in proper condition to be killed ; and thus a certain degree of 
 profit is realised. In the latter many contingencies must be taken into 
 calculation, viz. the available means of feeding them ; whether or not 
 that food might be more profitably disposed of; the facilities afforded 
 by railways, by the vicinity of towns, or large markets, &c. for dis-' 
 posing of them. And the rapid growth of railways is now affording 
 these facilities to all parts of the United Kingdom. Formerly the in- 
 habitants of remote localities had no means of conveying their swine to 
 a favourable market except the tedions one of driving them, or the ex- 
 pensive one of conveying them in carts. 
 
 Agricultural writers seem to be very much divided in their opinions 
 as to the relative advantages of breeding or buying, but all allow that 
 the keeping of swine is one of the most profitable parts of the business 
 of a farm. Whoever determines upon breeding must make up his mind 
 in the first place what is the shape and what the qualities he wishes to 
 obtain, and then steadily bear this in mind as he pursues his object; 
 not with wavering caprice, now selecting a cross of one sort, now one 
 of another, but adhering to a system well laid down, and then he will 
 find his efforts attended with success. The great desideratum in almost 
 all establishments is an animal that will grow rapidly, and attain to the 
 earliest maturity and greatest weight in the shortest period, and on the 
 smallest and most economical amount of food. 
 
 It is a generally admitted fact in the principles of breeding that the 
 offspring usually inherit the bodily and constitutional qualities of one 
 
120 THE PIG. 
 
 or both parents ; and in swine it is the boar whose qualities chiefly pre- 
 dominate in the offspring; hence it will be necessary most carefully to 
 select the male animal. Thaer, in his admirable work, says — 
 
 CHOICE OF THE BOAR AND SOW. 
 
 " In the breeding of swine, as much as in that of any other live stock, 
 it is important to pay great attention not only to the breed, but also to 
 the choice of individuals. The sow should produce a great number of 
 young ones, and she must be well fed to enable her to support them. 
 Some sows bring forth ten, twelve or even fifteen pigs at a birth, but 
 eight or nine is the usual number, and sows which produce fewer than 
 this must be rejected. It is, however, probable that fecundity depends 
 ' also on the boar ; he should therefore be chosen from a race which mul- 
 tiplies quickly. 
 
 " Good one-year bacon-hogs being much in request, we must do all 
 we can to obtain a breed well adapted for producing them. Swine of 
 such a breed may be known by their long bodies, low bellies, and short 
 legs. Long pendulous ears are usually coupled with these qualities 
 and attract purchasers. If, however, as is often advisable in large 
 dairies and cheese factories, hogs are to be sold at all seasons to the 
 butchers, great attention must be paid to quickness of growth and facil- 
 ity of gaining flesh, so that the animals may. attain their full growth 
 and be ready for killing before they are a year old. This quality is 
 particularly prominent in the Chinese and African breeds; but among 
 our ordinary varieties, hogs are often met with which are better adapted 
 for this purpose than for producing large quantities of bacon and lard. 
 
 " The boar should be selected from a breed well suited to these 
 several purposes ; he must be sound and free from hereditary blemishes ; 
 he should be kept separate from the sows till he is about a year old, 
 and has finished his growth or he will begin to leap too early. He is 
 usually casirated before completing his third year, otherwise his flesh 
 becomes uneatable, if, however, he is of a peculiarly excellent breed, 
 one which cannot be easily replaced, his flesh may be sacrificed for the 
 sake of preserving him for breeding from a few years longer. 
 
 "A boar left on the pasture at liberty, with the sows, might suffice 
 for thirty or forty of them ; but as he is usually shut up, and allowed 
 to leap at stated times only, so that the young ones may be born nearly 
 at the same time, it is usual to keep one boar for ten or twelve sows. 
 Full grown boars being often savage, and difficult to tame, and attack- 
 ing men and animals, must be deprived of their tusks. 
 
 " The sow must be chosen from a breed of proper size and shape, 
 . sound and free from blemishes and defects. She should have at least 
 twelve teats; for it is observed that each pig selects a teat for himself 
 and keeps to it, so that a pig not having one belonging to him would 
 be starved. A good sow should produce a great number of pigs, all of 
 equal vigour. She must be very careful of them, and not crush them 
 by her weight; above all, she must not be addicted to eating the after- 
 birth, and what may often follow, her own young ones. If a sow is 
 tainted with these bad habits, or if she has difficult labours, or brings 
 forth dead pigs, she must be castrated forthwith. It is therefore proper 
 to bring up several young sows at once, so as to keep those only which 
 
CHOICE OF THE BOAR AND SOW. 121 
 
 are free from defects. Breeding sows and boars should never be raised • 
 from defective animals." 
 
 According to Varro and Columella; the ancients considered the dis- 
 tinguishing marks of a good boar to be — a small head, short legs, a 
 long body, large thighs and neck, and this latter part thickly covered 
 with strong erect bristles. 
 
 Our most experienced breeders prefer an animal with a long cylin- 
 drical body, small bones, well-developed muscles, a wide chest — which 
 denotes strength- of constitution, a broad straight back, short head and 
 fine snout, brilliant eyes, a short thick neck, broad well-developed 
 shoulders, a loose mellow skin, fine bright long hair and few bristles, 
 and small legs and hoofs. Some give the preference to long flapping 
 ears; this is the case especially in several of our western counties, but 
 experience seems to demonstrate that those animals are best which have 
 short, fine erect ears. The boar should always be vigorous arid mas- 
 culine in appearance. 
 
 That quaint old writer Lisle, in his " Husbandrie," gives the follow- 
 ing advice on this subject — advice more saited to swine "as they 
 were" than to the improved breeds which are now so generally re- 
 placing the heavy old races, but still worthy of some degree of atten- 
 tion : — 
 
 " In all kinds' of four-footed beasts, the shape and form of the male is 
 chosen with great care, because the progeny is frequently more like the 
 father than the mother ; wherefore, in swine-cattle also, certain of them 
 must be approved, which are choice and singular for the largeness of 
 their whole body, and such as are rather square (than those that are 
 long or round,) with a hanging-down belly, vast buttocks, but not so 
 long legs and hoofs, of a large and glahdulous neck, with short snouts, 
 and turned upwards ; and especially, which is more to the purpose, the 
 males must be exceeding salacious and such as are proper for gender- » 
 ing from the age of one year till they come to their fourth year : never- 
 theless they can also impregnate the female when they are six months 
 old. Sows of the longest size and make are approved, provided they 
 be, in the rest of their members, like the boars which have been al- 
 ready described. 
 
 "If the country is cold, and liable to hoar-frost, the herd must be 
 chosen of an exceeding hard, thick, and black bristle. If it be tempe- 
 rate, and lie exposed to the sun, the cattle that is smooth and has no 
 bristles, or even that which is white, and proper for the mill and the 
 bakehouse, may be fed." 
 
 But although the chief care must be bestowed on the selection of the 
 male animal, we must not be led to imagine that the female may be 
 chosen at random. One of good form and breed, free from constitu- 
 tional defects, and from disease of any kind ; not addicted to vice, and 
 especially not to feeding on flesh or carrion, or destroying rabbits, or 
 poultry, should be chosen. Also those which produce the finest and 
 most numerous progeny should be kept for breeding, especially if at 
 the same time they are good nurses; and the comparatively barren 
 animals spayed and fattened. Sows that have very low bellies almost 
 touching the ground, seldom produce large or fine litters. A good- 
 sized sow is generally considered more likely to prove a good breeder 
 and nurse, and to farrow more easily and safely, than a small delicate 
 9 
 
122 THE PIG. 
 
 animal. Few of our domesticated animals suffer so much~from being 
 " bred in-and-in as swine. Where this system is pursued, the number 
 of young ones is decreased at every litter, until the sows become, in a 
 manner, barren. As soon as the slightest tendency to this degeneracy 
 is observed, the breed should be crossed from time to time, keeping 
 sight, however, while so doing, of the aim in view. The Chinese and 
 Siamese pigs will generally be found to be the best which can be used 
 for this purpose, as a single, and even two crosses, with one of these 
 animals, will seldom do harm, but often effect considerable improve- 
 ment. The best formed of the progeny resulting from this cross must 
 be selected as breeders, and with them the old original stock crossed 
 back, again. 
 
 " Selection, with judicious and cautious admixture, is the true secret 
 of forming and improving a breed," says an old and well-established 
 axiom ; and so it is. Repeated and indiscriminate crosses are as in- 
 jurious as an obstinate adherence to one particular breed, and as much 
 to be avoided ; and of this most persons seem to be fully aware, for a 
 systematic alteration is extending itself throughout all our English 
 breeds of swine ; the large, heavy, coarse breeds are almost extinct, 
 and a smaller race of animals — more apt to fatten, less expensive to 
 keep, attaining earlier to maturity, and furnishing a far more delicious 
 and delicate meat — have taken their place. 
 
 It. would be useless to point out certain breeds as being the roost 
 profitable or advantageous, so much depends upon the object for which 
 the animals are raised ; and besides, each breeder of any experience 
 has in general his own pet stock breed, frequently one that has been 
 " made," if we may be allowed the expression, by himself or his pro- 
 genitors. This will be found to be the case in all great pig-breeding 
 localities, and it frequently happens that the actual stock from which 
 some of the present choicest races of swine sprang cannot be traced 
 farther back than some ancestor or ancestress celebrated for the num- 
 ber of prizes he or she, or their immediate decendants, have won. At 
 least we have found this to be the case in almost every instance in 
 which we have endeavoured to arrive at a knowledge of the actual 
 parent stock of some of the most perfect and valuable animals we have 
 met with or heard of. The Berkshire, the Improved Essex, and the 
 New Suffolk and Bedfordshire breeds may, however, with the Chinese 
 and Neapolitan, be instanced as the best stocks from which to raise 
 a small-boned, thriving, profitable race, adapted for almost every pur- 
 pose. 
 
 A sow is capable of conceiving at the age of from seven to ten months, 
 but it is always better not to let her commence breeding too early, as 
 it tends to weaken her when she does. From ten to twelve months 
 old will be about the best age. Thaer says, " Sows are almost always 
 in heat until they have received the boar ; this state commences even as 
 early as at the age of four or five months, but they are usually a year 
 old before they are allowed to be put to the boar." 
 
 The boar should be at least a twelvemonth old before he is employed 
 for the purpose of propagating his species, and during that time should 
 have been well and regularly fed and exercised. One boar may be 
 allowed to serve from six to ten sows, but on no account more. The 
 best plan is to shut up the boar and sow in a sty together ; for whea 
 
BREEDING. 123 
 
 turned in among several females, he is apt to " ride " them so often 
 that he exhausts himself without effect. 
 
 The period of gestation averages from seventeen to twenty weeks, 
 according to the age, constitution, &c, of the mother ; young or weakly 
 sows farrow earlier than those of more mature age or stronger constitu- 
 tions. It is commonly asserted that three months, three weeks, and 
 three days, is the period of gestation ; but, from M. Tessier's observa- 
 tions on twenty-five sows, it appears that it varies from 109 to 123 days* 
 
 A good breeding sow will produce two if not three litters in a year, 
 but two should be the outside number; for where she is suffered to 
 have more, the pigs are not so fine or so many in number, nor can she 
 suckle them so well. How many years they would continue to breed 
 is scarcely known, as it is generally considered to be most advanta- 
 geous to spay them in their second, or at any rate early in their third 
 year, and then fatten them for the butcher, especially where there is 
 always a stock of young sows to replace them ; for after the just-men- 
 tioned period the litters are seldom so fine, and the animal herself 
 deteriorates in value. Some breeders, indeed, only suffer a young 
 sow to have one litter, and then immediately spay and fatten her, as 
 the bacon is then supposed to be equally as good as that of an animal 
 spayed in the very onset. This is mainly a question of choice or econo- 
 my. An agricultural author of some repute states that " a sow is fit 
 for pigging up to her seventh year, and many will continue to be so 
 even longer. The more prolific, however, the animal is, the sooner 
 does she grow old and her fruitfulness decay." 
 
 But they doubtless would go on farrowing- for many years, for there 
 are instances on record of sows that have produced as many as eight or 
 ten pigs at a litter when in their eighth and tenth years. Selboume, 
 in his "Natural History," gives an account of a half-bred bantam sow, 
 kept by a friend of his, more from curiosity than with any view to 
 profit, " who was as thick as she was long, and whose belly swept on 
 the ground, till she was advanced to her seventeenth year; at which 
 period she showed some tokens of age by the decay of her teeth and the 
 decline of her fertility. 
 
 " For about ten years this prolific mother produced two litters in the 
 year, of about ten at a time, and once above twenty at a litter ; but, as 
 there were near double the number of pigs to that of teats, many died. 
 From long experience in the world, this female was grown very saga- 
 cious and artful. When she'found occasion to converse with a boar, she 
 used to open all the intervening gates, and march, by herself, up to a 
 distant farm where one was kept, and, when her purpose was served, 
 would return by the same means. At the age of about fifteen, her 
 litters began to be reduced to four or five ; and such a litter she exhibit- 
 ed when in her fatting-pen. She proved, when fat, gpod bacon, juicy 
 and tender ; the rind or sward was remarkably thin. At a moderate 
 computation she was allowed to have been the fruitful parent of three 
 hundred pigs — a prodigious instance of fecundity in so large a quadru- 
 ped. She was killed in the spring of 1775," 
 
 Although we should by no means advise the keeping of an animal to 
 such an age, still, notwithstanding that it is the fashion or custom to do 
 otherwise, we would advise every breeder never to part with a sow 
 while she continues to bring forth a numerous and fine progeny, which 
 
124 THE PIG. 
 
 many will do for years, and to be a good nurse ; and in general these 
 animals become better nurses the oftener they farrow : her value he 
 knows; the value of the young animal that he intends should succeed 
 her, has yet to be tested ; and if one of the two must be fattened for the 
 butcher, we should decidedly recommend that it were the untried one. 
 Varro states that we may judge of the fruitfulness of a sow from her 
 first litter, the subsequent ones being generally all of about the same 
 number. 
 
 A sow that brings forth less than eight pigs at a birth the third or 
 fourth time she farrows is worth little as a breeder, the sqpner she is 
 ' fattened the better; but a young sow that produces a great number at 
 her first farrowing cannot be too highly valued. 
 
 Whenever it is practicable, it should always be so arranged that the 
 animals shall farrow early in the spring, and at the latter end of the 
 summer or quite the beginning of the autumn. In the former case the 
 young pigs will have the run of the early pastures, which will be a 
 ^benefit to them and a saving to their owners; and there will also be 
 "more whey, milk, and other dairy produce which can be spared for 
 them by the time they are ready to be weaned. And in the second 
 case there will be sufficient time for the young to have grown and ac- 
 quired strength before the cold weather comes on, which is always 
 very injurious to sucking pigs. 
 
 TREATMENT OF SOWS DURING PREGNANCY. 
 
 Sows with pig should be well and judiciously fed ; that is to say, 
 they should have a sufficiency of wholesome nutritious food to main- 
 tain their strength and keep them in good condition, but should by no 
 means be allowed to get fat, as when they are in high condition the 
 dangers of parturition are enhanced, the animal is more awkward and 
 liable to smother or crush her young, and besides, never has as much or 
 as good milk as a leaner sow. She should also have a separate sty : 
 for swine are prone to lie so close together, that if she were amongst 
 others her young would be in great danger ; and this sty should be per- 
 fectly clean and comfortably littered, but not so thickly as to admit of 
 the young being able to bury themselves in the straw. 
 
 As the time of her farrowing approaches she should be well sup- 
 plied with food, especially if she be a young sow, and this is her first 
 litter, and also carefully watched in order to prevent her from devour- 
 ing the after-birth, and thus engendering a morbid appetite which will 
 next lead her to fall upon her own young. A sow that has once done 
 this is never afterwards to be depended upon. Hunger, thirst, or irri- 
 tation of any kind, will often induce this unnatural conduct; and this 
 is another reason why a sow about to farrow should have a sty to her- 
 self, and be carefully attended to, and have all her wants supplied. 
 
 This accident is by no means of so common occurrence in the sow as 
 in many of our other domesticated animals. There are various causes 
 which will tend to produce it; insufficiency of food, eating too much 
 succulent vegetable food, or unwholesome unsubstantial diet; blows 
 and falls will also induce it; and one very prevalent cause arises from 
 this animal's habit of rubbing itself against hard bodies in order to allay 
 
PARTURITION. 125 
 
 the irritation produced by the vermin or cutaneous eruptions to which 
 swine are subject. 
 
 Reiterated copulation does not appear to produce abortion in the sow, 
 at least to the extent it does in other animals. 
 
 The symptoms indicative of approaching abortion are similar to those 
 of parturition, only more intense. There is generally restlessness, irri- 
 tation, and shiverings ; and the cries of the animal testify the presence 
 of severe labour-pains. Sometimes the rectum , vagina, or uterus be- 
 comes relaxed, and one or the other protrudes, and often becomes in- 
 verted at the moment of the expulsion of the fcetus, preceded by the 
 placenta, which presents itself foremost. 
 
 Nothing can be done to prevent abortion at the last hour; all that we 
 can do is, from the first to remove every predisposing cause. 
 
 The treatment will depend upon circumstances. Where the animal 
 is young, vigorous, and in high condition, bleeding will be beneficial, 
 not a copious blood-letting, but small quantities taken at different 
 times ; purgatives may also be administered. If, when abortion has 
 taken place, the whole of the litter are not born, emollient injections 
 may be resorted to with considerable benefit; otherwise the after-treat- 
 ment should be much the same as in parturition, and the animal should 
 be kept warm and quiet and clean, and allowed a certain degree of 
 liberty. 
 
 Whenever one sow has aborted, the breeder should immediately look 
 about for the causes likely to have induced this accident, and endeavour, 
 by removing them, to secure the rest of the inhabitants of his piggery 
 from a similar fate. 
 
 In cases of abortion the foetus is seldom born alive, and often has 
 been dead for some days ; where this is the case — and whether it is so 
 or not will be easily detected by a peculiarly unpleasant putrid exha- 
 lation and the discharge of a fetid liquid from the vagina — the parts 
 should be washed with a diluted solution of chloride of lime, in the 
 proportions of one part chloride to three parts water, and a portion of 
 this lotion may be gently injected into the uterus if the animal will 
 submit to the doing so. Mild doses of Epsom salts, tincture of gen- 
 tian, and ginger will also act beneficially in such cases, and with at- 
 tention to diet, soon restore the animal. 
 
 PARTURITION. 
 
 The approach of the period of farrowing is marked by the immense 
 size of the belly, by a depression of the back, and by the distention of 
 the teats. The animal gives evident symptoms of acute suffering, and 
 wanders restlessly about, collecting straw and carrying it to her sty, 
 grunting piteously the while, 
 
 As soon as this is observed, she should be enticed into a separate sty 
 and carefully watched. On no account should several sows be per- 
 mitted to farrow in the same place, as they will inevitably irritate each 
 other, and devour their own or one another's young. 
 
 The young ones should be taken away as soon as they are born, and 
 deposited in a warm spot, for the sow being a clumsy animal, is not 
 unlikely in her struggles to overlay them ; nor should they be returned 
 to her until all is over, and the afterbirth has been removed, which 
 
126 THE PIG. 
 
 should always be done the moment it passes from her; for, young 
 sows especially, will invariably devour the afterbirth if permitted, and 
 then, the youngbeing wet with a similar fluid and smelling the same, 
 will eat them ioiie after lanether. Some persons advise washing the 
 backs of the young pigs, with a decoction of aloes, colocynth, or some 
 other nauseous substance, as a remedy for this; but the simplest and 
 easiest one is to remove the little ones until all is over and the mother 
 begins to recover herself and seek about for them, on which they 
 should be put near her. 
 
 It has been frequently observed that each little pig has its own pe- 
 culiar teat, and will not willingly suck from any other; therefore, as 
 the front teats yield most milk, the smallest pigs should be placed to 
 them. If more young are farrowed than the mother has teats, the most 
 weakly-looking must be destroyed, unless it should so happen that 
 there is another sow at hand which has fewer pigs than teats, in which 
 case they may be put to hein if this can be done without her know- 
 ledge; though some writers affirm that a sow will give her teats indif- 
 ferently to her own offspring or to that of a stranger. 
 
