Cleveland morning leader. [volume] (Cleveland [Ohio]) 1854-1865, 1860-09-29
Hints on Fastoulnr Pork.

II IS usual with many farmers to put this
of until cold weather sets in. The pigs run
in the woods, the road, or the pasture, pick
ing up scanty living, and come TO the pens
lean and hungry, when they ought to be
fattened. In our practice we keep pigs in
the sty the year round. We find them quite
too valuable co-laborers in the manufacture
Of manure to allow them to waste " their
sweetness upon the desert air. A pig is
worth ten dollars a year for this purpose
alone, if you will give him the material to
work with and plenty Of food. But possibly
il may pay for a little time in the Summer,
to keep the sow and pigs in q good clover
pasture where grass is more plenty than corn
upon the farm. If this be done, all of them
intended for the butcherby Christmas, should
be shut up Immediately, and be fed with all
they can eat. A squealing pig is worse for
the owners pocket than for his ears. Il is
much easier to make pork in September and
October than in December and January
No extra amount of food is wasted in keeping
up the animal heat It all goes to fat and
muscle Variety Of food is matter Of much
importance in fattening swine. Atthisseason
a greater variety is easily commanded. The
garden, ifit is good one, yields a great many
refuse articles, squasoes, beets, carrots, apples
melons, tomatoes, and corn, which win find
a good market in the sty. One of the best
articles of food for them is sweet corn, cut up
By the roots and fed whole. The are very
fond of it, and it makes them thrive very fast
A half acre near the sty may be prohtably
cultivated every year expressly for this pur-
pose. If this be not on hand, corn from the
field may be fed in the same way oncea day.
But swine need something more than green
stuff however nutricious, to make them fatten
rapidly.
The cooking of food is much more econ
omieal than is generally supposed, especially
upon the farm, where fuel costs little but the
labor is preparing it. We think about one
third of the value of all the grains usually fed
to swine, is saved by cooking. A boiler or
box for stesming is Indispensable in every
we'll arranged swill house. In this the meal
may be cooked and thoroughly mixed with
roots and other vegetables. The meal alb
serbs large quantities Of water, is more highly
relished by the pigs, and is more perfectly
digested. Numerous experiments fully prove.
the economy of cooking the food under or
binary circumstances. Some claim that they
can make pork for less than three cents a
pound in this way. A dairy farmer of this
State made one year 4, ,227 pounds of pork.
The feed with which he did it was 4, l27
pounds Of corn and oat meal at 81 so hun
dred, 47O pounds shorts at 75 cents, 147bush-
els Of potatoes at l6 cents, all of which were
cooked, and half an acre of green peas worth
say SIS; making the total cost of feed S103,-
95, or not quite two and half cents per
pound for the pork. The value of the whey
and sour milk was not reckoned. This and
the labor of feeding, with the fuel for cook
ing, are very properly balanced against the
manure they made. There can be no doubt
that cooking the food pays we'll
A dry, warm place for sleeping is another
important item in keeping swine thrifty
They should have good sty with roof and
board floor, and plenty Of straw so that they
can keep themselves clean. With these con-
ditiOns pork can be made very fat and the
sty will be found to pay as well as any part
! of the farm arrangements. CONEEcTICUT.
-AmerieGn AgTieulhrist