 It does not, however, always happen that the parturition is effected 
 with such ease. Cases of false presentation, of enlarged foetus, of de- 
 bility in the mother, often render it difficult and dangerous. The womb 
 will occasionally become protruded and inverted in consequence of the 
 forcing pains of difficult parturition, and even the bladder has been 
 known to come away. These parts must be returned as soon as may be,; 
 and if the womb has come in contact with the dung or litter and ac- 
 quired any dirt, it must be first washed in luke-warm water, and then 
 returned and confined in its place by means of a suture passed through 
 the lips of the orifice. Some foreign veterinarians place a pessary high 
 up the vagina, snd secure it in its situation by means of an iron ring or 
 wire ; but this is a complicated operation, and could not be performed 
 without great difficulty on so obstinate an animal. The easiest and 
 perhaps the best way is not to return the protruded parts at all, but 
 merely tie a ligature around them and leave them to slough off which 
 they will do in the course of a few days, without effusion of blood or 
 further injury to the animal. No sow that has once suffered from pro- 
 trusion of the womb should be allowed to breed again. 
 
 Mr. Ramsden, of Rippon, gives the following account of a case of 
 difficult parturition : — 
 
 " About the middle of August, 1840, 1 was called in and requested to 
 assist a sow that was in labour, could not rise, and seemed to be in 
 great suffering. I relieved her of one, gave her some gruel, and hoped 
 that she would be able to effect the parturition of the remaining ones 
 without aid. 
 
 " On my return she was perfectly senseless. The young pig was 
 endeavouring to suck. The parturition had not in the least degree ad- 
 vanced. I pressed with my left hand over the diaphragm, which 
 recallerPina slight degree the pains, and empounded my right hand 
 gradually. I then drew out a second pig ; it lay about four inches an- 
 terior to the pelvis. The stupor of the mother was a little removed, 
 and at length I got the whole litter of ten pigs, and also the placental 
 membrane. This was the first case of the kind that ever came under 
 my notice."* 
 
 * The Veterinarian, vol. xiv. 
 
PARTURITION. 127 
 
 Another and still more interesting case is given by Mr. Cartwright, 
 veterinary surgeon : — 
 
 " On the 11th of July, 1839, 1 was requested to attend a sow, the 
 property of a farmer near this town. The poor animal had been in 
 labour six days. During the last three days she was not able to stand, 
 nor had she taken any food, and her death was expected every hour. 
 She was a very fat animal, and the owner informed me that she was 
 about ten days past her time of pigging, and that he was confident the 
 pigs were dead. I was of the same opinion ; and, after a minute ex- 
 amination, felt confident that nothing short of the Cesarean operation 
 could save her ; at the same time informing the owner that she might 
 die in consequence of, or during, the operation. 
 
 " The operation was consented to ; and I proceeded first to secure her 
 legs, and to have them firmly extended their full length, and retained 
 there by assistants. I next placed a bundle of straw underneath heri 
 which gave the belly a round and prominent position, rendering it more 
 tense and firm, and at the same time giving me considerable advantage 
 in operating. 
 
 " My first proceeding was to clear away the hair in the direction of 
 my intended incision, in which I, at the onset, had made up my mind 
 to follow the theory taught in operative surgery, viz. always to make 
 the incisions in the same direction as the muscular fibres, and, above 
 all, never to sever a muscle if it could be avoided. The hair being re- 
 moved, I was about to make the incisions lengthways, in the course of 
 the linea alba, when it suddenly occurred to me that I should not, in 
 this case, be able to keep the lips of the wound approximated by su- 
 tures or bandages, on account of the depending state of the abdomen and 
 its contents. I therefore determined to make the incisions more on the 
 side, and across the oblique externus abdominis. I accordingly cut 
 freely through the integuments for about eight inches in length, which 
 I accomplished with a common scalpel. Next 1 penetrated througkr* 
 the adipose or fatty matter underneath, of which there was no lack ; 
 and then cut down on the muscle, at the superior part of the incision, 
 quite through, and exposing the peritoneum. I now introduced my 
 forefingers as directors, and with the curved bistoury laid the abdomen 
 freely open. 
 
 " The lips of the incision or wound of course receded from each other 
 to a great distance, and a slight arterial hemorrhage ensued, which I 
 thought proceeded from the circumflex artery of the ilium. If the inci- 
 sion had been made longitudinally, this might have been prevented; 
 but as the hemorrhage soon ceased, it was of little consequence. The 
 intestines were much inflated with gas, and protruded as far as the 
 wound of the peritoneum extended. 
 
 " I now introduced my right hand, and distinctly felt the situation of 
 the uterus, when the animal made a desperate struggle, and some of the 
 small intestines escaped. I found it necessary for an assistant to in- 
 troduce his hand, to prevent a repetition of this. The bladder was 
 distended with urine, which proved somewhat troublesome, and I had 
 no catheter at hand. I was now about to make a second attempt to 
 open the uterus, when I accidentally felt the pulsation of a large arte- 
 ry. Had I divided the uterus in the same direction as the incision in 
 the abdomen I should have cut the artery. Was it the uterine or va- 
 
128 THE PIG. 
 
 ginal artery ? I placed my hand inferior to the vessel, and felt a young 
 one. Next, with a scalpel in my right hand, guarded at the point with 
 my forefinger, fearing that the sow might struggle and the instrument 
 wound some of the intestines, I cut through the uterus, introduced my 
 finger guarding the scalpel, and effected an opening into it about six 
 inches in length. I then introduced my hand, laid hold of one of the 
 foetal pigs, and drew jt out. In this way I proceeded until I removed 
 the whole number, which amounted to seven. 
 
 " The operation being thus far completed, her legs were drawn to- 
 wards each other, which brought the lips of the wound into approxi- 
 mation, and I retained them there by strong adhesive plasters, over 
 which I placed a roller passing three times round her body. I now 
 proceeded to examine my patient: she was, as might be expected, in 
 a very weak state ; and when her head was raised, it fell again upon 
 my hand as if she was dead. As she lay in this exhausted state, not 
 a muscle except the involuntary ones moving, I gave her a little brandy 
 and water, and then closed the door and left her. The general opinion 
 of the by-standers was, that in a few minutes she would be dead : this 
 was about 4 p. m. Indispensable business prevented me from seeing 
 her until ten o'clock, when I was glad to find my patient somewhat re- 
 vived. I gave more brandy and beef-tea, and left her for the night. 
 
 "At 6 a.m. there was a decided improvement; the extremities were 
 warm, the respiration tranquil, with an occasional grunt and pricking or 
 moving of the ears ; some feces had passed during the night. T doubted 
 whether the bladder had been emptied, and therefore introduced a small 
 catheter which I use for sheep, &c, and took away a great quantity of 
 water. I ordered more weak brandy and water and broth. 
 
 "At 6 p.m. the symptoms were improving, excepting that the side 
 surrounding the incision was a little swelled ; I therefore, ordered fo- 
 mentations to be applied, using hot cloths, with but little water. 
 
 " 18th. — Doing well ; the secretions regular ; and she for the first 
 time voluntarily took a little milk, with a drachm of brandy, of which 
 she appeared fond. From this time she continued to improve daily ; and 
 on the fifth day from the operation she was able to stand, and fed well. 
 The roller round her body was not removed for a month, and the plas- 
 ter remained for nearly three months. When it came away the wound 
 was beautifully healed. This animal has attracted considerable atten- 
 tion in the neighbourhood, and she is how as fat as she can be, and a 
 fine specimen of the short-eared breed."* 
 
 MONSTROSITIES. 
 
 Monstrosities are often farrowed by swine. It would be difficult to 
 assign any cause for this, did we admit, with most persons, that these 
 are peculiarly stupid and unimaginative animals ; but as in Chapter III. 
 we have already declared our opinion to be a contrary one, the inexpli- 
 cability of the matter is done away with. 
 
 Mr. Ellis, V. S., of Liverpool, gives an account of six sows belong- 
 ing to one person which all produced blind young ones, the greater 
 part of which were without the least semblance of an eye, the orbit 
 
 ,* The Veterinarian, vol. xiii. 
 
TREATMENT OF THE SOWS WHILE SUCKLING. 129 
 
 being quite empty. Some of them had four ears each. Only four out 
 of the whole lot lived; they were either brought forth dead or died 
 immediately after birth. 
 
 One of the sows could not farrow any of her young ones, they being 
 three times the proper size, and in a state of* decomposition. The 
 Cesarean operation was therefore performed, as the only means of 
 saving her; but it had been delayed too long; she only lived three 
 hours after it. 
 
 These pigs were all got by one boar, but the sows were of different 
 breeds. 
 
 TREATMENT OF THE SOWS WHILE SUCKLING. 
 
 More depends upon this than many persons seem to have the least 
 idea of, both as regards the mother and the young ; and many a fine 
 sow and promising litter have been ruined for want of proper and judi- 
 cious care at this period. 
 
 Immediately after farrowing many sows are apt to be feverish ; where 
 this is the case, a light and sparing diet only should be given them for 
 the first day or two, as gruel, oatmeal-porridge, whey, and such-like. 
 Others, again, are very much debilitated, and require strengthening ; 
 for them strong soup, bread steeped in wine or in a mixture of brandy 
 and sweet spirits .of nitre, administered in small quantities, will often 
 prove highly beneficial. 
 
 Gradually the rations must be increased and given more frequently; 
 and they must be composed of wholesome, nutritious, and succulent 
 matters. All kinds of roots — carrots, turnips, potatoes, and, beet-root — 
 well steamed or boiled, may be given, but never raw ; bran, barley and 
 oatmeal, bean-flour, Indian corn, whey, sour, skim, and butter-milk, all 
 are perfectly well adapted for this period ; and, should the animal ap- 
 pear to require it, grain well bruised and macerated may also be added. 
 Bean-flour is 'considered by many persons to create an abundance of 
 milk; and there are many who deem barleymeal too stimulating, and 
 advise that it should never be used alone, but always one-third oatmeal 
 to two-thirds of the barleymeal. Whenever it is possible, the*sow 
 should be turned out for an hour each day to graze in a meadow or 
 clover-field, as the fresh air and exercise and herbage will d» her an 
 infinity of good. The young pigs must be shut up for the first ten days 
 or a fortnight, after which they will be old enough to follow her and 
 take their share of the benefit. 
 
 The rations should be given regularly at certain hours ; small and 
 often-repeated meals are far preferable to large ones, for indigestion or 
 any disarrangement of the functions of the stomach vitiates the milk, 
 and produces diarrhoea and other similar affections in the young. 
 
 The mother should always be well but not over-fed ; the better and 
 more careftrlly she is fed, the more abundant and nutritious will her 
 milk be, the better will the* sucking-pigs thrive, and the less will she 
 be pulled down by suckling them. 
 
 When a sow is weakly, and has not a sufficiency of milk, the young 
 pigs must be taught to feed as early as possible. A kind of gruel, made 
 with skim-milk and bran or oatmeal, will be the best thing for this pur- 
 pose; or a soup composed of potatoes, boiled, and then mashed in milk 
 or whey, with or without the addition of a little bran or oatmeal. 
 
130 TtfE PIG. 
 
 Towards the period when the pigs are to be weaned the sow must be 
 less plentifully fed, otherwise the secretion of milk will be as great as 
 ever; and it will accumulate, and there will be hardness, and perhaps 
 inflammation, of the teats. Should it appear requisite, a dose of physic 
 may be given to assist in carrying off the milk ; but in general a little 
 judicious management in the feeding and weaning will be all that is 
 requisite. 
 
 TREATMENT OF THE YOUNG WHILE SUCKING. 
 
 For the first ten days or fortnight the mother will generally be able 
 to support her litter without assistance, unless, as has been already ob- 
 served, she is weakly, or they are too many in number ; in either of 
 which cases they must be fed from the first. When the young pigs 
 are about a fortnight old warm milk should be given to them. In ano- 
 ther week this may be thickened with some species of farina ; and after- 
 wards, as they gain strength and increase in size, boiled roots and ve- 
 getables may be added. As soon as they begin to eat, an open frame 
 or railing should be placed in the sty, under which the little pigs can 
 run, and on the other side of this should be the small troughs contain- 
 ing their food ; for it never answers to let them eat out of the same 
 trough with the mother, both because the food set before her is gene- 
 rally too strong and stimulating for them, and, besides, the chances are 
 they would not geta mouthful. Those intended to be killed for " suck- 
 ing-pigs " should not be above four weeks old ; most persons kill them 
 for this purpose on the twenty-first or twenty-second day. The others, 
 excepting those which are kept for the purpose of breeding, should be 
 castrated at the same time.* 
 
 The age at which pigs may be weaned with the greatest advantage 
 is when they are about eight or ten weeks old ; many persons, how- 
 ever, wean them as early as six weeks, but then they seldom turn out 
 so well. They should not be taken from the sow at once, but gradu- 
 ally weaned. At first they should be removed from her for a certain 
 number of hours each day, and accustomed to be driven by hunger to 
 eat from the trough ; then they may be turned out for an hour without 
 her, and afterwards shut up while she is turned out also by herself. 
 Subsequently they must only be allowed to suck so often in the twenty- 
 four hours ; perhaps six times at first, then four, then twice, and at last 
 only once; and meanwhile they must be proportionally better and more 
 plentifully fed, and the mother's diet in a like manner diminished; thus 
 will the weaning be accomplished without danger or evil consequences 
 to either. Some persons have advised that the whole litter should not 
 be weaned at once ; we do not, however, agree with thejn, unless it 
 should happen that one or two of the young ones are much weaker and 
 smaller than the others ; in such case, if the sow remains in tolerable 
 
 * Our friend and fellow-practitioner, Mr. Horsefield, of Wenlworth, informs us that 
 " sucking-pigs kept in piggeries having stone pavements are apt to have the white flux, 
 a bowel-complaint very prejudicial to their growth. To prevent or cure them of this 
 malady,'* he says, " let there be plenty of fresh earth strewn for them in the inner pig. 
 gery, which they will eat with avidity, and thus be kept alive and in good condition." 
 
WEANING. 131 
 
 condition, they might be suffered to Buck for a week longer ; but such 
 a mode of proceeding should be an exception, not a general rule. 
 
 Pigs are more easily weaned than almost any other animals because 
 they learn to feed sooner ; but nevertheless this is always a somewhat 
 critical period, and great attention must be paid to them if we would 
 have them grow up strong, healthy animals. Their sties must be warm, 
 dry, clean, well ventilated, and weather-tight. They should have the 
 Tun of a grass meadow or paddock for an hour or two every fine day, 
 in the spring and summer, or be turned into the farm-yard among the 
 cattle in the winter, as fresh air and exercise tend to prevent them from 
 becoming rickety or crooked in the legs. 
 
 Butter-milk, whey, "and the refuse of the dairy, with boiled or steamed 
 potatoes, pollard, and oat or barleymeal, may be given as food ; also 
 boiled cabbage and lettuce, macerated and bruised oats, barley, and 
 even wheat ; in short, the most nutritious and succulent food that cir- 
 cumstances will permit of, and a daily run at grass wherever it is pos- 
 sible. At first their food should all be given to them warm, and be 
 tolerably soft, in order better to assimilate with the state of the diges- 
 tive functions ; gradually and soon they must be accustomed to take it 
 cold, it being far better for them so when once they are used to it; and 
 they must also learn to masticate their food. 
 
 Newly-weaned pigs require five or six meals in the twenty-four hours. 
 In about ten days one may be omitted ; in another week, a second ; and 
 then they must do with three regular meals each day. 
 
 But let it be understood that, while we would enforce the necessity 
 of good and ample feeding, we highly deprecate all excess, and all 
 stimulating, heating diet, such tending to vitiate the animal powers, 
 often to lay the foundation of disease, and never to produce good, sound, 
 well-flavoured flesh. 
 
 A little sulphur mingled with the food, or a small quantity of Epsom 
 or Glauber's salts dissolved in the water, will frequently prove benefi- 
 cial. 
 
 A plentiful supply of clear cold water should always be within their 
 reach; the food left in the trough after the animals have done eating 
 should be removed, and the trough thoroughly rinsed out before any 
 more is put into it. Strict attention should be paid to cleanliness ; in- 
 deed, many persons assert that there is no comparison in point of 
 thriving between an animal well cleaned and repeatedly brushed and 
 another that is left to itself; although both shall be in feeding and all 
 other respects treated exactly the same, the latter will not weigh so 
 much as the former by many pounds. 
 
 This treatment will bring them on to the time when the owner must 
 separate those he intends for breeders from those which are to be fat- 
 tened for the market. The boars and sows should be kept apart from 
 the period of weaning. 
 
 The question of which is most profitable — to breed swine, or to buy 
 young pigs and fatten them — will best be determined by the indivi- 
 duals who have to study it, for they know best what resources they can 
 command, and what chance of profits each of these separate branches 
 offers. 
 
 There was an interesting paper published some little time since in 
 the " Farmer's Magazine," calculating the number of pigs, which, in the 
 
132 the Pie. 
 
 coarse of ten years, may be raised from two one-year old sows. We 
 give it verbatim, as many of our readers have probably never entered 
 into such a calculation, or formed the least idea of the amazing quantity 
 of animal food which may be derived from this kind of stock : — 
 
 " I am indebted to a worthy and sensible friend, and a friend also of 
 the poor, for the following estimate of what I shall term ' pig popula- 
 tion,' and set it in array against the increasing demands of the home 
 population, which goes on at the rate of not quite 1£ per cent, per an- 
 num — nay, little more than 1£ by the last ten years' census. I think, 
 with the assistance of my above-mentioned friend, I can feed the super- 
 numeraries well, and in this way, at all events, save their bacon. 
 Would you credit the assertion that in ten years — ten short years — and 
 from two breeding sows, many millions can be produced ? Would you 
 suppose (for I certainly had no conception of the fact) that more than 
 the present or even anticipated population of the country for ten years 
 to come is not equal to the number of pigs to be thus born and bred in 
 the same period, if we choose? But I shall proceed to the proof and 
 give the figures, which are unanswerable arguments when well founded. 
 His calculation, then, is as follows, viz. that in one year two sows (one 
 year old) will breed ten each, of which we shall assume that one-half 
 are females, and so proceed on that assumed equality. , 
 
 " The first year there will be males and females - - - 20 
 
 From which take the males ... 10 
 
 And we have the result as breeders - - 10 
 
 At the second year, then, wc may fairly take the same ratio of ten 
 
 to each, viz. ---.-.-10 
 
 2)100 
 
 And it gives us a hundred males and females, leaving, con- — - — 
 
 quently, for the third year, breeders . . -50 
 
 I shall now drop the text, and merely give the figures, the same 
 
 principle applying throughout - 10 
 
 Third year ...... - 2)500 
 
 250 
 10 
 
 Fourth year - .... 2)2,500 
 
 1,250 
 10 
 
 Fifth jear - . .. . 2)12,500 
 
 6,250 
 10 
 
 Sixth year ..... 2)62,500 
 
 31, 250 
 10 
 
 312,500 
 
FECUNDITY. 133 
 
 Seventh year ...... 2)312,500 
 
 156,250 
 10 
 
 Eighth year ...... 2)1,562,500 
 
 781,250 
 10 
 
 Ninth year ..... 2)7,812,500 
 
 3,906,250 
 10 
 
 Tenth year, males and females .... 39,062,500 
 
 " I hope my friend has brought his pigs to a good market; but to 
 equalize the supply, I shall, for the present purpose, take only the male 
 half of the pig population for food, leaving the breeders to go on. In 
 this way we can kill and eat ten the first year — no bad increase from 
 two sows recollect ; the second year, 5Q ; the third, 250 ; the fourth, 
 1250 ; the fifth, 6250 ; the sixth, 31,250 (pork in abundance now ;) the 
 seventh, 156,250 (still more abundant;) the eighth, 781,250; the ninth, 
 3,906,250 ; and the tenth, when divided in like manner, the enormous 
 number of 19,531,250 for food, without interfering with the breeders, 
 who, I presume, by this time will probably require killing also. Now, 
 I am not aware that much commentary is required on this prolific sub- 
 ject ; every man who reads this short paper will at once draw his own 
 conclusion from the facts. They are, however, of a very cheering de- 
 scription, and drawn from the breeding of one domestic animal only, 
 and amply prove what abundant stores nature and the God of nature 
 have provided for human subsistence. I shall close this paper with the 
 sensible practical observation of my friend in reference to this subject, 
 as, after all, it is in practice only that the benefits open to all are to be 
 received by any. In the county of Kent, he informs me, there are 
 31,000 agricultural families or farmers. It is a very easy matter for 
 each to keep two breeding-sows, which in three years would produce 
 in round numbers 15,000,000 of pigs. 
 
 " In the fifty-two counties of England, he also adds, the number of 
 agricultural families is 760,000; so that, by the same mode of calcula- 
 tion as for Kent, of every farmer keeping two sows, the produce would 
 be, in the like period, 380,000,000 pigs. One good breeding sow to 
 each would consequently produce 15,000,000. As I have said, and say 
 again, is this all true? for if so, what prevents the immediate use of the 
 same beneficial proceeding to every one, not even omitting the allot- 
 ment tenant? What more easy and practicable than to breed on a 
 small scale, or to join two or three families together, and thus diminish 
 expense and increase profits! I throw out the hint, and hope that good 
 may arise from a due consideration of the. prominent facts already 
 stated.'' 
 
 With the following valuable remarks by that well-known practical 
 agriculturist and grazier, Arthur Young, we will conclude this chap- 
 ter: — 
 
134 THE PIG. 
 
 " The breeding of swine being one of the most profitable articles in 
 the whole business of a farm, the husbandman cannot pay too much 
 attention to it. I shall, in as few words as the subject will admit, give 
 an account of the best system to be pursued in this branch of his busi- 
 ness. The farmer who would make a considerable profit by hogs must 
 determine to keep a proper number of sows in order to breed many 
 pigs ; but this resolution ought to be preceded by the most careful de- 
 termination to prepare crops proper for supporting this stock. The 
 proper ones for that purpose are barley, buck, beans, peas, clover, pota- 
 toes, or carrots. In the common management, a farmer keeps only a 
 sow or two because his dairy will do no more; but in the system of 
 planting crops purposely for swine, a different conduct must necessarily 
 be pursued. Potatoes, carrots, Swedish turnips, and cabbages, must 
 be provided for the sows and stores from October till the end of May, 
 by which time clover, chicory, or lucerne should be ready to receive 
 them, which will carry them till the stubbles are cleared ; so that the 
 whole year is filled up with these plants, and the common offal of the 
 barn-door and the corn-fields. When the sows pig, meal must be pro- 
 vided to make wash by mixing it with water. This in summer will 
 be good enough for their support, and in winter it must be mixed with 
 boiled roots, oats, and pea-soup, for the young pigs. If cows are kept, 
 then the dairy-wash is to he used in the above mixtures. 
 
 " Upon this system, a farmer may proportion his swine to his crops, 
 or his crops to his swine ; and he will find that for the whole year he 
 should have about an equal quantity of roots and grass, and half as 
 much corn as potatoes. For carrying the profit to the highest advan- 
 tage, the sows should pig but twice a-year, that is, in April and Au- 
 gust, by which means there will never be a long and expensive season 
 for rearing pigs before they are put to the staple food of clover or po- 
 tatoes, &c; but this circumstance is much removed by the provision 
 of crops raised expressly for the swine. 
 
 " Upon this plan the annual sale of lean hogs should be in October, 
 the litters of April sold then as stores, and those of August kept till 
 October twelvemonth to sell for baconers, if the farmer feeds none 
 himself. The stock upon hand this month will therefore be the sows, 
 and the pigs littered in the preceding August, all which should have 
 roots from the store, and run at the same time in the farm-yard, for 
 shacking the straw of the barn-doors. In proportion to what they find 
 in this, you must supply them with roots, giving enough to keep them 
 in growth."* 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 On Feeding Swine— Fat Pigs— Callle Shows— Whpy, Milk, and Dairy Refuse— Refuse 
 and Grains of Distilleries and Bleweries — Residue of Starch Manufactories — Vege- 
 tables and Roots— Fruits— Gram— Soiling and Pasturing Swine— Animal Substances 
 as Food for them— Genertil Directions fur Feeding and Fattening. 
 
 The establishment of agricultural societies and cattle-shows formed 
 the commencement of a new era in the breeding of all domesticated 
 
 * Farmer's Calendar, 1804. 
 
BREEDING. 135 
 
 animals, and especially of swine, which had, previously to that epoch, 
 been very much neglected. There cannot be a doubt but that the com- 
 petition, the assembling together of breeders from all counties and even 
 from abroad, the comparison of the different animals brought together, 
 and the conclusions drawn in many minds, tend materially to the eluci- 
 dation and advancement of the science of breeding. Persons resident 
 in remote localities are apt to set up for themselves some particular 
 standard of excellence, and make it the whole aim of their endeavours 
 to obtain arid develop certain points in an animal, and having done this 
 they rest satisfied ; but when the annual cattle-show places before them 
 other and evidently superior animals, they perceive how much too 
 limited, and often how erroneous, have been their views, and set to 
 work afresh to improve upon the knowledge thus acquired. 
 
 But there is no good without its attendant evil. It was, doubtless, 
 originally intended by those who established the distribution of prizes 
 for certain kinds of stock, that the prize animal should be the most ex- 
 cellent as to its points, the most useful to the farmer, breeder, and 
 butcher, and altogether the most profitable ; but not that it should be the 
 fattest ! It is reported that, on Hannah More being asked what was 
 the use of cattle-shows, she replied, "To induce people to make beef 
 and mutton so fat that nobody can eat it." This certainly is the abuse 
 of them, and in no class of animals is it carried to such an extent as in 
 swine. The greedy propensities of the poor animal are worked upon ; 
 he is shut up, often in darkness, and fed and suffered to gorge himself 
 until he can scarcely move or breathe, and often dies of suffocation, or 
 is obliged to-be killed, from the simple exertion of being brought to the 
 show in the most easy and careful manner. A premium would be far 
 better bestowed upon the most useful and profitable animal, the one 
 most likely to make good bacon or pork, than on these huge masses of 
 obesity, whose superabundance of fat is fit for little else but the melting- 
 pot. As much money is often wasted on one of these monsters as would 
 purchase food for half dozen really profitable animals. And to what 
 purpose ? Simply to test the elastic power of a pig's skin ? "No," 
 reply the advocates of this species of monomania, "but to discover 
 which breeds can be fattened to the greatest , size in the shortest time, 
 and on the smallest amount of food." And to this plea we can only 
 reply, that while we admit the value of such knowledge, we think it 
 might be attained without the sacrifice of a fine animal, at much less 
 expense, and far more satisfactorily. Let the animals be fat, but do 
 do not let them be a mere bladder of lard, " of shape undefined," every 
 point lost and buried. It is fine and profitable breeds we require, not 
 monstrosities. The grand aim of agricultural societies is to promote 
 the improvement of the breeds, and consequently the profit of the 
 breeder, and general advantage. We trust that this will shortly be 
 fully understood and carried out, and the cattle-shows become, as it 
 were, model-rooms, instead of, mere exhibitions of over-fed, panting, 
 unshapely beasts. But it is not our feeble voice alone which is raised 
 against this unnatural stuffing : public attention has latterly been much 
 called to this point ; and among others, our merry critic Punch, who 
 fails not to lash each passing folly of the age, has, as will be seen by 
 the following epitaph, not been unmindful of this one: — 
 
136 THE PIG. 
 
 "Epitaph on a Prize Pig. 
 
 " here lies 
 
 all that was eatable 
 
 of a prize pig. 
 
 he was born 
 
 on february 1, 1845 : 
 
 he was fed 
 
 on milk, potatoes, and 
 
 barley-meal: 
 
 he was slaughtered 
 
 on december 24, 1846, 
 
 WEIGHING 20st. 91bS. 
 
 STOP, TRAVELLER ! 
 
 AND REFLECT HOW SMALL A PORTION 
 
 OF THIS VAST PIG 
 
 WAS PORE SUITABLE 
 
 FOR HUMAN FOOD." 
 
 Hurtrel D'Arboval, treating of Obesity, says, " There is, however no 
 animal so liable to become over-fat, as the pig, and especially the Chi- 
 nese and Siamese swine. Naturally inclined to corpulence and glut- 
 tony, they easily acquire an enormous bulk; and when fat has once 
 begun to accumulate, the animal eats little, breathes with difficulty, be- 
 comes inert, unable to sustain his own weight, and deficient in sensa- 
 tion. We have seen wretched pigs so fat that they were obliged to be 
 lifted or dragged out of the sty whenever it was necessary to move them. 
 We have also made incisions in their buttocks, and even taken off por- 
 tions of skin from their backs, without their betraying any sense of 
 pain. We saw one hog that had lain for a considerable period on one 
 side, too powerless or too inert even to shift its position, and when it 
 was raised a large hole was perceived in that part of the back which, 
 had been undermost. This had been made by rats feeding and gnaw- 
 ing into the fat of the beast, evidently without its being in the least 
 conscious of their proceedings. 
 
 "Animals that have been castrated are always more disposed to 
 obesity."* 
 
 We will now proceed to consider the various modes of keeping and 
 feeding swine and their relative value, and the other incidental matters 
 which may develope themselves as we proceed. 
 
 Swine are generally fattened for pork at from six to nine months old, 
 and for bacon at from a twelvemonth to two years. Eighteen months 
 is generally considered to be the proper age for a good bacon-hog. 
 
 The feeding of pigs will always, in a great measure, depend upon the 
 circumstances of the owner, upon the kind of food which he has at his 
 disposal and can best spare, and the purpose forVwhich he intends the 
 animals. It will also be in some degree regulated by the season, it 
 being possible to feed pigs very differently in the summer to what they 
 are fed in the winter. During the former they can either be sty-fed or 
 pastured, or both; and there is also a greater variety of vegetables and 
 
 * Hirrtnl D'Arboval : Dictionnaire de MiSdecine et de Chirurgie VSWrinaire, vol. iii. 
 
RESIDUE OF STARCH MANUFACTORIES. 137 
 
 green food for them, as well as of dairy refuse ; while in the winter they 
 must be home-fed, and in most oases their diet limited to roots, peas, 
 beans, or other such dried food, and wash composed of the scanty re- 
 sidue of the dairy, or supplied from the house 01 brewery. 
 
 WHEY, MILK, AND DAIRY REFUSE. 
 
 For sty-fed pigs the washings of the dairy, as butter and skim-milk, 
 whey, &c, are excellent, and especially whey thickened with barley, 
 or oat, or pea-meal, whey being more nourishing than skim-milk ; the 
 animals thrive and make flesh so well on it, that many farmers are of 
 opinion that this mode of employing their sour milk is more profitable 
 than making cheese. But when the swine have once become habi- 
 tuated to this kind of diet it must be continued, as they would fall off 
 if put upon any other. There was a beautiful lot of Coleshill pigs ex- 
 hibited at the last Smithfield Club Cattle-Show, belonging to the Earl 
 of Radnor, aged twenty-one weeks, which had been fattened on forty- 
 eight-bushels of barley-meal and six bushels of potatoes, with an ade- 
 quate quantity of whey. Wherever, therefore, there are large dairies, 
 swine may be most advantageously kept, the excellence of dairy-fed 
 pork being incontestable. ' 
 
 WASH, GRAINS, AND REFUSE OF BREWERIES AND DISTILLERIES. 
 
 The refuse wash and grains and other residue of breweries and 
 distilleries may also be given to swine with advantage, and seem to in- 
 duce a tendency to lay on flesh, but not in too large quantities, or un- 
 mixed with other and more substantial food ; as, although they gain 
 flesh rapidly when fed on it, the meat is not firm, and never makes 
 good bacon. 
 
 Thacr advises that the refuse of brandy-distilleries should always be 
 diluted with water at first, otherwise the animals will reject it, or, if 
 they take it, become giddy, and be unable to keep their feet; after- 
 wards, the quantity of this food may be gradually increased till they 
 are completely accustomed to it. Neuenhahn says that the refuse of 
 the brandy-distillery cannot be given to the pigs too warm, or too soon 
 after its removal from the still, and that it never heats their blood ; but 
 that, if it be allowed to get cold and stale, it is rather injurious than 
 beneficial to them. On the other hand, many experienced distillers, 
 who fatten large numbers of hogs, assure us that it requires great atten- 
 tion, and the employment of a man on whose care we can rely, to pre- 
 vent this residue from being given to the animals while too warm, for 
 it is then that it injures and materially retards their growth. It should 
 be sometimes thick, sometimes diluted with water, and at others mixed 
 with meal or pollard, in order, by thus varying the food, to keep up the 
 appetite of the animals. 
 
 RESIDUE OF STARCH MANUFACTORIES. 
 
 The residue of the manufacture of starch, the products of the various 
 
 washings which this precaution involves, and the refuse of wheat, are 
 
 far superior to brewers' and distillers' refuse. Hogs fed upon these 
 
 articles fatten more quickly, produce firmer flesh, more substantial 
 
 10 
 
138 THE PIG. 
 
 bacon, and a greater quantity of lard. At first the animals will often 
 eat these matters with great avidity, and even to excess, and when this 
 is the case they invariably become disgusted and refuse them after a 
 time. The quantity must therefore be carefully regulated, and the 
 troughs kept very clean. If this kind of food be used alternately with 
 one of a different nature, the fattening will be effected with greater cer- 
 tainty. The quantity of this refuse collected at once is often greater 
 than can be consumed at the time, and it is difficult to store it up, 
 because its animal portions so soon putrefy. The only mode of pre- 
 servation is to dry it, make it into cakes, and bake it.* 
 
 VEGETABLES AND HOOTS. 
 
 Cabbage and lettuce-leaves, turnip-greens, and bean and pea-haulm, 
 may be given to pigs in moderate quantities with advantage, but these 
 substances should be chopped up small and mingled in the wash, as 
 the animals, being very fond of such food, will otherwise devour it too 
 ravenously to be able properly to masticate it. 
 
 Almost all our common roots are well adapted for feeding pigs ; car- 
 rots, turnips, parsnips, beet-root, and last, but not least, the potato, are 
 all exceedingly nutritive, even whqn given in a raw state, but that 
 cooking tends materially to increase their nourishing powers is a fact 
 well attested by numerous experiments and general experience. Pota- 
 toes should be steamed, the other roots boiled. In Guernsey the 
 parsnip is extensively used in the feeding of pigs, especially from 
 September to Christmas, and eight perches of land, each producing on 
 the average 250 lbs. of this root, are considered as the general allowance 
 for fattening a pig in store order. But the flesh of animals thus fed is 
 not so firm as that of pigs fed on pea or barley-meal with a slight addi- 
 tion of corn, and shrinks when boiled, instead of plumping. Carrots 
 are considered by some persons to fatten swine more rapidly than any 
 other root, and to impart a particularly delicate flavour to the flesfi ; 
 they may be given raw. Potatoes are, however, the staple food in by 
 far the greater part of England, and the whole of Ireland. They should 
 be steamed, and then mashed with meal or pea-flower in whey or sour 
 milk (where it can be had,) or in wash or clear water, and made of the 
 consistence of porridge. The water in which the potatoes have been 
 cooked should always be thrown away. This root should, however, 
 only be given for a short time, as it is by no means a rapid fattener, 
 and does not make firm good fat, — and never alone if it can be avoided. 
 Turnips should never be given while any other kind of food can be 
 obtained, as their effects are far from beneficial, and often quite the 
 contrary. Beans and peas, both green, dried, and ground, or bruised 
 and macerated, form excellent food. Peas are considered to produce 
 firmer flesh, and to fatten quicker than beans. The grey pea is gener- 
 ally allowed to be the best adapted for swine, and to contain most 
 nutrition. Experiments have been made with the blue pea, but hogs 
 fed on it had always a tendency to diarrhoea. Every part of the pea, 
 the haulm, the cods, and the peas themselves, may be used in feeding 
 pigs. Sir John Sinclair found green beans also very advantageous 
 food for swine ; he gives pre ference to the Windsor bean, and advises 
 
 * Thiier's Principles of Agriculture. 
 
FRUITS. ] 39 
 
 that two or three successive crops of them should be sown in order to 
 secure a constant supply from July until September. 
 
 In the " Quarterly Journal of Agriculture " we find an account of 
 some experiments made with the view of testing the relative fattening 
 powers of carrots, potatoes, peas, wheat, and buckwheat. 
 
 Five couples of pigs were separately put up to fatten : — 
 
 Increase of Weight. 
 To couple 1 was given 55 decalitres * of peas . . , 22 st. 7 Ins. 
 
 ,,2 ,, 2 SI ,, balls of wheat . 24 St. 3 lbs. 
 
 ,,3 , , 96 ,, buckwheat . 28 st. 10 lbs. 
 
 ,,4 ,, 98 ,, boiled potatoes . 20 st. 4 lbs. 
 
 ..5 , , 175 , , carrots . . 213 st. 2 lbs. 
 
 These results of the experiment are, however, unsatisfactory, because 
 it is not mentioned whether the pigs were all of the same age and 
 weight, nor is it stated whether the quantity of food marked in the table 
 was as much as the pigs could consume. 
 
 We have always believed that peas were the most nutritious food 
 that could be given to pigs, and this experiment confirms the belief, as 
 may be seen on comparing the relative increase of weight obtained 
 from the various kinds of food, viz. :— .55 decalitres of peas gave an 
 increase of 22 stone 7 lbs., or nearly 6 lbs. of increase of pork from 1 
 decaliter of peas ; whereas from boiled carrots oply 28 stone 2 lbs. of 
 increase were obtained from 175 decalitres, or about 2£ lbs. from 1 
 decalitre, giving the advantage over the peas in the ratio of 2£ : 1. The 
 next most nourishing food is buckwheatjTwhich nearly gives 4 lbs. of 
 pork from 1 decalitre. Boiled potatoes are next, giving nearly 3 lbs. 
 of pork from 1 decalitre ; and the lowest quantity of pork is that obtained 
 from the balls of wheat, which is as low as 1 lb. from 1 decalitre. 
 Flour would no doubt fatten better than wheat, especially if the feeds 
 were made into small dry balls of dough and frequently administered. 
 
 With the exception of the acorn we have seldom a sufficiently abun- 
 dant crop of fruit of any kind to admit of our making it an article of food 
 for swine. When England was rich in forest land, the mastage or pan- 
 nage of swine in these localities was a valuable privilege, for if the 
 animals did not absolutely get fat, they were kept in fair condition at no 
 expense to the owner beyond that of paying a person to look after them. 
 
 Hogs will eat the acorns and beech-mast greedily, and certainly thrive 
 to a certain extent on this food, so far that it is an easy matter to fatten 
 them afterwards. Parkinson says, — " When I lived with my father, 
 acorns were so plentiful in the woods one year, that they made the pigs 
 sufficiently fat for bacon withoutany other food. The flesh was equally 
 as good and as well-flavoured as that of other animals that had been fed 
 on beans and peas." Acorns that have become dry in the sun and air 
 are far more profitable than those which'are fresh fallen and green ; but 
 the way in which they may be most advantageously employed is to 
 bake or roast them, and then crush them, and either boil them to a pulp, 
 or pour boiling water upon them and let it stand until cool: the addition 
 of a little salt makes an exceedingly palatable food, which the animals 
 
 * A decalitre is equal to 15 pints. 
 
140 THE PIG. 
 
 greedily suck up, and which tends far more to fatten them than the raw • 
 acorn would. 
 
 Beech-mast eaten alone makes the fat oily and impoverishes the lean, 
 but when taken in conjunction with acorns the one fruit qualifies the 
 other and the combined effect is good. 
 
 In many parts of the Continent where chestnuts are grown in large 
 quantities they constitute a considerable item in the feeding of swine, 
 and are exceedingly nutritious, especially when given at the latter part 
 of the fattening process. They impart firmness and a delicate flavour 
 to the meat. Few persons give chestnuts in a raw state ; they are either 
 roasted in an oven or macerated in boiling water. The same reason 
 may be given here as will apply to all kinds of roots and fruits, not 
 only when used as food for swine, but also for other animals, and even 
 for the human being: they are rendered more digestible by cooking, 
 divested of their crudeness, and thus better calculated to nourish the 
 system without fatiguing or disordering its powers. Besides which 
 there is a decided saving effected. Some even go so faras to calculate 
 that cooked, or ground, or bruised food, goes as far again as that which 
 is given in its natural state or merely cut up. 
 
 In America, where there is an abundance of apples and pumpkins, 
 these fruits are given to swine : we quote an account related by a great 
 breeder of these animals, who attaches much value to these two articles 
 of food, which seems to testify their utility: — 
 
 " On the 10th of October twenty swine were put up to fatten, all of 
 which were only in middling store order, in consequence of the scarcity 
 of feed. The cows producing very little wash from the dairy, and the 
 crop of apples heing scanty this season, nothing had been given them 
 during summer but a small orchard containing one acre and a-half of 
 land (with the premature apples which fell,) in which was a pond of 
 water, a very essential requisite to hogs, and one to which, under the 
 powerful influence of the sun, they will resort for their chief comfort. , 
 
 "The above twenty swine were divided into three lots and closely 
 confined ; we proceeded to fatten them by steaming 4 bushels of small 
 potatoes, 12 bushels of appte pomace, 4 bushels of pumpkins, and 1 cwt. 
 of buckwheat cornel, adding a little salt, the whole being well incorpo- 
 rated together while hot from the steamer, with a wooden pounder, and 
 suffered to undergo fermentation before it was used as food : they were 
 at the same time supplied with plenty of charcoal and pure water. 
 While feeding them with the first steamer of the compound a more than 
 ordinary moisture was observed on their litter, which was occasioned 
 by urine : a knowledge of animal nature convinced the owner that any 
 more than an ordinary flow would weaken the system, and retard the 
 progress of fattening; and he attributed this evil to the steamed pump- 
 kins acting as a diuretic, stimulating the kidneys and increasing the 
 evacuation of urine. In the next steamer, therefore, 4 bushels of ruta- 
 baga were substituted for the pumpkins, which had the desired effect. 
 This experiment afforded proof that a mixture thus compounded contains 
 a larger mass of nutritive material ready prepared for the action of the 
 stomach, and therefore producing flesh more rapidly than any other com- 
 bination of food made use of. All the waste apples being used up, and 
 there being a greater quantity of soft corn on hand than usual, that was 
 given to the hogs, but instead of their condition improving they fell off, 
 
GRAIN. 141 
 
 .and the owner was under the necessity of procuring two loads of apple 
 pomace from his neighbours, and commencing the steaming and feeding 
 again; it was continued with the same good effect until eight days be- 
 fore the animals were killed, during which latter period they were fed 
 with sound corn; they were slaughtered on the 1st of December. The 
 expense of fattening and the produce of pork were as follows : — 
 
 Dr. 
 
 32 bushels of small potatoes, at 2s. 
 
 32 bushels of rutabaga, including pumpkins, at -s. 
 
 10 bushles of soft corn, at 45. . . 
 
 10 cwt. of buckwheat, at $1 per cvvt. 
 
 20 bushels of sound corn, at os. Cd. 
 
 Cr. 
 By 40 cwt. of pork, at $7£ per cwt. 
 Deduct expense. 
 
 
 Dolls. 
 
 Cts 
 
 
 8 
 
 00 
 
 
 8 
 
 00 
 
 
 5 
 
 Oil 
 
 
 10 
 
 00 
 
 
 16 
 
 25 
 
 
 47 
 
 25 
 
 Dolls. 
 
 Cts. 
 
 
 . 300 
 
 00 
 
 
 . 47 
 
 S5 
 
 
 2S2 75" * 
 
 It is true that we have not often a superabundance of apples ; but still 
 in years when the crop is plentiful, the windfalls, diseased or injured 
 apples, and the refuse left after the making of cider, may be given to 
 the pigs, and will prove a fair substitute for more expensive food, if 
 not in itself peculiarly advantageous; especially when economy in the 
 keep is more studied than a rapid system of fattening. 
 
 Nuts should never be given to swine ; they make the fat soft and 
 greasy, and impart a sweet, unpleasant flavour to the flesh. Pigs are, 
 however, exceedingly fond of them ; so much so, that when they can 
 get nuts they care little to touch any other kind of food. 
 
 There is nothing so nutritious, so eminently and in every way adapt" 
 ed for the purpose of fattening, as are the various kinds of grain ; the 
 only drawback is, that they are too expensive to be used to any great 
 extent for this purpose, otherwise no animal should be considered as 
 properly fattened unless some kind of grain had been given during the 
 latter part of the time; as nothing tends more to create a firmness as 
 well as delicacy in the flesh. It has been calculated that for every 
 bushel, half of peas and half of barley, that a hog eats, it gains from 
 nine to ten or eleven pounds of flesh. 
 
 Two pigs of about eight months old, were purchased and put up to 
 fatten on the 23d of December, 1834 ; they then weighed 316 lbs. They 
 were put into a warm sty and fed on rye and corn-meal, having three 
 regular feeds per diem, of two quarts each, up to the following October, 
 when they received three quarts at each feed, or nine quarts a-day for 
 about a month. From that time until the 7th of December, 1835, a 
 period of five weeks, their feeds were raised another quart, making now 
 twelve quarts a-day. Besides this they had the refuse of the milk of 
 two cows, and occasionally a very little green meat. When slaughtered, 
 they weighed 81 St. 4 lbs. of 14 lbs. to the stone, which, allowing for 
 one-third of offal, will amount to the gain of about 3 J lbs. of live weight 
 
 * The Cultivator, vol. ii. American Agricultural Magazine. 
 
142 THE PIG. 
 
 per day. They ate in the whole fifty bushels of rye and corn ground ; 
 in cold weather it was scalded and given to them warm, and in the 
 summer put into thei trough and milk poured upon it.* 
 
 There are also repeated instances in which the animals have in- 
 creased in weight 2 lbs., 2J lbs., and even 3 lbs. a day, while fed 
 on barleymeal only, or barleymeal and peas, or potatoes ; the relative 
 prices, however, of grain and pork will always decide the question of 
 the advantage of this mode of feeding far better than volumes of 
 experiments or comments. 
 
 Barley and oats are considered to be best adapted for fattening swine. 
 Some persons give the preference to oats, and where the grain is given 
 whole they certainly are more digestible and less heating; but ground 
 barley or barleymeal is universally allowed to be the roost nutritious of 
 all food. 
 
 There are various ways of giving grain to swine: — Raw and dry, 
 roasted or malted, bruised and macerated, boiled, green, and growey or 
 germinating wheat; and, lastly, ground to meal or farina. Of these the 
 first two are the least advantageous, as the grain is then often but im- 
 perfectly masticated, and consequently produces indigestion. Where- 
 ever it is thus given the animals must be well supplied with water. A 
 little whole grain given once a-day, or every other day, to pigs fed on 
 barleymeal, is considered to be beneficial and add to the firmness of 
 the flesh. 
 
 Macerated grain is better, or rather would be if the animals would 
 eat it freely, which they seldom will do. Its fattening properties are 
 increased if, after maceration, it is suffered to lie and germinate, and 
 then dried or malted; or left to stand in the water until the whole 
 turns sour. 
 
 Many persons consider that grain boiled until the husk bursts is 
 better adapted for feeding swine in this form than when ground, and is 
 likewise more economical ; the only difference, however, in this latter 
 respect, will depend upon whether the expense of having it ground be 
 greater or less than that of the fuel necessary to boil it. 
 
 It is our opinion that the best, most economical and advantageous 
 form in which grain can be used is that of meal moistened with water, 
 whey or sour orskim-milk, into a kind of soup or porridge. The fluid, 
 whatever it may be, which is in the first place poured upon it, should 
 never be more than lukewarm, and had better be quite cold; hot or 
 boiling liquid will cause the meal to conglomerate into lumps of paste, 
 not easily dissolved, and very likely to bring on indigestion. The Rev. 
 Arthur Young, in his work on fattening cattle and swine, gives the 
 following directions as to the best method of employing this kind of 
 food :— " The most profitable method of converting corn of any kind 
 into food for hogs is to grind it into meal, and mix this with water in 
 cistern?, in the proportion of five bushels of meal to one hundred gal- 
 lons of water; stir it well several times a-day, for three weeks in cold 
 weather, or for a fortnight in a warmer season, by which it will have 
 fermented well and become acid, till which time it is not ready to give. 
 It should bestirred immediately before feeding. Two or three cisterns 
 should be kept fermenting in succession, that no necessity may occur 
 
 * The Cultivator, vol. ii. 
 
GRAIN. 143 
 
 of giving it not duly prepared. The difference in profit between feed- 
 ing in this manner, and giving the grain whole, is very great, so great 
 that whoever tries it once will not be apt to change it for the common 
 method." 
 
 Thaer informs us that ground corn or coarse meal made into sour 
 dough (by mixing the farina or meal with warm water and a little yeast, 
 and then suffering it to sland in a high temperature until it turns sour, 
 which it will do in the course of a day,) is a better and more profitable 
 mode of feeding swine on grain than any other. A portion of the sour 
 dough is then softened with water and given to the pigs, with a small 
 portion of ground corn or barleymeal stirred up in it. The animals 
 relish this food exceedingly, and thrive rapidly upon it; but if the 
 dough is given alone, although they seem to make flesh as quickly, the 
 meat is flabby and the fat porous. Peas might be added instead of the 
 farina or meal, or a little whole barley or oats. 
 
 The same author likewise says:— r" Some persons appear to be ex- 
 ceedingly successful in fattening their pigs on bread made of coarse 
 rye or barleymeal. They cut this bread in pieces, dry it in an oven, 
 then soak it in water, mash it, and give it to the animals in the form of 
 porridge. Where sour milk or whey can be substituted for water, this 
 food is said to surpass all others for quickness and efficacy in fattening, 
 and for the goodness of the flesh and fat it produces." 
 
 Indian corn has latterly been employed in England with great suc- 
 cess in feeding swine, and that it is highly nutritive and well adapted 
 for the purpose there can be no question; here, as inmost cases, the 
 price will in a great measure decide, the advantage or non-advantage of 
 using it. 
 
 Maize is equal if not superior to any kind of grain for fattening, and 
 is extensively used on the Continent and in America, where this article 
 can readily be obtained. The best way is to give it quite at the latter 
 end of the fattening period in small quantities, as a handful or a few 
 ears. It may be given in its natural state, as pigs are so fond of it that 
 they will eat up every seed. The pork and bacon of animals that have 
 been thus fed is peculiarly firm and solid. 
 
 Rice is another valuable adjunct in fattening swine; we will quole 
 in support of its properties the following account, given by an amateur 
 pig-breeder : — 
 
 " We purchased from the government stores several tons of damaged 
 rice at a very cheap rate ; with this we fattened our pigs, and such 
 pork I never saw before or since; the fat was as firm ana solid as the 
 lean, and the flavour of the meat very superior. 
 
 " The way in which the rice was prepared for- food was as follows : — 
 My copper held forty gallons ; in the afternoon it was filled or nearly 
 so, with water; as soon as the water boiled, the fire was raked out, 
 two pails of rice immersed in the water, and the whole covered closely 
 down and left to stand until the morning. On the following day the 
 copper was emptied of its contents, which consisted of a thick jelly, so 
 firm as only to be taken out with a shovel ; and on those contents the 
 pigs were fed. The effect was perfect. 
 
 " As to the economy of the plan, thdt of course must be a matter de- 
 pendent upon circumstances ; we found»it more profitable than almost 
 any other kind of food we could have given, from the price at which 
 
144 THE PIG. 
 
 we were able to purchase the rice, and its goodness. From some slight 
 experiments, I am induced to think that equal parts of rice jelly and 
 mashed potatoes would constitute an excellent food." 
 
 Another person who tried rice as a food for pigs put up two weigh- 
 ing five stone each, and fed them entirely on equal parts of boiled rice 
 and steamed potatoes. At first they progressed but slowly, but even- 
 tually attained the weight of fifteen stones each. Their flesh was fine 
 and delicate, the fat white and firm, and the flavour of both was excel- 
 lent. 
 
 Under the head of grain some writers consider beans, peas, and tares ; 
 we have already spoken of the first two when treating of vegetables, and 
 given it as our opinion that pea-meal is little if at all inferior to barley 
 and oatmeal. The addition of a few dry peas to the porridge made of 
 barleymeal and whey is advantageous; and many persons consider 
 good pea-soup to be equal to any thing in its fattening powers. 
 
 Bran or pollard, unmixed with any farinaceous particles, conduces 
 but little to fatten an animal ; it has been considered that fermentation 
 will increase and develop their nutritive properties, but we should be 
 sorry to be compelled to rely solely on either of these two substances. 
 
 SOILING AND PASTURING SWINE. 
 
 We have already spoken of the advantage of a run at grass to swine 
 of all ages, and permanent pastures are those best adapted to this pur- 
 pose. Soiling, or feeding pigs on cut green meat, has also its advan- 
 tages, and is very much practised wherever there are crops and facilities 
 for so doing. The best artificial grasses and green meat for swine are 
 clover, lucerne, chicory, sainfoin, vetches, tares, and bean and pea- 
 haulm. Some persons feed their swine on these matters in the fields ; 
 but it is a far better practice to turn them into yards or small enclosures, 
 and there have the green meat brought to them, as by this means the 
 animals are not able to wander about so much, exhausting their strength, 
 and feeding in a desultory manner, hut are kept quiet, and their dung 
 more concentrated, especially if good litter or earth is laid down to re- 
 ceive and absorb it. 
 
 This feeding on green meat for awhile cools and purifies the blood, 
 3nd keeps the animals in fair store condition, though it tends but very 
 little to fatten them : where it is intended that it shall perform that office 
 as well, it must not be simply cut green from the field and thrown to 
 them, but chopped up small and salted, and mixed with the screenings 
 of corn, or pollard, or meal, or roots, and moistened with some kind of 
 wash, and left to ferment. 
 
 Clover, hay, or dried vetches may be also given to swine, chopped 
 up small, and in wash ; the former with undoubted advantage, for clover 
 and lucerne are allowed to be exceedingly nutritive to swine ; but many 
 persons consider vetches, whether green or dried, as heating, 
 
 ANIMAL SUBSTANCES. 
 
 There cannot be a doubt but Jhat these are highly fattening in their 
 nature, and also that swine, being somewhat allied to the carnivora, 
 will greedily devour them ; but the question is, Do they not tend to 
 make the flesh strong and rank, to inflame the blood, to create in the 
 
 % 
 
GENERAL DIRECTIONS FOR FEEDING AND FATTENING. 145 
 
 animals a longing for more of such food, and thus lead them to destroy 
 fowls, rabbits, ducks, and even the litters of their companions ? Many 
 will give blood, entrails, scraps of refuse meat, horse-flesh, and such 
 like, to swine, but we should decidedly discourage such practices ; the 
 nearest approach to animal food we would admit should be pot-liquor, 
 and dairy refuse. Animal food is bad for every kind of swine ; and 
 tends to make them savage and feverish, and often lays the foundation 
 of serious inflammation of the intestines. 
 
 GENERAL DIRECTIONS FOR FEEDING AND FATTENING. 
 
 Regular hours of feeding rank among the first of the rules which ought 
 to be observed ; the pigs will soon learn to expect their meals at cer- 
 tain times, and the stomach will be ready for it ; irregularity will there- 
 fore irritate the digestive powers, and prevent so much benefit being 
 derived from the meal when it does come. 
 
 Small meals, and many of them, are preferable to few and large ones, 
 for swine are very apt to gorge and over-eat themselves, or,' if any be 
 left in the trough, to return to it by fits and starts until it is all gone ; 
 in both cases the digestive functions are impaired, and the process is 
 not fully and beneficially performed. The best remedy for indigestion 
 is to let the animals fast for four-and-twenty hours, and then to give 
 them a small quantity of dry food, as barley or peas, whole and salted, 
 and let them fast four or five hours more before resuming their usual 
 food. 
 
 Pigs always eat more when first put up to fatten* than they do after- 
 wards ; therefore the most nutritious food should be reserved until they 
 are getting pretty fat. And at that period the food must be varied, for 
 the appetite being diminished, it becomes necessary to excite it by va- 
 riety ; and, besides, the same aliment constantly given palls upon the 
 stomach, and is incapable of supplying in itself all the various kinds of 
 nutriment required by the increased and altered state of the body. 
 
 It will be found advantageous occasionally to mingle a little sulphur 
 or powdered antimony with the food of swine put up to fatten; about 
 half an ounce once in ten days will usually be sufficient. These me- 
 dicines tend to purify the blood, facilitate digestion, and maintain the 
 appetite. 
 
 An American writer states that he has found gall-nuts, bruised and 
 mingled with charcoal, to act most beneficially on the health of swine 
 while being fattened ; and also recommends that they should always be 
 allowed to root in the earth of a small yard attached to the sty each day, 
 and, if they will, eat some of the earth, which will be good for them. 
 An intelligent writer in the "Quarterly Journal of Agriculture " states, 
 that on the Duke of Montrose's estate, the pigs have ashes .and cinders 
 given them occasionally to correct the acidity of the stomach ; and that 
 they are frequently turned out to a piece of ground sprinkled with lime, 
 which they root in and eat ; or else, if this is not possible on account of 
 the weather, a little magnesia is now and then mingled in the milk. 
 These simple precautions are always more pr less necessary to animals 
 that are highly fed and have little or no exercise, and we should recom- 
 mend them to the attention of all owners of pigs. 
 
 Cleanliness is another sine qud non.* There is no idea so utterly 
 
I p< 
 
 146 THE PIG. 
 
 without foundation as the common one "that pigs love dirt." and that 
 '.hese animals thrive best in the midst of filth. We will quote one 
 anecdote out of the many which have come to our knowledge, in refu- 
 tation of this absurd. opinion : — " A gentleman in Norfolk put np six 
 pigs of almost exactly equal weight, and all in equal health, to fatten ; 
 treated them, with one exception, all exactly the same, and fed them 
 on similar food, given in equal quantities to each, for seven weeks. 
 Three of these pigs were left to shift for themselves so far as cleanli- 
 ness went, and the other three were carefully curried, brushed, and 
 washed. These latter consumed in the seven weeks less food by five 
 bushels than the other three, and yet, when killed, weighed more by 2 
 stone 4 lbs. on the average." 
 
 It should be the duty of some one person to keep the skins of the 
 pigs put up to fatten— indeed we would rather say, of all the pigs kept 
 — perfectly free from mud, dust, or filth of any kind ; and this will best 
 be done by taking care that they always have clear water to bathe in 
 within their reach, clean litter to lie upon, are occasionally combed and 
 brushed, and that the sty is always kept free from filth. Nothing is so' 
 likely to engender lice and diseases of the skin as for it to be suffered 
 to remain in a dirty state. It is true that the maintenance of cleanliness 
 will cost some trouble and expense, but every owner of pigs will best 
 consult his own interests by attention to this point. 
 
 The best period for fattening pigs is the autumn ; then almost every 
 kind of food is to be had in plenty, as well as in perfection ; the weather 
 is neither too hot nor too cold ; and the humidity generally prevalent at 
 this season acts beneficially upon the skin and tissues, and as it were 
 lubricates the whole animal economy. Besides, they are ready to be 
 slaughtered at the period when this can be done with most advantage; 
 when the lowness of the temperature allows more time, and conse- 
 quently ena*bles the owner to turn the flesh to the greatest advantage ; 
 whereas in hot weather the meat must be salted or pickled, eaten or 
 disposed of immediately, or it turns off and is spoiled. In the imme- 
 diate neighbourhood of large towns alone will it be; found advantageous 
 to fatten pigs so as to have them ready to kill in the summer; there the 
 prices which can often be obtained may compensate the dealer for the 
 difficulty and risk he undergoes ; but even the facilities afforded by 
 railways will hardly do this to those who reside in remote localities, as 
 here the expense of the transmit has to be added' to the other items, and 
 the risk is increased by close packing. 
 
 The best kinds of food for fattening pigs are : — 
 
 Milk or whey mixed with barley, oat, corn, or pea-meal, or with boiled 
 and mashed potatoes. 
 
 Potatoes and rice ; potatoes and meal of any of the above kinds, or 
 mashed potatoes and whole grain. 
 
 Peas given whole, or crushed, or in the fqrm of soup, and either 
 alone or mixed with barley meal or potatoes. 
 
 Carrots and parsnips; and especially boiled carrots, which some 
 persons consider to be the most nutritious and fattening food that can 
 be given to swine. 
 
 Pasturage on clover, lucerne, or sainfoin, or a run in the stubble of 
 corn-fields immediately after the^ crop has been cut and got in. 
 
CONSTRUCTION OF PIGGERIES. 147 
 
 Beet-root and ruta-baga are good; tat should only be given when 
 other roots cannot be easily obtained. 
 
 And lastly, grain itself, as corn, barley, and oats, but not rye. 
 
 An American correspondent gives the following recipe i for " an ex- 
 ceeding nutritious food for hogs ;" but it is one which circumstances 
 will not often permit us to make use of: — Boil Irish potatoes, pump- 
 kins, and apples until they are soft; mash them all together, taking 
 care thoroughly to mix and incorporate them, and add a little salt to 
 tfie compound ; swine will be found to relish' this food highly, and 
 thrive uncommonly well upon it." 
 
 A small portion of salt should always be mingled in whatever food 
 is given, as it tends to stimulate the appetite as well as the digestive 
 functions; and an ample supply of good water for drinking be kept 
 within the reach of every animal. 
 
 Indian corn, buckwheat, rice and maize, may doubtless be given 
 with advantage, and are in themselves highly nutritious; but they can- 
 not be reckoned as among the kinds of food generally in use, as, unless 
 under peculiar circumstances, they are tob expensive, and not always 
 to be obtained at all. 
 
 Turnips, cabbage, lettuce, and beans, are not so much adapted for 
 fattening as the kinds of food above enumerated, although these mat- 
 ters often form valuable additions to the keep of store-pigs. 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 On the Prnjipr Construction of Piggerips — Ventilation — DPscriptinn of Mr. Henderson's 
 Plies — Cooking Apparatus — Curious Contrivance for Feeding Pigs — Description of the 
 Piggery at Prince Albert's Home Farm — Description of'a Piggery at* Lascoed — Ad- 
 vantages i.f Cleanliness — Pig-keeping in Mexico. 
 
 There are few things more conducive to the thriving and well-being 
 of swine than airy, spacious, well-constructed sties, and, above all, 
 cleanliness. The old prejudices — that any place was good enough to 
 keep a pig in, and that filth and pigsties were synonymous terms — 
 are now passed away, and the necessity of attention to this branch of 
 porcine economy generally recognised. 
 
 Formerly swine were too often housed in damp, dirty, close, im- 
 perfectly built sheds ; this was an error, and a fruitful source of disease, 
 and of unthrifty animals. 
 
 In large establishments where numerous pigs are kept, there should 
 be divisions appropriated to all the different kinds of pigs; the males, 
 the breeding sows, the newly weaned, and the fattening pigs should 
 all be kept separate ; and it were as well that in the divisions appro- 
 priated to the second and last of these four classes, there should be a 
 distinct apartment for each animal, all opening into a yard or enclosure 
 of limited extent. As pigs require warmth, these buildings should face 
 the south, and be kept weather-tight and well drained. Good ventila- 
 tion is also important, for it is needless to expect animals to make good 
 flesh and retain their health unless they have a sufficiency of pure air. 
 The blood requires it to give it vitality and free it from impurities, as 
 much as the stomach requires wholesome and strengthening food, and 
 
148 THE PIG. 
 
 when it has it not, becomes vitiated, and impairs all the animal func- 
 tions. 
 
 *' The blood, the fountain whence the spirits flow, 
 Tile generous stream that waters every part, 
 And motion, vigour, and warm life conveys 
 To every moving breathing parlicle,"— 
 
 becomes contaminated by those aerial poisons given out by the decay- 
 ing vegetable matter, rotten or damp litter, accumulations of dung, and 
 animal exhalations engendered by ill-ventilated sties. These noxious 
 gases are inhaled by the breath, and absorbed by the skin, until they 
 enter the circulation, and impair its vivifying fluid. It is by the action 
 of the atmospheric air that venous blood is converted into arterial, freed 
 from all its impurities, and rendered fit to sustain all the vital func- 
 tions ; hence it must be at once evident that if this important agent is 
 in the first place contaminated, its action must be impaired and its ef- 
 fects empoisoned. Besides, bad smells and exhalations injure the 
 flavour of the meat. 
 
 Damp and cold floors should also be guarded against, as they tend 
 to induce cramp and diarrhoea ; and the roof so contrived as to carry off 
 the wet from the pigs. 
 
 The walls of a well constructed sty should be of solid masonry; the 
 roofs sloping, and furnished with spouts to carry of the rain.; the floors 
 either slightly inclined towards a gutter made to carry off the rain, or 
 else raised from the ground on beams or joists, and perforated so that 
 all urine and moisture shall drain off. Bricks and tiles are much used 
 for the flooring of sties, but are objectionable, because, however well 
 covered with litter, they still strike cold ; wood is far superior in this 
 respect; as well as because it admits of those clefts or perforations be- 
 ing made which we have just recommended, and which not only serve 
 to drain off all moisture, but admit fresh air as well. The value of the 
 litter and dung as manure, must always be borne in mind, and all 
 things so arranged that none of it shall be wasted. 
 
 The door of each sty ought to be so hung that it will open inwards 
 or outwards, so as to give the animals free ingress and egress ; and to 
 do this it should be hung across from side to side, and the animal push 
 it up to effect its entry or exit, for if it were hung in the usual way it 
 would derange the litter every time it opened inwards, and be very 
 liable to hitch. If it is not intended that the pigs shall leave their sty, 
 there should be an upper and lower door, the former of which should 
 always be left open when the weather is warm and dry, while the 
 latter will serve to confine the animal. 
 
 There should also be windows or slides which can be opened or 
 closed at will, to give admission to the fresh air, or exclude rain or 
 cold. 
 
 Mr. Henderson's description of his sties is more lucid and practical 
 than mere vague directions, we will therefore give it in his own 
 words : — "The plan which I recommend is as follows. Have a house 
 thirty feet by fifteen, with four doors all opening outwards, and three 
 partition walls through the house, viz. a wall between each of the doors, 
 dividing the house into four compartments. The two middle ones I 
 use for eating-rooms, and the others for sleeping apartments, having 
 an inner door between each eating and sleeping apartment. By this 
 
CONTRIVANCES FOR FEEDING. 149 
 
 plan the keeper is enabled to get the eating-chambers swept out, the 
 troughs cleaned, and the food put into them without disturbing the 
 swine or being disturbed by them. There should be a division wall 
 having a door in it through each sleeping apartment; in the hinder part 
 should be the litter; and the front and smaller compartment, through 
 which the animals must pass to get to their food, may be used by them 
 as a kind of necessary, for these animals will never defile their beds 
 if they can avoid it. 
 
 " The following is the most convenient manger for their food. Let 
 it be as long as the house is wide, and fixed, against the middle wall ; 
 in form similar to a horse manger, but not so deep, and it must be 
 divided into twelve divisions by partition boards four feet in length or 
 height, and a little broader than the manger is wide ; thus a number 
 will feed as well and as quietly together as two or three. Before every 
 meal the trough should be well^washed and the place swept, and once 
 in the day a little fresh litter pllbed in the sleeping-chambers. Each 
 of these sleeping and eating-rooms may be temporarily divided into 
 two, should it be requisite.' The sleeping-rooms should be dark, as 
 animals fatten much more rapidly when they lie down and sleep after 
 each meal than they do when they wander about. There should be a 
 square yard to each piggery, well paved and drained, as should the. 
 sties also be ; and, where it is possible, an enclosure or a small piece of 
 ground adjoining is exceedingly useful. 
 
 "Those who have space to admit of it will find it advantageous to 
 have five apartments instead of four, and in the fifth or central one to 
 have a boiler to prepare the food, and chests and lockers to contain the 
 various stores."* 
 
 Parkinson advises that in the yard or enclosure before every piggeTy 
 should be "a rubbing-post, or, what is still more beneficial, two posts 
 having a pole between them similar to a horse's leaping-bar, but not 
 revolving ; this pole should be raised or let down to the height of the 
 pigs, as the rubbing of the animals against it causes a freer circulation 
 of blond, the same as the flesh-brush does to human-bodies."f 
 
 In all large establishments there should be a proper apparatus for 
 cooking, mixing, and preserving the food. For this a boiler and 
 steamer will be requisite, and some two or three tanks which may be 
 made of bricks plastered over on the interior to prevent leakage, and 
 fixed in the ground. Wherever it can be managed, the troughs should 
 be so situated that they can be filled and cleaned from the exterior 
 without interfering with or disturbing the animals at all, and for this 
 purpose the following very simple contrivance has been recommend- 
 ed : — " Have a flap or door w^th swinging hinges made to hang hori- 
 zontally over the trough, so that it can be moved to and fro, and alter- 
 nately be fastened by a bolt to the inside or outside of the manger. 
 When the hogs have fed sufficiently, the door is swung inwards and 
 fastened, and so remains until feeding-time, when the trough is cleaned 
 and refilled without any trouble, and then the flap drawn back and the 
 animals admitted to their food." Some persons cover the trough with 
 a lid having as many holes in it as there are pigs to eat from it. This 
 
 * Henderson on Swine. t Parkinson's Live Slock, vol. ii. 
 
150 THE PIG. 
 
 is by no means a bad plan, for then each pig selects his own hole and 
 eats away without interfering with or incommoding his neighbour. 
 
 We cannot deny a place to the following curious method of feeding 
 swine, although we by no means recommend it, as it would encourage 
 a desultory mode of feeding — a thing always to be avoided : — 
 
 " The ingenious Rich. Fermore, of Tnssmore," says Dr. Plot, 
 " showed me a curious contrivance he had for feeding his swine, which 
 constantly have their meat from a vessel like the hopper of a mill 
 placed over the sty, into which a certain quantity of beans having been 
 put sufficient fat to so many hogs, these continually descend about half 
 way down the styjn a large square pipe, which then divides itself into 
 six smaller ones,'which terminate each of them in a small trough just 
 large enough to admit the nose of a hog, and come all of them with 
 their ends so near the bottom that there is never more than a handful 
 of beans in the trough at a time, which being taken away by the hog, 
 there follows another, and so on: and he having drawn a rivulet of 
 water through the sty, the daily trouble of waiting on the hogs is saved, 
 the animals are constantly kept supplied, and are unable to waste or 
 dirt their food."* _ ! 
 
 We are indebted to the kindness of a friend for the following account 
 of the Royal piggery, at the Home Farm at Windsor. It consists of 
 an oblong slated shed, of sufficient length and breadth to contain about 
 two dozen sties, of somewhat larger dimensions than ordinary pig-sties, 
 and arranged in two rows with a broad walk between them, from which 
 the spectator looks into the sties on the right and left of him. Each 
 sty has an in-door and an out-door apartment, the former having a 
 wooden coverlid to it, going upon hinges like the lid of a cornbin, in- 
 stead of a roof, which may be raised to any height in hot or close 
 weather, so as to admit any influx of air required, or even be thrown 
 back if necessary. The sties are paved with brick, both within and 
 without doors, and their floors slightly declivitous. 
 
 The following is a description of a piggery at Lascoed Pont Senny, 
 planned and executed by Mr. J. Donaldson, land steward to A. M. 
 Storley, Esq., Brecon, South Wales : — " This piggery is constructed 
 for the purpose of breeding and feeding on a scale to suit a farm of six 
 hundred acres of turnip soil in an inland situation, where convenient 
 markets render easy -the disposal both of fat and lean stock. There 
 are seven sties at the end of the steaming-house which accommodate 
 a boar and six brood sows, which are calculated to produce yearly one 
 hundred pigs, sixty of which will be fattened from September to April 
 in fifteen sties, placed in two parallel rows, and made to contain two 
 hogs in each apartment. The rest are sold as stores. The yearly 
 rental is from 200/. to 250/., according to the prices of the produce. 
 The steamed food consists of potatoes and meal, with grain to finish, 
 and is conveyed to the sties along a paved road or path, in a small four- 
 wheeled wagon. The steamer also cooks potatoes for the working 
 horses, and chaff for milch cows, and thus applies the original cost to. 
 several purposes, and fully employs a man. The store pigs are fed in 
 summer with clover and vetches, and in winter with roots either raw 
 or steamed. Water is brought to the steaming-house in a pipe from 
 
 * Plot's Natural History of Oifordshire, 1677. 
 
PIG-KEEPING IN MEXICO. 151 
 
 the farm-yards, which are all supplied by ball-cocks from elevated casks 
 fed by a forcing-pump. A pipe underneath conveys the water from the 
 potato-washer to the pond in the store-yard, where it passes to the lower 
 curve of the yard, and then meeting with "the collected moisture of the 
 whole area of the piggery, falls through an iron grate into a paved 
 culvert, and is conveyed to the manure-pit, to which the liquid of the 
 farmery is collected and brought by a drain; along the side of the road 
 are sheds opening into the store-yard. The cost of erecting a piggery 
 like this will vary from 80/. to 100/. according to the price of labour 
 and materials, and to whether the roofs be tiled or slated. The steam- 
 mg-house has an upper floor to serve as a store-house for grain, meal, 
 roots, &c. 
 
 The piggery should always be built as near to that part of the esta- 
 blishment from which the chief part of provision is to come as possible, 
 as much labour will thus be saved. If trie dairy is to supply this, let 
 it be as near as may be to that building ; or if it is to come from a 
 brewery or distillery, then let it be near to them. 
 
 Care most also be taken to preserve the dung and urine, and some 
 place fixed in which these matters can be stored for manure. Where- 
 ever the swine are regularly and well managed, this will not be diffi- 
 cult, for the animals will always, if they can lay theirdung at a distance 
 from the place where they sleep or feed. A small paved yard, some- 
 what sloping, and with a gutter to serve as a recepticle, will best an- 
 swer this purpose, and thence it can be daily removed to the proper 
 heap or tank. 
 
 We have been told of a gentleman who keeps only a few pigs for 
 his own use, and has a double sty for them, by which means he is 
 enabled to keep them exceedingly clean and sweet. Every morning 
 the pigs are changed from one into the other, so that each sty remains 
 unoccupied for four-and-twenty honrs, during which time it is thoroughly 
 cleaned out, and of course becomes well aired and free from all un- 
 pleasant smell. And well do we remember the pleasure with which 
 we used to view the pigs and sties of an old friend of ours, now no 
 more. A door leading out of his beautiful flower-garden brought us to 
 these equally well-tended objects of his pride. The sties were always 
 kept whitened on the inside, the slooping floor carried off all moisture 
 to a deep gutter running between the sty'and the square-paved yard, 
 each of which inclined towards it; a trough ever stood with watercleaT 
 as crystal for them to drink, and the animals themselves were, by 
 washing, currycoriibing, and perfect cleanliness about them, as neat and 
 sleek as a lady's lap-dog. They were, in fact, pet pigs. Nor are we 
 without pleasurable reminiscences of delicate spare ribs, loins, and legs 
 of pork and delicious sucking-pigs. 
 
 Washings, combings, and brushings are valuable adjuncts in the 
 treatment of swine ; the energies of the skin are thus roused and the 
 pores opened, consequently the healthful functidns are aided, and that 
 inertness so likely to be engendered by the lazy life of a fattening pig 
 counteracted. We cannot close this chapter without quoting the fol- 
 lowing account of the mode of keeping pigs in Mexico : — 
 
 " Fine breeds of these useful animals are kept by many persons of 
 wealth, as an article of trade, in the city of Mexico ; and the care and 
 attention paid to their cleanliness and comfort so far exceed any thing I 
 
152 THE PIG. 
 
 have seen elsewhere, that a short account may be useful by furnishing 
 hints to our farmers, brewers, distillers, &c, by whom large numbers 
 of these valuable animals could be and are conveniently kept. The 
 premises where the business is carried on are extensive, consisting in 
 general of a gopd dwelling-house, with a shop, slaughter-house, and 
 places for singeing the pigs, large bowls for rendering the lard, salting 
 and drying rooms, and lard-rooms, with wooden bins for containing 
 the rendered fat, which is an article of great consumption in Spanish 
 cookery, being used as a substitute for butter. There is also a soap 
 manufactory, in which the offal fat is manufactured, and apartments 
 where the blood is made into a kind of black-pudding, and sold to the 
 poor. Behind all these are the sties for the hogs, generally from eight 
 hundred to one thousand in number, which occupy a considerable range 
 of well-built sheds about thirty feet deep, with the roofs decending 
 very low, and having the entrance through low arches, before which is 
 an open space the whole length of the yard, and about twenty-four feet 
 wide, in the centre of which is a kind of aqueduct built of stone, and 
 filled with clear water supplied from a well at the end of the premises. 
 The hogs can only put their noses into this water through holes in the 
 wall, which prevents their dirtying it, as it passes through the whole 
 division of the yard. This is the only liquid given them, and their food 
 is maize or Indian corn, slightly moistened, and scattered at stated 
 hours on the ground, which in the yard, as well as the place where they 
 sleep, is kept perfectly dry and clean. They are attended by Indians with 
 every possible care. There is a cold bath on the premises, which they 
 are obliged frequently to use, as cleanliness is considered essential to 
 their acquiring that enormous load of fat from which the principal profit 
 is derived. Their ease and comfort seem also in every respect to be 
 studiously attended to; and the occupation of two Indian lads will 
 cause a smile on the countenances of my musical readers, when they 
 are informed that they are employed from morning till night in settling 
 any disputes or little bickerings that may arise among the happy inhabi- 
 tants of this community, either in respect to rank or condition, and in sing- 
 ing them to sleep. The boys are chosen for the strength of their lungs, 
 and their taste and judgment in delighting the ears and lulling the 
 senses of this amiable harmonic society ; they succeed each other in 
 chanting during the whole day, to the great delight and gratification of 
 their bristly audience, who seem fully to appreciate the merits of the 
 performers." 
 
SUCKING-PIGS. 153 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 Pics, Profirof, to the Butcher— Sucking-pigs— Pork-bulrhprs— Pig-killing at Rome- 
 Pickling Pork— Bacon : Mode of Curing in Hampshire— Buckinghamshire— Wiltshire 
 — -Yoi-kshire — Westphalia — America — Brine a Poison for Pigs— Quantity of Buctin, 
 Bain, and Salt Pork imported during the last Three Years — Importation of Swine—- 
 Pig's Dung as Manure. 
 
 There is perhaps no animal so entirely profitable to the butcher as 
 the pig. Scarcely an atom of it but is useful'. The offal is so small 
 as not to be thought of in comparison with that arising from cattle and 
 sheep. The feet, the head, and even portions of the intestines are 
 saleable for food and eagerly purchased by epicures ; the scraps and 
 trimmings of the meat make delicious sausages, pork pies, and other 
 such savoury dishes; brawn, too, is another of the delicacies we owe 
 to the much despised pig ; the fat, or lard, is invaluable to cooks, con- 
 fectioners, perfumers, and apothecaries; pigs' bladders meet a ready 
 sale; the skin is available for pocket-books and several purposes; and 
 the bristles form by no means an inconsiderable item in the tables of 
 imports and exports, and are used by shoemakers, as well as in the 
 manufacture of brushes, &c. Lastly, the flesh in the form of fresh or 
 pickled pork, ham, and bacon, constitutes the chief food of thousands 
 of human beings in all parts of the globe. , 
 
 In France, from one-half to two-thirds of the meat consumed by the 
 poorer and middling classes of the provinces is pork. In Ireland, the 
 peasantry and many of the middle-men " scarcely know the taste of 
 any other kind of meat. In most of our Channel Islands pork consti- 
 tutes the staple animal food of the labouring classes and small farmers; 
 and in America, and especially among the new settlements and back- 
 woods, it is often the only animal food for the first few years of the 
 settler's life. . 
 
 SCCKING-PIGS. 
 
 In our own country, " sucking-pigs" too are in great esteem, and 
 will, at their season, fetch a very high price. Charles Lamb, in one 
 of his inimitable 'Essays of Elia,' declares, " Of all the delicacies of 
 the whole mundus edibilis I will maintain this to be the most delicate. 
 
 "I speak not of your grown porkers — things between pig and pork — 
 these hobbydehoys ; but a young and tender suckling, under a moon old, 
 guiltless as yet of the sty ; with no original speck of the amor immun- 
 dilix, the hereditary failing of the first parent, as yet manifest ; his 
 voice as yet not broken, but something between a childish treble and 
 a grumble, the mild forerunner or prseludium of a grunt. 
 
 " He must he roasted. I am not ignorant that our ancestors ate them 
 seethed or boiled ; but what a sacrifice of the exterior tegument! 
 
 "There is no flavour comparable, I will contend, to that of the crisp, 
 
 tawny, well watched, not over-roasted, crackling, as it is well called ; 
 
 the Very teeth are invited to their share of the pleasure at this banquet, 
 
 in overcoming the coy, brittle resistance, with the adhesive oleaginous 
 
 11 
 
154 THE FIG. 
 
 * 
 
 — Oh, call it not fat! — but an indefinable sweetness growing up to it — 
 the tender blossoming of fat — fat cropped in the bud — taken in the shoot 
 — in the first innocence — the cream and quintescence of the child-pig's 
 yet pure food ; the lean, no lean ; but a kind of animal manna, or rather, 
 fat and lean (if it must be so) so blended arid running into each other, 
 that both together make but one ambrosian result, or common sub- 
 stance. 
 
 " Behold him while he is doing ! it seemeth rather a refreshing 
 warmth than a scorching heat that he is so passive to. How equally 
 he twirleth round the string. Now he is just done. To see the ex- 
 treme sensibilityof that tender age ; he hath wept out his pretty eyes 
 — radiant jellies—shooting stars, i^ee him in the dish, his second 
 cradle; how meek he lieth! wouldst thou have this innocent grow up 
 to the grossness and indocility which too often accompany maturer 
 swinehood? Ten to one he would have proved a glutton, a sloven, an 
 obstinate, disagreeable animal, wallowing in all filthy conversation — 
 from these sins he is happily snatched away. 
 
 Ere sin could blight or sorrow fade, 
 Death came with timely care. 
 
 . His memory is odoriferous : no clown curseth ; whilst his stomach 
 half ejectetlt the rank bacon; no coalheaver bolteth him in reeking 
 sausages : he hath a fair sepulchre in the grateful stomach of the judi- 
 cious epicure, and for such a tomb might be content to die. 
 
 " Pig — let me speak his praise — is no less provocative of the appetite 
 than he is satisfactory to the critical ness of the censorious palate. The 
 strong man may batten on him, and the weakling refuseth not his mild 
 juices. 
 
 " Unlike to mankind's mixed characters, a bundle of virtues and 
 vices, inexplicably intertwisted and not to be unravelled without hazard, 
 he is — good throughout. No part of him is better or worse than ano- 
 ther. He helpeth, as far as his little means goeth, all around." 
 
 Sucking-pigs should be killed at from a fortnight to three weeks old. 
 The Chinese breed furnishes the most delicate and delicious "pork- 
 lings." They should be stuck ; all the blood suffered to drain out ; 
 scalded and scraped gently ; and the bowels taken out, and the inside 
 sponged dry and clean f 
 
 The alterations latterly effected in the breeds of swine have tended 
 materially to improve pork, and to render it more sought for and valued. 
 We can recall to mind when the thought of pork was associated in our 
 minds with visions of coarse-grained meat and oily fat, and with fore- 
 bodings of a fit of indigestion. Nothing could tend more effectually 
 to banish such fancies than a sight and taste of the small, fine-grained 
 joints, delicate as poultry, and of excellent flavour, which have taken 
 the place of those ungainly legs and Brobdignagian loins and hands of 
 " olden times." 
 
 ■ And with the improvement of the meat has grown an increased de- 
 mand for it. Formerly, ay, as lately as within the last five and twenty 
 years, the trade of " pork-buteher " was unknown in almost all our 
 country towns, even in those of some considerable importance ; it is no 
 longer so ; there are nqw few places of any size or note which have npt 
 on-an. average one pork-buteher to every two or three meat-butchers; 
 
PIG-KILLING. 155 
 
 and in all smaller places pork is generally to be procured wherever 
 other meat is sold. 
 
 PIG-KILLING. 
 
 A pig that is to be killed should be kept without food for the last 12 
 or 16 hoars ; a little water mast, however be within his reach. Mr. 
 Henderson advises that in order to prevent the animal from struggling 
 and screaming in the agonies of death, it should in the first place be 
 stunned by a blow on the head. Some advise that the knife should be 
 thrust into the neck so as to sever the artery leading from the heart, 
 while others prefer that the animal should be stuck through the brisket 
 in the direction of the heart, care however being taken not to touch the 
 first rib. The blood should then be suffered to drain from the carcass, 
 and the more completely it does so the better will be the meat, say our 
 English pork-butchers, but those of some parts of the Continent dis- 
 agree with them, probably because there the pig's flesh is eaten for the 
 most part fresh, or spiced, or cooked in other savoury modes, and but 
 seldom pickled or dried, therefore the superabundance of blood in it 
 communicates to it a juicy richness agreeable to their palates. . 
 
 Mr. Waterton gives a very graphic description of the slaughter-house 
 for swine at Rome, and the proceedings of the pig-killers : — 
 
 "As you enter Rome at the Porta del Popolo a little on your right is 
 the great slaughter-house, with a fine stream of water running through 
 it., It is, probably, inferior to none in Italy for an extensive plan and 
 for judicious arrangements. Here some 700 or 800 pigs are killed on 
 every Friday during the winter season. Nothing can exceed the dex- 
 terity with which they are despatched. About 30 of these large and 
 fat black pigs are driven into a commodious pen, followed by three or 
 four men, each with a sharp skewer in his hand, bent at one end, in 
 order that 'it may be used with advantage. On entering the pen, these 
 performers, who put you vastly in mind of assassins, make a rush at 
 the hogs, each seizing one by the leg, amid a general yell of horror on 
 the part of the victims. Whilst the hog and the man are struggling on 
 the ground, the latter with the rapidity of thought pushes his skewer 
 betwixt the fore-leg and the body quite into the heart, and then gives 
 it a turn or two. The pig can rfee no more, but screams for a minute 
 or so and then expires. This process is continued until they tare all 
 despatched, the brutes sometimes rolling over the butchers, and some- 
 times the butchers over the brutes, with a yelling enough to stun one's 
 ears. In the mean time the screams become fainter and fainter,and thert 
 all is silence on the death of the last pig. A cart is in attendance ; the 
 carcasses are lifted into it, and it proceeds through the street, leaving 
 one or more dead hogs at the different pork-shops. No blood appears 
 outwardly, nor is the internal haemorrhage prejudicial to the meat, for 
 Rome cannot be surpassed in the flavour of her bacon or in the sound- 
 ness of her hams."* 
 
 * Waterloo's Easaya on Natural History. 
 
156 THE PIG. 
 
 PREPARING THE DEAD PIG. 
 
 As soon as the hog is dead, if it is intended for pork let it be laid on 
 aboard or table, and scalded with water nearly but not quite on the 
 boil, and well scraped to get off all the hair and bristles. Bacon hogs 
 may be singed by enveloping the body in straw and setting the straw 
 on fire, and then scraping it all over ; but when this is done care must 
 be taken not to burn or parch the cuticle. The next thing to be done 
 is to take out the entrails and well wash the interior of the body with 
 luke-warm water so as to remove all blood and impurities, and 
 afterwards dry it with a clean cloth ; the carcass should then be hung 
 up in a cool place for eighteen or twenty hours to become set and firm. 
 
 On the following day the feet are first of all cut off, so that they shall 
 not disfigure the hams or hands, and plenty of knuckle shall be left to 
 hang them up by ; the knife is then inserted at the nape of the neck and 
 the carcass divided up the middle of the back bone ; the head is then 
 separated from each side close behind the ears, and the hams and 
 shoulders taken off and trimmed ; some take out the chine and upper 
 part of the ribs in the first place, but almost every locality has its 
 peculiar way of proceeding. 
 
 PICKLING PORK. 
 
 For pickling pork the sides should be rubbed over with sugar and 
 salt, and then laid in a brine-tub, in which a thick layer of salt has 
 already been strewn, and a slighter one of sugar; the pork must be cut 
 into such pieces as will admit of its lying quite flat in the tub ; the 
 rind must be placed downwards, and between each layer of pork a 
 layer of salt and sugar. When the tub is quite full a layer of salt suf- 
 ficiently thick to exclude the air must be spread over the whole, and 
 the tub covered closely up and left for a week or ten days ; if by this 
 time the brine has not begun to rise, warm water should be sprinkled 
 over the top layer. 
 
 Pork pickled in this way will be ready for use in about three months, 
 and with proper care will be as good at the end of two years as it was 
 when first begun. The sugar is considered to impart a finer and richer 
 flavour than saltpetre, although the latter is most commonly used. 
 There is no reason why both sugar and saltpetre may not be advan- 
 tageously combined with the salt in pickling pork as well as in salting 
 beef, for in this latter process there can be no question that a pickle 
 composed of three parts salt, one part saltpetre, and one sugar, is the 
 very best that can be used, making the meat tender, juicy, well flavoured, 
 and fine coloured. 
 
 CURING BACON. 
 
 Bacon is the next form in which we eat pig's flesh. There has been 
 some dispute as to the derivation of this word ; someauthors have sug- 
 gested that it may be a corruption of the Scotch baktn (dried 1 ), while 
 others suggest that it is derived from beechen, as the finest flitches were 
 considered to be those furnished by animals that were fattened on the 
 fruit of the beech-tree, and this opinion is borne out by the fact that in 
 the old Lancashire dialect the word bacon is both spelt and pronounced 
 
CURING BACON. 157 
 
 beechen. A bacon hog will in general be fit for killing at about a 
 twelve-month old, when he will weigh some ten ot twelve score : those 
 persons who care most about the hams will find it answer their purpose 
 best not to let the animals be too fat, or so fat as a bacon-hog, and 
 after having taken off the hams to cut up the carcass for fresh or 
 pickling pork. 
 
 There are various methods of curing bacon and hams practised in the 
 different counties of England, as well as in Scotland, America, and the 
 Continent. We will proceed to describe a few of the best and most 
 successful. 
 
 In Hampshire and Berkshire the practice is to choose a dry day, 
 when the wind is blowing from the north, and kill the hog early in the 
 morning (it having fasted the day before.) When dressed hang him 
 up in some airy place for 24 hours, then proceed to cut him up. This 
 being done, lay the flitches, on the ground, and sprinkle them with salt 
 lightly, so let them remain for six or eight hours ; then turn them up 
 edgeways, and let the brine run off. In the mean time take two or 
 three gallons of best salt, and two ounces of saltpetre, .pounded very 
 fine, and well-mixed together; and the salting bench being made of 
 the best seasoned oak, proceed to salt the flitches by rubbing in the 
 salt on the back side of the flitch. This being done, turn the inside 
 upwards, and lay on the salt about a quarter of an inch in thickness: 
 in like manner treat every flitch. On the third day afterwards change 
 the flitches, viz., take off the uppermost and. reverse them, at the same 
 time lay on salt a quarter of an inch in thickness. There will be no need 
 of rubbing as before mentioned, neither should the saltpetre be repeated, 
 otherwise the lean of the bacon will be hard, The changing and salt- 
 ing should be done every third day for six successive times, when the 
 bacon will be sufficiently salt. Then proceed to rub off all the stale 
 briny salt, and lay on each flitch a covering of clean fresh bran or saw- 
 dust, and take it to the drying loft. It should be there hung by means 
 of crooks fastened in the neck of the flitch, and remain for 14 or 16 
 days. The fuel most proper for drying bacon is cleft oak or ash, what 
 is commonly called cord wood. 
 
 In Buckinghamshire, as soon as the flitches are cut from the hog 
 they lay them on a form or table in a slanting position, and, supposing 
 the whole hog to have weighed 12 or 14 score, take a quarter of a 
 pound of saltpetre, pounded very fine, and sprinkle it all over the 
 flitches, rubbing it well into the shoulder parts especially ; they then 
 suffer them them to remain twelve hours, after which they should be 
 rubbed dry, and in the mean time seven pounds of salt mixed with one 
 pound and a quarter of coarse brown sugar put into a frying-pan and 
 heated on a clear fire, stirring it well that it may all be of the same 
 temperature. This mixture, as hot as the hand can possibly bear it, 
 may now be rubbed well, into the flitches, which are then put one upon 
 the other and laid in a salting pan or other contrivance, in order that the 
 brine may form and be kept from wasting. The ba'con must be kept 
 in this situation four weeks, turning it and basting it well with the 
 brine twice or thrice a week. At the expiration of this time take it 
 from the brine, hang it up to dry, and smoke it, if preferred, which in 
 the absence of a regular smokehouse may be done as follows :— Hang 
 up the bacon in a chimney or other orifice, then underneath put down a 
 
158 THE PIG. 
 
 layer of dry straw, upon this a layer of mixed shavings, fceeping orit 
 those from deal or fir, next a good layer of sawdust and some juniper- 
 berries, or branches where procurable, and over all a mantle of wet 
 straw or litter, which makes the fire give ont much smoke without 
 burning away too rapidly. This smoking must be repeated three or 
 four times, or till the bacon appears thoroughly dry, when it may be 
 hung up in the kitchen, or any dry place convenient. 
 
 In Kent the hog is swa/ed or singed, in preference to scalding and 
 scraping the skin, as this latter process, it is considered, tends to soften 
 the rind and injure the firmness of the flesh. The flitches are rubbed 
 with dry salt and saltpetre in the proportion of one-third of the latter 
 to two of the former, and laid in a trough, and there each one sprinkled 
 over with this mixture. Here they continue for three weeks or a month, 
 according to their Bize, during which time they are taken out once in 
 two or three days and well rubbed with the brine and turned. 
 
 They are dried before a slow fire, and this process occupies about 
 the same time that the salting has done. When it is completed the 
 flitches are either hung up in a dry place, or deposited on stone slabs 
 until wanted for domestic use. 
 
 In Somersetshire and Wiltshire the following is the common pro- 
 cess : — 
 
 When the hogs are prepared the sides are first laid in large wooden 
 troughs and sprinkled over with Tock salt, and there left unmoved for 
 four-and-twenty hours in order to let all the blood and other superfluous 
 juices be completely drained off from them. 
 
 After this they are taken up and thoroughly wiped, and some fresh 
 bay-salt, previously heated in an iron frying-pan, is rubbed into the 
 flesh until it has absorbed a sufficient quantity. This rubbing is con- 
 tinued for four successive days, during which the flitches are usually 
 turned every second day. Where the large hogs are killed it becomes 
 necessary to keep the flitches in brine for three weeks, and after that 
 interval to turn them out and dry them in the common manner. 
 
 In the county of Westmoreland, which is celebrated for the flavour of 
 its hams, the following method prevails: — First they are thoroughly 
 rubbed, usually with bay-salt alone, after which some curers advise that 
 they shall be closely covered up, while others leave them on a stone 
 for the purpose of draining off" the brine. At the expiration of five days 
 this friction is repeated with equal diligence, but the bay-salt is then 
 combined with somewhat more than an ounce of saltpetre to each ham. 
 They are next suffered to lie about a week either in hogsheads among 
 the brine, or on stone benches, after which they are hung up in the 
 chimney to dry. In this last part of the process there is a difference 
 of practice. By some they are suspended so that they shall be dried 
 solely by the heat arising from the fire below, without being exposed 
 at all to the smoke, while by others they are hung up in the midst 
 of the smoke, whether this arises fron\coals or peat. 
 
 In Yorkshire, after the pig has been killed, it is allowed to hang 
 twenty-four hours previous to being cut up ; one pound of saltpetre is 
 then rubbed into a twenty-stone pig (of fourteen pounds to the stone,) 
 and one and a half or two stones of common salt, taking care that it is 
 well rubbed in; it is then put into a tub kept for the purpose: After 
 having lain a fortnight it is turned over, and a little more salt applied 
 
CURING BACON. 159 
 
 —say half a stone; itthen remains a fortnight longer in the pickle-tub; 
 whence it is taken and hung up in the kitchen, inhere it remains two 
 months to dry, but should the winter be far advanced, and dry weather 
 set in, a shorter period might suffice. After being taken from the top 
 of the kitchen, the inside is washed over with quicklime and water to 
 preserve it from the fly ; it is then removed into a room not used by the 
 family, away from heat, and where it will be kept perfectly dry and is 
 ready for use at pleasure. Trie smoking system is rarely adopted. 
 
 Mr. Henderson, in his "Treatise on Swine," gives the following ac- 
 count of the mode of curing bacon and hams in Scotland : — 
 
 " In killing a number of swine, what sides you may have dressed the 
 first day lay upon some flags or boards, piling them across each other, 
 and giving each flitch a powdering of saltpetre, and then covering it 
 with salt. Proceed in the same manner with the hams themselves, 
 and do not omit giving them a little saltpetre, as it opens the pores of 
 the flesh to receive the salt, and besides gives the harn a pleasant 
 flavour, and makes it more juicy. Let tnem lie in this state about a 
 week, then turn those on the top undermost, giving them a fresh salt- 
 ing. After lying two or three weeks longer, they may be hung up to 
 dry in some chimney or smoke-house. Or, if the curer chooses, he 
 may turn them over again, without giving them any more salt; in 
 which state they may lie for a month or two, without catching any harm, 
 until he has convenience for drying them. I practised for many years 
 the custom of carting my flitches and hams through the country to 
 farm-houses, and used to hang them in their chimneys, and other parts 
 of the house, to dry, some seasons to the amount of five hundred car- 
 casses. This plan I soon found was attended by a number of incon- 
 veniences, yet it is still common in Dumfriesshire. 
 
 "About twenty years ago I contrived a small smoke-house of a very 
 simple construction. It is about twelve feet square, and the walls about 
 seven feet high. One of these huts requires six joists across, one close 
 to each wall, the other four laid asunder at proper distances. To re- 
 ceive five rows of flitches, they must be laid on the top of the wall. A 
 piece of wood, strong enough to bear the weight of one flitch of bacon, 
 must be fixed across the belly end of the flitch by two strings, as the 
 neck end must hang downwaTds. The piece of wood must be longer 
 than the flitch is wide, so that each end may rest upon a beam. They 
 may be put so near to each other as not to touch. The width of it will 
 hold twenty-four flitches in a row, and there will be five rows, which 
 will contain one hundred and twenty flitches. 1 As many hams may be 
 hung at the same time above the flitches, contrived in the best manner 
 one can. The lower end of the flitches will be within two and a half 
 or three feet of the floor, which must be covered five or six inches thick 
 with sawdust, which must be kindled at two different sides. It will 
 burn, but not cause any flame to injure the bacon. The door must be 
 kept close, and the hut must have a small hole in the roof, so that part 
 of the smoke may ascend. That lot of bacon and hams will be ready 
 to pack up in a hogshead, to send off, in eight or ten days, or a little 
 longer if required, with very little loss of weight. After the bacon is 
 salted, it may lie in the salt-house, as described, until an order is re- 
 ceived. 
 
 " I found the smoke-house to be a great saving, not only in the ex* 
 
160 THE FIG. 
 
 pense and trouble of employing men to cart and hang it through the 
 country, but it did got lose nearly so much weight by this process. It. 
 may be remarked, that whatever is shipped for the London market, or 
 any other, both baeon and hams, must be knocked hard, and packed 
 into a sugar hogshead, or something similar, to hold about ten hundred- 
 weight. Bacon can only be cured from the middle of September until 
 the middle of April." 
 
 The annexed system is the one usually pursued in Westphalia : — 
 
 " Six pounds of rock salt, two pounds of powdered loaf sugar, three 
 ounces of saltpetre, and three gallons of spring or pure water, are boiled 
 together. This should be skimmed when boiling, and when quite cold 
 poured over the meat, every part of which must be covered with this 
 brine. • Small pork will be sufficiently cured in four or five days ; hams, 
 intended for drying, will be cured in four or five weeks, unless they are 
 very large. This pickle may be used again and again, if it is fresh 
 boiled up each time with a small addition to the ingredients. Before, 
 however, putting the meat into the brine, it must be washed in water, 
 the blood pressed out, and the whole wiped clean. 
 
 " Pickling-tubs should be larger at the bottom than at the top, by which 
 means, when well packed, the pork will retain its place until the last 
 layer is exhausted. When the pork is cool it may be cut up, the hams 
 and shoulders reserved for bacon, and the remainder salted. The bot- 
 tom of the tub or barrel should be covered with rock salt, and on it a 
 layer of meat placed, and so on until the tub is filled. The salt should 
 be used liberally, and the barrel filled with strong brine boiled and 
 skimmed, and then cooled. 
 
 " The goodness and preservation of hams and shoulders depends on 
 their smoking as well as their salting. Owing to some misconstruction 
 of the smoke-house, and to the surface of the meat not being properly 
 freed from saline matter, or other causes, it not unfrequently happens 
 that during the process of smoking, the meat is constantly moist, and 
 imbibes a pyroligneous acid taste and smell, destructive of its good 
 qualities. 
 
 " The requisites of a smoke-house are, that it should be perfectly 
 dry ; not warmed by the fire that makes the smoke ; so far from the fire, 
 that any vapour thrown off in the smoke may be condensed before reach- 
 ing the meat; so close as to exclude all flies, mice, &c, and yet capa- 
 ble of ventilation and admitting the escape of smoke. 
 
 " The Westphalian hams, the most celebrated in Europe, are princi- 
 pally cured at and exported from Hamburg. The smoking of these is 
 performed in extensive chambers, in the upper stories of high buildings. 
 Some are four or five stories high, and the smoke is conveyed to these 
 rooms from fires in the cellar through tubes, on which the vapour is 
 condensed and the heat absorbed, so that the smoke is both dry and 
 cool when it conies in contact with the meat. They are thus kept per- 
 fectly dry, and acquire a colour and flavour unknown to those smoked 
 in the common method. 
 
 " Hams after being smoked may be kept any length of time by being 
 packed in dry ashes or powdered charcoal, or by being kept in the 
 smoke-house if that is secure against theft, or a smoke is made under 
 them once a-week. When meat is fully smoked or dried, it may be 
 Jcept hung up in any dry room by slipping over it a cotton bag, the 
 
CURING BACON. 161 
 
 neck of which is closely tied around the string that supports the meat, and 
 thus excludes the bacon-bug, fly, &c. The small part of a ham or shoul- 
 der should always be hung downward in the process of smoking, or 
 when suspended for preservation."* 
 
 The following method of curing bacon — which has been practised in 
 Virginia and Kentucky by one person with perfect success for five-and- 
 thirty years, during Which time he states that he has cured on the 
 average from six to eight thousand pounds every year, or, in the whole, 
 the enormous quantity of from a hundred to a hundred and twenty-five 
 tons — will conclude what we have to say on this division of our sub- 
 ject. 
 
 " The hogs should be killed when the weather is sufficiently cold to 
 ensure that when they are hung up, after having been cleaned, they 
 shall not only become quite cold to the touch, but feel hard and stiff. 
 They should be killed on one day, and cut up and salted on the next. 
 When the weather is,very cold they should be hung in a cellar or some- 
 where where they are not likely to become frozen, but if there be no 
 danger of this let them hang in the open air. ^ 
 
 " The process of cutting up is too well known to need description* 
 nothing further need be said than that the backbone or chine should he 
 taken out, as also the spare-ribs from the shoulders, and the mouse- 
 pieces and short-ribs or griskins from the middlings. No acute angles 
 should be left to shoulders or hams. In salting up in Virgina, all the 
 meat except the heads, jowls, chines, and smaller pieces, is put into 
 powdering-tubs (water-tight half-hogsheads). In Kentucky, large 
 troughs, ten feet long and three or four feet wide at the top, made of the 
 lAriodendron tulipifera, or poplar-tree, are used. These are much the 
 most convenient for packing the meat in, and are easily caulked if they 
 should crack so as to leak. The salting-tray, or box in which the meat 
 is to be salted, piece by piece, and from which each piece, as it is salted, 
 is to be transferred to the powdering-tub or trough, must be placed just 
 so near the trough that the man standing between can transfer the piece 
 from one to the other easily, and without wasting the salt as they are 
 lifted from the salting-box into the trough. The Salter stands on the 
 off-side of the salting-box. Salt the hams first, the shoulders next, and 
 the middlings last, which may be piled up two feet above the top of 
 the trough or tub. The joints will thus in a short time be immersed 
 in brine. 
 
 "Measure into your salting-tray four measures of salt (a peck mea- 
 sure will be found most convenient,) and one measure of clean dry 
 sifted ashes; mix and incorporate them well. The Salter takes a ham 
 into the tray, rubs the skin with this composition and the raw hock 
 end, turns it over, and packs the composition of salt and ashes on the 
 fleshy side till it is at least three-quarters of an inch deep all over it, 
 and on the interior lower part of the ham, which is covered with the 
 skin, as much as will lay on it. The man who stands ready to transfer 
 the pieces as they are salted takes up the piece, and deposits it care- 
 fully, without displacing the composition, with the skin side down, in 
 the bottom of the trough. Each succeeding ham is thus deposited side, 
 by side, so as to leave the least possible space unoccupied. 
 
 * Albany Cultivator. 
 
162 THE PIG. 
 
 " When the bottom is all covered, see that every visible part of this 
 layer of meat is covered with the composition of salt and ashes. Then 
 begin another layer, every piece being covered on the upper or fleshy 
 side three-quarters of an inch thick with the composition. When your 
 trough is filled even full in this way with the joints, salt the middlings 
 with salt only, without the ashes, and pile them up on the joints so 
 that the liquified salt may pass from them into the trough. Heads, 
 jowls, backbones, &c, receive salt only, and should not be put in the 
 trough with the large pieces. 
 
 " Much slighter salting will preserve thern if they are salted upon 
 loose boards, so that the bloody brine from them can pass off". The 
 joints and middlings are to remain in and above the trough without be- 
 ing re-handled, re-salted, or disturbed in any way, till they are to be 
 hung up to be smoked. 
 
 " If the hogs weighed not more than 150 lbs., the joints need not re- 
 main longer than five weeks in the pickle ; if they weighed 200 or up- 
 wards, six or seven weeks is not too long. It is better that they should 
 jjfey in too long rather than too short a time. 
 
 F"In three weeks, jowls, &c, may be hungup. Taking out,of pickle, 
 and preparation for hanging up to smoke, is thus performed : — Scrape 
 y off the undissolved salt (and if you had put on as much as directed, 
 there will be a considerable quantity on all the pieces not immersed in 
 the brine ; this salt and the brine is all saved ; the brine boiled down, 
 and the dry composition given to stock, especially to hogs.) Wash 
 every piece in lukewarm water, and with a rough towel clean off the 
 salt and ashes. Then put the strings in to hang up. Set the pieces 
 up edgewise, that they may drain and dry. Every piece is then to be 
 dipped into the meat-paint, and hung up to smoke. The meat-paint is 
 made of warm, not hot, water and very fine ashes stirred together until 
 they are of the consistence of thick paint. When they are dipped in 
 this, they receive a coating which protects them from the fly, prevents 
 dripping, and tends to lessen all external injurious influences. Hang 
 up the pieces while yet moist with the paint, and smoke them well." 
 
 POISONOUS PROPERTIES OF BRINE. 
 
 It is a fact worthy of notice that the brine in which pork or bacon 
 has been pickled is poisonous to pigs. Several cases are on record in 
 which these animals have died in consequence of a small quantity of 
 brine having been mingled with the wash, under the mistaken impres- 
 sion that it would answer the same purpose and be equally as beneficial 
 as in the admixture of a small quantity of salt. 
 
IMPORTATION OF BACON AND PORK. 
 
 163 
 
 j IMPORTATION OF BACON, HAM, AND SALTED PORK. 
 
 From a reference to' the accounts furnished by the Board of Trade, it 
 appears that there Have been imported during the last three years, — 
 
 
 1844. 
 
 1845. 
 
 1846. 
 
 Bacon . . .... owls. 
 
 36 
 
 51 
 
 2,768 
 
 Hams " 
 
 6,732 
 
 5,462 
 
 11,252 
 
 PoKK, Salted : — 
 
 Of British Possessions . " 
 
 Foreign ..." 
 
 Fresh " 
 
 2,153 
 
 28,627 
 63 
 
 1,517 
 
 38,128 
 
 133 
 
 (72,519 
 133 
 
 Total of Pork . . 
 
 30,843 
 
 39,878 
 
 72,652 
 
 And of these three articles there were entered for home consumption,- 
 
 
 . cwts. 
 J, 
 
 1844. 
 
 1845. 
 
 1846. 
 
 Bacon 
 
 36 
 
 54 
 
 2,768 
 
 
 3",568 
 
 ' 2,603 
 
 8,385 
 
 Pork, Salted :— 
 
 Of British Possessions 
 Foreign 
 Fresh .... 
 
 248 
 
 1,073 
 
 63 
 
 172 
 
 1,289 
 
 133 
 
 (72,519 
 133 
 
 Total of Pork . 
 
 1,384 
 
 1,594 
 
 72,652 
 
 These tables demonstrate the enormous increase in the importation of 
 these staple articles of food which has taken place since the abolition of 
 1.he Tariff of 1842 and the substitution of the new one. The alteration 
 of duties is as follows : — 
 
 In 1842. 
 
 3. it. 
 
 14 per ctvt. 
 3 fi 
 
 On Bacon from Foreign Countries . 
 
 British possessions . 
 
 Ham from Foreign ^oiintrms . . .■ 34 
 
 British Possessions . . . 3 6 
 
 Salted Pork from Foreign Countries 8 
 
 British Possessions 2 o 
 
 New Tariff, 
 
 a. d. 
 
 7 per cwt. 
 
 2 " ., 
 
 7 „ 
 
 2 „ 
 
 (I 
 
 
 
164 THE FIG. 
 
 Previous to 1842 the duty on bacon and ham amounted to 28s. and 
 7s. per cwt., and that on pork to 16s. and 4s.; swine were then prohibi- 
 ted ; but when, by'the Act 5 & 6 Vict. cap. 47, they became admissible, 
 there were imported, — 
 
 In 1842. In 1343. In 1844. In 1845. In 1846. 
 
 ~415 ~36l 269 1,598 3,443 
 
 Here again we find the same wonderful increase. In 1845 seven 
 times the number are imported that were brought over in 1844 ; and in 
 184G the import of 1845 is doubled. Yet there is no diminution created 
 in the provision trade by this extraordinary increase in that of live 
 animals, but, On the contrary, it too increases in 1845, and is again 
 doubled in 1846. And the increase of demand is proportionate with 
 that of the supplies. 
 
 The accounts of one branch of our imports will this present year, 
 however, in all probability, show a material defalcation in the amount ; 
 we allude to those arising from Ireland, whence a large number of the 
 pigs which come to our markets are supplied, and where the present 
 state of derth has caused numbers of these animals to be destroyed. 
 This fact ought to stimulate our native breeders to increased exertions. 
 In from 1820 to 1825 there was on the average from 204,380 to 338,218 
 cwts. of bacon and hams imported yearly into England from the sister 
 country. Since the last-named period there has been no decrease ; but, 
 the trade between Ireland and Great Britain having been placed on the 
 footing of a coasling-trade, and these articles having been imported 
 without specific duties, it is not so easy to acertain the precise amounts 
 brought over; they may be, however, estimated at about 500,000 cwt. 
 per annum. 
 
 The keeping of swine is fast becoming something more than a mere 
 means of disposing of offal and matters which would otherwise be 
 wasted ; and we trust that the value and lucrativeness of this branch of 
 rural economy will soon be fully acknowledged, and that swine will be 
 duly estimated among farmers and breeders. The next step must of 
 necessity speedily follow : men of science will no longer deem them 
 beneath their notice ; their habits, instincts, and ailments will be properly 
 studied ; individuals as well as the world will be benefited ; and a new 
 and important field of knowledge thrown open. 
 
 Yet another source of profit accruing from swine, and we close this 
 chapter. 
 
 pig's dung as manure. 
 
 The manure proceeding from the pigsty has been often much under- 
 valued, and for this reason, — that the litter has been considered as 
 forming the principal portion of it, whereas it constitutes the least 
 valuable part; and, indeed, where all due attention is paid to the clean- 
 liness of the animals and of their dwellings, it can scarcely be regarded 
 as manure at all, at least by itself. 
 
 It is the urine and the dung which are valuable ; and these are now 
 generally allowed to be peculiarly so, and to constitute no inconsider- 
 able items in the profits arising from the keeping of swine. These 
 matters are, from the very nature of the food of the animals, exceedingly 
 
Pie's DUNG AS MANURE. 165 
 
 rich and oleaginous, and materially benefit cold soils and grass-lands. 
 But, as with most other things relative to swine, this has also been too 
 ranch neglected ; the animals have been suffered to wander about at 
 will, voiding their dung and urine in waste ; or, when confined, the sty 
 perhaps furnished no means of collecting and saving it. We will 
 venture to prophesy that the partial alteration of system which is now 
 gradually spreading will speedily lead to amendment in this point also; 
 and the dung from the piggery will be husbanded with a care little 
 inferior to that bestowed on the fold, stable, or cow-house dung. 
 
166 THE PIG. 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 The Medicines used in combating the Maladies of Swine. 
 
 The medicines generally used in the treatment of swine are neither 
 numerous nor complicated. There are, doubtless, many others, besides 
 those enumerated in the following list, which might be employed with 
 advantage, and which will, as the diseases of these domesticated ani- 
 mals become more studied, be discovered and made use of. 
 
 The camion requisite in the administration of all medicines has been 
 already alluded to in Chapter X. ; force should as seldom as possible 
 be had recourse to. 
 
 It must be borne in mind that the doses here given are taken on the 
 average, and must always be proportioned to the size, and constitution, 
 and state of health of the animal. In all cases of actual disease, the 
 best and most economical plan will be to have recourse to some good 
 veterinary surgeon within reach. The life of many a valuable animal 
 will thus be saved, for the mere amateur in surgery is always liable to 
 blunder in the choice of remedies, as well as in the application of them, 
 and will often create evils far greater than those he is endeavouring to 
 cure. 
 
 Antimony. — Seldom given by itself. In conjunction with sulphur, 
 forms an efficient cooling and cleansing medicine; and with sulphur 
 and hog's lard, or palm or train-oil, constitutes the common mange-oint- 
 ment. 
 
 Arsenic. — Useful in mange, and other cases of diseases of the skin. 
 From one ounce to an ounce and a half, dissolved in a gallon of water, 
 will form a solution of sufficient strength. 
 
 Calomel. — A dangerous drug, and one better left alone. In cases 
 of emergency, however, it may be given in conjunction with an equal 
 portion of tartarized antimony. From two to three grains of each will 
 constitute an active emetic. 
 
 Creosote. — Useful in cases of virulent cutaneous eruptions. 
 
 Croton Oil. — A powerful purgative, and one that should only be 
 had recourse to in cases of obstinate constipation. From one to three 
 drops may be given. 
 
 Digitalis. — A valuable sedative medicine in cases of fever. 
 
 Epsom Salts. — A very useful and efficient purgative, suitable to 
 most cases of common occurrence. From half an ounce to an ounce 
 and a half may be ordinarily given. 
 
MEDICINES FOR TREATMENT OF SWINE. 167 
 
 Gentian. — An excellent stomachic; every aperient draught should 
 contain a portion of this or the next-mentioned matter. 
 
 Ginger. — Also« good stomachic, and a tonic as well. From three 
 scruples to a drachm and a half may be given of this and the preceding 
 drug. 
 
 Linseed Oil. — Valuable as. an occasional purgative, especially where 
 there is much intestinal inflammation. 
 
 Mercurial Ointment. — Used for mange and scabs, in conjunction 
 with the sulphur ointment. The proportions are one part of the former 
 to eight parts of the latter. 
 
 Nitre. — An excellent cooling medicine in all cases where there is 
 tendency to fever. From one to two drachms may be given dissolved 
 in the water the animal drinks. 
 
 Palm Oil. — The best emollient to form the basis of all ointments 
 for cutaneous eruptions. 
 
 Salt. — A valuable adjunct in purifying the blood, and maintaining 
 the animals in good condition. A small quantity should be regularly 
 mingled with the food. 
 
 Sulphur. — A good cooling medicine, and the best gentle aperient for 
 ordinary use we have. It also constitutes the chief ingredient in mange- 
 ointment. 
 
 Tartar Emetic. — Useful as an emetic. 
 
 Vinegar. — Valuable in all cases requiring cooling fomentations. 
 
 Tobacco. — A decoction of this plant efficacious and soothing in cases 
 of mange and cutaneous eruptions, especially when mingled with equal 
 parts of digitalis. 
 
 Turpentine. — A destructive agent in cases of worms : it may be 
 given to swine without danger. 
 
INDEX. 
 
 Abortion, treatment of, 125. 
 Abstinence from pork, necessary in 
 
 hot climates, 13. 
 Acorns, pigs thrive on, 139, 140. 
 Age, great, of wild boars, 34. 
 Agricultural Societies, influence of, 
 
 on breeding, 134. 
 Albert, Prince, his farm at Windsor, 
 
 66 ; gains a prize for pigs, 65. 
 America, importation of breeds of 
 
 swine into, 47 ; six species of hogs 
 
 in, 45 ; wild boars in, 44. 
 Analogy between the Chinese and 
 
 their pigs, 51. 
 Anatomy of swine, 75, &c. 
 Ancients, boar-hunts of, 36, 37. 
 Anecdotes of pigs, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 
 
 30. 
 Anglo-Saxons, boar-hunts of, 37. 
 Animal substances, feeding swine on, 
 
 144. S 
 
 Apoplexy in pigs, 81. 
 Apparatus for preparing pigs' food, 
 
 149. 
 Apples, swine, fed on, 140. 
 Ardennes, wild boar of, 39. 
 Armour, bogs in, or Tatous, 11. 
 Ashes given to pigs, 145. 
 Attachments of swine, 29. 
 Autumn, best time for fattening pigs, 
 
 B. 
 
 Babiroussa, the, 10; at Zoological 
 
 Gardens, 11. 
 Bacon, curing, 151; derivation of the 
 
 word, 156; importation of, 163. 
 Bakewell, Mr., his pigs, 64, 67. 
 Baldred, King, a. swineherd, 15. 
 Bath, hot springs of, discovered by 
 
 swine, 15. 
 Bavarian pigs, 54. 
 12 
 
 Beans, feeding swine on; 138, 139, 
 143, 147. 
 
 Bears fond of pork, 48. 
 
 Beasts of draught, pigs used as, 27, 
 28, 60. 
 
 Bedford, Duke of, cut of his Berk- 
 shire sow, 70. 
 
 Bedfordshire pigs, 65. 
 
 Beech mas!, swine fed on, 140. 
 
 Bement, Mr., of Albany, on breeding 
 pigs, 47. 
 
 Berkshire pigs, 69. 
 
 sow, cut of a, 70. 
 
 Bladder, the, 105 ; inversion of, 106. 
 Bleeding swine, 105. 
 Blood, hogs', used as holy water, 51. 
 Blo'omfiela's poetic picture of forest- 
 pigs, 20. 
 Boar hunts, laws respecting, 33, 35. 
 
 of the ancients, 36. 
 
 of the Anglo-Saxons, 37. 
 
 Boars, choice of, for breeding, 120. 
 
 Boar's Head, Christmas dish, 38 ; pre- 
 sented to the hangman, 38; at 
 Queen Margaret's wedding din- 
 ner, 38. 
 
 Boars lamed, 29 ; technical terms for, 
 37 ; wild, see "Wild Boars." 
 
 Bothnian pigs, 54. 
 
 Brain of tiie hog, 81 ; inflammation 
 of, 82. 
 
 Bran, feeding pigs on, 144. 
 
 Breeding, rules respecting, 119, 121. 
 swine, how far profitable, 132. 
 
 Breeds improved by judicious crosses, 
 122 ; which are the best, 122. 
 
 Breweries, pigs fed on refuse of, 137, 
 
 Brine, poisonous properties of, 162. 
 
 Bristles, ropes made from, 60; use 
 made of, 24, 153. 
 
 Bronchial tubes, 93. 
 
 Brushing pigs, 151. 
 
 Butcher, profit of pigs to the, 153. , 
 
170 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 c. 
 
 Caesarian operation performed on a 
 
 sow, 127. 
 Cape, the, the phaco-choeres in, 11. 
 Capibara, the, 11. 
 
 Carrots, feeding swine on, 138, 139. 
 Castrated animals, disposed lo obesity, 
 
 136. 
 Castration of pigs, modes of, 115. 
 Catching pigs, 117. 
 Cattle Shows, benefits and abuses of, 
 
 135. 
 Census of the increase of pigs by 
 
 breeding, 132. 
 Chanting to pies, 152. 
 Character, developing a pig's, 81. 
 Charles I., re-introduction of wild 
 
 boars by, 38, 71. 
 Cheshire pigs, 68. 
 Chestnuts, swine fed on, 140. 
 Chest <>f the pig, 92. 
 Chinese swine, 72 ; liable to become 
 
 over-fat, 136. 
 Chinese, the, and their pigs, analogy 
 
 between, 50. 
 Choice of boar and sow for breeding, 
 
 120. 
 Christmas dish, the boar's head a, 38. 
 Cinders given lo pigs, 145. 
 Citizens, pigs created, 53. 
 Cleanliness of swine,, 31, 145. 
 Clover," feeding pjgs on, 144. 
 Cochon d'Inde. See " Guinea Pig." 
 Ccacum, the, 99. 
 Coleshill pigs, 137. 
 Colic, 101. 
 Colon, the, 99. 
 Combing pigs, 151. 
 Cup's, thej rear no pigs, 14. 
 CornUh pigs, 69. 
 Crete, hogs sacred in, 13. 
 Crops, number of swine to be propor- 
 tioned to the farmer's, 133. 
 Crosses, judicious, improve the breed, 
 
 122. 
 Curing bacon, 157. 
 Cuvier, Bnron, his definition of 
 "Hog," 9; on the babiroussa, 10; 
 on the capibara, 11; on the pec- 
 cary, 9. 
 
 D. 
 
 Dairy refuse for pigs, 137. 
 Dead pig, preparing the, 156.. 
 
 Definition, zoological, of the pig, 9. 
 Democrates' prescription for measles, 
 
 113. 
 Derbyshire pigs, 64. 
 Derivation of term " Hog," 11. 
 Desquamation of the skin, 113. 
 Diarrhoea, 101. 
 Dickens, Charles, on American pigs, 
 
 46. 
 Dieskau, M. de, taming boirs, 30. 
 Diseased valves of the heart, 93. 
 Diseases of swine,, described, 76 ; 
 
 little notice paid hitherto to, 76, 
 
 110; medicines used for, 157. 
 Diseases of the skin, 107. 
 Distilleries, pigs fed on refuse of, 137. 
 Docility of swine, 19, 25, 27, 30. 
 Drenching pigs, 118. 
 Duodenum, the, 99. 
 
 E. 
 
 Early domestication of swine in Eng- 
 land, 17. 
 
 Early history of swine, 15. 
 
 Edgecumbe, crest of the family of, 37. 
 
 Emperor of Austria's wild boar park, 
 40. 
 
 Empirics, animals not to be intrusted 
 to, 75. 
 
 England, breeds of swine in, 62 ; re- 
 cords respecting keeping swine in, 
 16. 
 
 English swine introduced into 
 France, 57. 
 
 Enteritis, 99. 
 
 Epidemics among swine, 94. 
 
 Epilepsy, 83. 
 
 Epitaph on a prize-pig, 136. 
 
 Erysipelas, gangrenous, 107. 
 
 Eumaeus, the swineherd, 16. 
 
 Extinction of wild boars in Great 
 Britain, 38. 
 
 F. 
 
 Fair in New York, pigs at a, 47. 
 Farrowing, best time for, 124 ; rules 
 
 respecting, 123. 
 Fattening pigs, 24, 135, 141, 143, 
 
 145 ; excess of, 136. 
 Feeding swine, 24, 134, 135, 145." 
 Filthy habits of swine denied, 31. 
 Fleam, the use of, dangerous, 115. 
 Food of swine, 24, 32; best kind foe 
 
 fattening, 146. 
 
171 
 
 Food of wild boars, 35. 
 
 Forester, Lord, his pigs, 68. 
 
 Forests of England, swine in, 18. 
 
 Four-in-hand, swine driven, 26, 27. 
 
 France, breeds of swine in, 56; Eng- 
 lish swine introduced into, 57; 
 medical attendant on swine in, 110 ; 
 wild boars in, 39. 
 
 Fruits, feeding swine on, 33. 
 
 G. 
 
 Gangrenous erysipelas, 108. 
 
 Garget of the maw, 92. 
 
 Gauls, the, early breeders of swine, 
 13. 
 
 Germany, management of herds of 
 swine in, 20 ; mode of hunting hogs, 
 39 ; wild boars introduced from, in- 
 to England, 38, 71. 
 
 Gestation, period of, ,122. 
 
 Gifford, Master John, on hunting, 38. 
 
 Gloucestershire pigs, 68. 
 
 Grain, best for fattening pigs, 141 ; 
 how to be given to swine, 144. 
 
 Grains, pigs fed on, 137. 
 
 Great Britain, extinction of wild boars 
 in, 38; re-introduction of boars, 38, 
 71. 
 
 Greediness of swine, 32. 
 
 Green meat, feeding swine on, 144. 
 
 Guiana, the peccary abounds in, 9. 
 
 Guinea pig. the, 10; the phaco-choe- 
 res in, 11. 
 
 Gullet, the, 98. 
 
 H. 
 
 Hampshire pigs, 71. 
 
 Hams, curing, 158, 160; importation 
 
 of, 163; of the ancient Gauls, 13; 
 
 Westphalian, 39, 1 60. 
 Hangman, boar's head presented to 
 
 the, 39. 
 Heart of the pig, 92 ; diseased valves 
 
 of, 93. 
 Hedgehog, the, 1 2. 
 Heliogabalus, boars trained by, 27. 
 Henderson, description of his sties, 
 
 148 ; his method of curing bacon, 
 
 159. 
 Herds of swine, how managed in Ger- 
 many, 20, 21. 
 Herefordshire pigs, 68. 
 Hernia in swine, 106. 
 History of Toby, a pet pig, 30. 
 Hog-ape, 12. 
 
 Hog deer. See " Babiroussa." 
 
 derivation of term, 12. 
 
 in armour, 11. 
 
 iron, 11. 
 
 puddings made by ancient Gauls, 
 
 13. 
 
 sea, 11. 
 
 wlili two horns, 10 ; four horns, 
 
 II. 
 
 Hog's blood used as holy water, 5). 
 
 dung as manure, 164. 
 
 Hogs, anatomy of, 76, &c; attach- 
 ments of, 30 ; best food (or fat- 
 tening, 146 ; breeding, 129 ; catch- 
 ing and holding, for operutiops, 117, 
 cause of their rolling in the mud, 
 31 ; characteristics o', 25, &c; chief 
 source of profit in Ireland, 24 ; 
 cleanliness of, 31, 145 ; collected by 
 the winding of a horn, 20 ; created 
 'citizens, 53 ; despised by Egyptians, 
 14; discover springs at Bath, 15; 
 diseases o£, 82 — 113; drenching, 
 118; driven four-in-hand, 26, 27; 
 early history of, 15 ; exquisite sense 
 of smell of, 25, 33, 34, 79 ; fattening, 
 24, 135, 141, 143, 145 ; feeding, 24, 
 134, 135, 145 ; food of, 24, 33 ; func- 
 tions fulfilled in forest by, 24 ; great- 
 ly esteemed by Romans, 12 ; greedi- 
 ness of, 32 ; how far the breeding 
 of, is profitable, 131 ; how kept in 
 Mexico, 151 ; how pulse to be taken, 
 93 ; hunt for truffles, 33, 79 ; impor- 
 tation of, 74 ; in English forests, 18 ; 
 injustice done to, 22 ; intractability 
 of refuted, 19, 25 27, 33, 81 ; intro- 
 duction of English, into France, 57 ; 
 killing, 155; laws on price and 
 quality of, 17; learned, 28; luera- 
 tiveness of keeping, 155 ; mad, 86 ; 
 masting 18 ; medical attendant of, 
 in France, 110; medicines used for, 
 166 ; methods of shooting, in Ger- 
 many, 39 ; mode of keeping, in Ger- 
 many, 20 ; mode of keeping, in 
 Mexico, 151 ; number of, to be pro- 
 portioned to the farmer's crops, 133 ; 
 of the fraternity of St. Anthony, 53 ; 
 old English, 62; operations on, 115 
 — 1 1 8 ; pasturing, 144 ; profit of, to 
 the butcher, 153 ; racing, 28; ring, 
 ing, 118; roasted, offered to deities, 
 50 ; sacrificed, 14 ; skeleton of, 77 ; 
 skin of, 107 ; skull of, 78; soiling, 
 144; sties for, 147; sucking, 130; 
 
172 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 swimming, 29 ; table of increase of, 
 by breeding, 132; teeth of, 80; 
 training of, 25, &c.; used as beasts 
 of draught, 60 ; used for ploughing, 
 27 ; usefulness of, 24 ; very nice in 
 their food, 33 ; warmth required by, 
 147; weaning, 130; weather indi- 
 cated by, 32; worshipped by the 
 ancients, 13. 
 
 Hog, the, in Africa, 52 ; Aldemey, 58; 
 America, 45 ; Arabia, 52 ; Asia, 50 ; 
 Canada, 39 ; Ceylon, 51 ; Channel 
 Islands, 58 ; China, 50 ; Columbia, 
 49 ; England, 57, 62 ; Falkland Is- 
 lands, 50 ; Flanders, 58 ; France, 24, 
 .55; Germany, 20, 53; Guernsey, 
 58; Guinea, 11; Hebrides, 49, 59 ; 
 Hindostan, 51; Hungary, 54; Japan, 
 50; Jersey, 58; Ireland, 73; Isle 
 of Man, 59 ; Italy, 53 ; Malta, 52 ; 
 Netherlands, 58 ; New Holland, 52 ; 
 Orkneys, 60 ; Poland, 54, 55 ; Rus- 
 sia, 55 ; Scotland, 60 ; Serk, 58 ; 
 Shetland Islands, 59 ; South Sea 
 Island?, 50 ; Sweden, 55 ; Turkey, 
 52. 
 
 Home Farm, piggery at the, 149. 
 
 Homer, his description of a boar hunt, 
 36. 
 
 Homer's swine-herd, 16. 
 
 Horn, swine collected by the sound of 
 a, 20. 
 
 Howel Dha, laws of, 17, 37. 
 
 Hunting wild boars, 36, 37, 38, 40, 
 42. 
 
 Hunt, swine trained to, 25. 
 
 Java, the babiroussa found in, 10. 
 
 Jejunum, the, 99. 
 
 Jews, forbidden to eat pork, 13. 
 
 Ileum, the, 99. 
 
 Importation of bacon, ham, and salted 
 
 pork, 154. 
 Importation of Swine, 74, 163. 
 India, wild boar hunt in, 41. 
 Indian corn, feeding swine on, 143, 
 
 147. 
 Indian hog, 11, 41. 
 Inflammation of the lungs, 93. 
 Injustice done to pigs, 22. 
 Intestines, the, 98. 
 
 , worms in, 104. 
 
 Intractability of swine refuted, 33. 
 Inversion of the bladder, 105. 
 
 Ireland, pigs chief source of profit in, 
 
 24. 
 Irish pig, the, 73. 
 
 •, lately improved, 74. 
 
 pork, 74. ' 
 
 Iron hog, the, 12. 
 
 Italy, swine employed in hunting for 
 
 truffles in, 33. 
 Jungles, hogs in the, 41. 
 
 K. 
 
 Killing pigs, 155. 
 
 L. 
 
 Lake, Colonel, his account of the pigs 
 
 in Guernsey, 58. 
 Lancet, use of the, 114, 115. 
 Larynx, 89. 
 
 Lawly, sir F., his pigs, 68. 
 Laws, English, on price and quality 
 
 of swine, 17. 
 Laws of warranty in Germany, 113, 
 
 114. 
 Laws of Shetland relative to pigs, 59, 
 Learned pigs, 29. 
 Leicester pigs, 63, 64. 
 Leprosy, pigs subject to, 109. 
 Leprous pigs, wholesomeness of flesh 
 
 of, questioned, 111. 
 Lice, pigs infested with, 108. 
 Life of pigs in Germany, 21, 22. 
 Lincolnshire pis;s, 64. 
 Linneeus, on swine's vegetable diet, 
 
 33. 
 Litters, how many to be suffered, 123. 
 Liver, the, 92. 
 Lungs of the swine, 92 ; inflammation 
 
 of, 93. 
 
 M. 
 
 Mad pigs, 86, 87. 
 
 Maimonides on prohibition of swine's 
 
 flesh,' 13. 
 Maladies of swine. See " Diseases." 
 — , medicines used 
 
 for, 166. 
 
 Malays, the, use the fat of the babi- 
 roussa, 18. 
 
 Mange, swine afflicted with, 111. 
 
 Manure, pigs dung as, 163. 
 
 Masting swine, 18. 
 
 Matches run by pigs, 28. 
 
 Maw, garget of the, 92.. 
 
INDEX. 
 
 173 
 
 Measles in swine, 113. 
 
 Medical attendunt of pigs in France, 
 
 110. 
 Medicines used for maladies of swine, 
 
 157. 
 Mexican hog, 10, 49, 151. 
 Mexico, how pigs are kept in, 151. • 
 Milk, swine fed on, 1 37: 
 Minorca, use made of hogs in, 27. 
 Mohammed's prohibition of swine's 
 
 flesh, 13. 
 Moldavian pigs, 54. 
 Moluccas, the babiroussa found in, 10. 
 Monstrosities farrowed by swine, 128. 
 Morocco, wild boars in, 43. 
 Moses gave laws respecting swine, 12. 
 Muscles of the hog, 79. 
 
 N. 
 
 Nasal catarrh, 88. 
 New York fair, pigs at a, 47. 
 Norfolk pigs, 67. 
 Northamptonshire pigs, 67. 
 Nutritious food for swine, 147. 
 Nuts not to be given to pigs, 141. 
 
 O. 
 
 Ogilvy, W., Esq., cut of a Chinese 
 
 sow sent to, 73. 
 Old English hog, cut of, 62. 
 Operations on swine, 114. 
 Os hyoides, the, 90. 
 Oxford, boar's head at Queen's Col 
 
 lege, 38. 
 
 P. 
 
 Palsy, 84. 
 
 Panther torn to pieces, by hogs, 49. 
 
 Paraguay, the peccary abundant in, 
 
 10. 
 Paralysis, 84. 
 
 Paris menagerie, babiroussa at, 11. 
 Parturition, 116. 
 
 , cases of difficult, 126. 
 
 Pasturing swine, 144. 
 Peas, feeding pigs on, 138. 
 Peccary, the 9, 10. 
 Peritoneum, 104. 
 Peritonitis, 104. 
 Pet pig, a, 30. 
 Phaco-choeres, the, 11. 
 Pharynx, the, 90. 
 Phrenitis, 82. 
 
 Pickling pork, 156. 
 
 Pig. See "Hog." 
 
 Pig.doctors, rough practice of, 76, 77. 
 
 Pig-gelder, the, in France, 110. 
 
 Piggeries, proper construction of, 139. 
 
 Piggery, Prince Albert's, at the Home 
 Farm, 150. 
 
 Pig.killing, 150. ' 
 
 Pig, preparing the dead, 150. 
 
 Pigs, roasted, offered to deities, 50. 
 
 , sucking, 151. 
 
 " Pigs see the wind," 32. 
 
 Pig-sties, proper construction of, 14? 
 
 Pliny alludes to the babiroussa, 10. 
 
 Pleuro-Pneumonia, 94. 
 
 Ploughing, swine used for, 28. 
 
 Poisonous properties of brine, 154. 
 
 Polish pigs, 54. 
 
 Porculatio, 12. 
 
 Porcus Trojanus, the, 12. 
 
 Pork, abstinence from, in hot climates, 
 14; importalion of, 163: increased 
 demand for, 154 ; pickling, 156. 
 
 Potatoes, staple food for pigs, 138. 
 
 Practitioners, well qualified, should be 
 consulted, 76. 
 
 Pregnancy, treatment of sows during, 
 124. 
 
 Price of swine, English laws respect- 
 ing, 17. 
 
 Prize pigs, 135 ; epitaph on a, 136. 
 
 Prussia, pigs in, 54. 
 
 Pulsations in a state of health, 93. 
 
 Pulse, how to be taken, 93. 
 
 Pumpkins, swine fed on, 140. 
 
 Q. 
 
 Quinsy, the, 90. 
 
 Rabies in swine, 85. 
 
 Reasoning powers of pigB, 28. 
 
 Rectum, protrusion of the, 106. 
 
 Refuse of breweries and distilleries, 
 hogs fed on, 137. 
 
 Residue of starch manufactories, food 
 for swine, 137. 
 
 Rice, fattening swine with, 143, 147. 
 
 Ringing pigs, 118. 
 
 Roasted pigs offered to deities, 50. 
 
 Rolling in the mud of pigs, explain- 
 ed, 31. 
 
 Romans, breeding swine a study 
 among the, 12. 
 
174 
 
 Romans, the hog esteemed by, 12. 
 Rome, slaughter-house at, 155. 
 Roots, feeding pigs on, 1 38 . 
 Ropes made from bristles, 60. 
 Rotundity of the Chinese and their 
 
 pigs, 50. 
 Royal piggery at Windsor, 158. 
 Rupture of the spleen, 103. 
 Russia, wild boars in, 40. 
 
 Sagacity of swine, 25, 29. 
 Salted pork, importation of, 163. 
 Sausages, pork, made by ancient 
 
 Gauls, 13. 
 " Schwein.General," the, 20. 
 Scotland, aboriginal breeds of swine, 
 
 in, 60. 
 Sea-hog, the, 11. 
 Sense of smell. See " Smell." 
 Sharon Turner on swine, 16. 
 Shropshire pigs, 67. 
 Skin, diseases of, 107. 
 Skull of the pig, 78. 
 Slut, training of a sow called, 26. 
 Slaughter house at Rome, 155. 
 Smell, exquisite, of the hog, 26, 32, 
 
 35, 79. 
 Smokehouse, for curing bacon, 157, 
 
 160. 
 Snout of the pig, 78. 
 Snuffles, the, 88. 
 Social pigs, 30. 
 Soiling swine, 144. 
 Sow, a Berkshire, 69 ; best time for 
 
 farrowing, 124; choice of, for 
 
 breeding, 120 ; devouring her 
 
 young accounted for, 32; English 
 
 on the quality and price of, 17; 
 
 fertility of, 123 ; pregnancy of, 124; 
 
 rules respecting farrowing, 124; 
 
 trained to hunt, 25. 
 Spain, wild buars in, 40. 
 Spaying of sows, 116, 117, 124; for 
 
 a wager, 117. 
 Spinal cord, disease of, 82. 
 Spleen, the, 102, 103 ; absorption of, 
 
 104 ; rupture of, 104. 
 Splenitis, 103. 
 Sporting pig, 26. 
 Starch manufactories, residue of, 
 
 food for swine, 138. 
 Stomach, the, 98. 
 Strangles, 90. 
 Sty, how to be constructed, 149. 
 
 Sucking pigs, 152; how to be fed, 
 
 130; when to be killed, 131. 
 Suckling, treatment of sows while, 
 
 129 ; the young while, 130. 
 Suffolk pigs, 66. 
 Sumatra, the babiroussa found in, 
 
 10. 
 Sus, varieties included under the 
 
 name of, 9, 11. , 
 Sussex pigs, 72. 
 Sweden, wild boars in, 40. 
 Swine. See " Hog." 
 Swineherds, outcasts from society, 
 
 14 ; three powerful in Great Britain, 
 
 17; in Germany, — 
 Swineherd, the, ot Ulysses, 16. 
 
 Talented pigs, 28. 
 
 Taming wild boars, 30, 44. 
 
 Teachableness of swine, 25, 30, 31. 
 
 Technical terms for the boar, 37. 
 
 Teeth of the hog, 80. 
 
 Tetanus, 85 ; a consequence of cas- 
 tration, 116, 
 
 Thorax, the, 92. 
 
 Thornton, Col., account of a sow be- 
 longing to, 27. 
 
 Toby, a pet pig, account of, 30. 
 
 Toomer, Messrs., a sow trained by, 
 25. 
 
 Tractability of swine, 25, 27, 32. 
 
 Training swine, 25, 26, 27. 
 
 Trollope, Mrs., on swine in America, 
 47. 
 
 Trough, the, how to be kept, 149 ; 
 description of, 149, 150. 
 
 Truffles, hunted for, by pigs, 33, 79. 
 
 Turnips, not beneficial to pigs, 138, 
 147. 
 
 Twety, William, on hunting, 38. 
 
 U. 
 
 Ulysses, and his swineherd, 1G; boar- 
 hunt of, 36, 
 Usefulness of swine, 24. 
 
 Valves of the heart, diseased, 93 
 Varro on swine's flesh, 12 ; distinc- 
 tive marks of a good boar, 121. 
 Vegetable diet of swine, very select, 
 33 ; feeding pigs on, 1 38. 
 
175 
 
 Ventilation required in piggeries, 147. 
 Vesical calculi, 105. 
 Veterinary surgeons should not be 
 dispensed with, 76. 
 
 W. 
 
 Wager, spayiog for a, 117. 
 
 Wallachian pigs, 54. 
 
 Warmth required' by swiue, 147. 
 
 Wart-hog, the, 11. 
 
 Wash, pigs fed on, 137. 
 
 Washing swine, 151. 
 
 Water-hog, the, 11.' 
 
 Weaning pigs, 130. 
 
 Weather indicated by hogs, 32. 
 
 Western, Lord, his Essex pig, 65. 
 
 Westphalian hams, 39 ; how cured, 
 160 ; pigs, 54. 
 
 Whey, hogs fed on, 137. 
 
 Wild boar, cut of a, 33 ; hunting, 36, 
 37, 40, 41 ; of Ardennes, 39; park 
 of Emperor of Austria, 40. 
 
 Wild boar exempt from leprosy, 111 ; 
 exiinciion of, in Great Britain, 38, 
 71 ; the parent stock of our domes- 
 
 ticated breeds, 43 ; prolific in Mo- 
 rocco, 43; re-introduction into Eng- 
 land, 38 ; small number of litters, 
 35 ; tamed, 30, 44 ; in America, 
 44 ; in France, 39 ; in Germany, 
 39, 40 ; in India, 41 ; in Morocco, 
 43 ; in Sweden, 40. 
 
 Wild Swine in Canada, 39. 
 
 Wiley, Mr. Samuel, his pigs, 63. 
 
 William IV., King, his Suffolk boar, 
 66. 
 
 Wiltshire pigs, 69. 
 
 Worms in the intestines, 104. 
 
 Xenophon, description of a boar hunt 
 by, 36. 
 
 Y. 
 
 Yorkshire breed of swine, 63. 
 
 Z. 
 
 Zoological definition of the pig, 9. 
 Gardens, babiroussa at, 11.