The Ouachita telegraph. [volume] (Monroe, La.) 1865-1889, 1871-04-08
Hogs and Hog Raising in the South.

w. Hanna. Esq:
Now let lis look At the meat and hog
question:
We will suppose that the population
oftllis county Is 5000, presume that
it is nearer %. 600 and only take 5 ,0G6 as
basis of calculation, and that these
/ buy elf enough to do tilenl--and that
they either buy the other half or DO
! without it--l30 pounds, a very small
; allowance, 10 the head Will give 80, goo
! pounds of bacon, which at tho current
! price, 25 cents; q pound, gives the hand
some sum of S29O, 0sEi, all Of which can
! be retained at home.
/ The question naturally arises, how
can this be done?
! We win suppose then, that the ,210
farmers OF the county procure, each,
one brood SOW OF some thrifty breed
. this SOW, with proper attention, will
raise twice each year ten pigs-hut
! Will take Onc-haif that number a. u basis
| of calculation by judicious feeding
! they viii III SIX months attain the ag
| gregatc OF 2,0tG pounds, at twelve
! months 5000 pounds and upwards.
This gives for the county near 100000
pounds Of pork, worth 12A cts. a pound,
nearly $500, 900, and will be an album
dant supply for home consumption and
some TO sell, being 400 pounds apiece
for 10000 persons. In those two items
we save the annual expenditure Of $780,
! 900, and receive an income Of 500, 900,
making a saving to the county Of $780,
900 in q single year. l think that my
estimates have been small and my cal
culations not at all exhorbitant. So
much then for raising our own horses
and mules and hogs at home.
While upon this particular branch,
Will endeaVOr to give you some Of my
personal experience ub@n tho subject.
Since the WAY, have adopted the
, plan of keeping fewer and better hogs,
which ! find is the best policy for me.
. I spared no expense or trouble III my
efforts to obtain the very best breeds.
Ny object in this was not only to de-
, monstrate the superiority Of good stock
, over the common, but to show tho rCla-
| tive cost ofthe food consumed. | kept
correct account of the corn and peas
: that | used in feeding six head Of Ches-
, ter White pigs until they reached the
, age of six months, when they weighed
a gross aggregate OIL 200 pounds. Dur
| ing this time fed them 1S bushels of
!, corn meal and the same quantity Of pea
meal, making an aggregate of 36 bush
els, to the six pigs, worth in the market
81 80 bushel. This was daily made
) into Stops OF Irish potatoes, s4uaShes
, and other cheap articles of food, to
which was added u little salt. Allow
ing 200 pounds for gross, we have. 900
pounds of pork worth l2a cts, giving q
net profit Of 81 i'll six months from six
pigs. Now L ask, why can we not raise
> our pork as cheap if not cheaper than it
is done in kentucky, provided we pro-
cure the best breeds and use q little in
dustry and economy:
My present system on my farm, is to
urge each family of freedmen to shout
der n part of this Responsibility, and
raise as much pork as will do his family.
Should he fail in so doing, as Is some
times the case, | an, ready to sell him
q, what he needs and wait until he can
pay me. In this have succeeded very
well, and by distributing stock in this
way, they will be apt to receive much
better attention tlan Whcr" they are
kept in large tiocils.
My best success in hog raising has
been with those which never permit
ted to run at large.
| still have on hand Il few O: the
"Huster' breed. ifthry are esteemed
at all. it must be for their large proper
ton Of bone and Sinew, rs wei! as fNr
their 'ence-clilnbimg propensitics and
root-'ligging proclivities. ! am sure il
cannot be for their large yield of pork,
Sumed.
SOrglln, peas, Irish potatoes, turnipS,
squaShcs, hulled cotton seed. etc. tcvery
man who has gin should get n hullcr)
| We regard the cotton seed meal, after
the oil is pressed ont, far pYCfCra bic to
the raw hullCd seed, and would recon-
mend exchanging the seed Cor meal
ED. are the most easily raised, for
cheap AS we'll as carly food. Ono aero
of sorgum will feed 20 head OF hogs a
month and keep them in Al thrifty con-
| ditiOn; one hundred bushels of Irish
| potatoes can be raised to the acre. with
IL cost Of about twenty dollars. ana this
will feed a number of hogs until frost.
| corn cribs at home, and fill Them as
well as ottr Smokc-itouscS land keep our
money at home for the Improvement of
our farms and to render our homes moro
comfortable and attractive, and not
send it Oft to enrich the Golfers of the
North and West for something to cat. !
In conclusion, I ask the cooperation
OF every farmer, Is well IA every good !
citizen Of the country, Of Otl'2r CaliingS, /,
hoping by this means We VIII be cna Dlcd J.
ctfectually to dCvclopc the resources, .
prosperity and wealth of our country.
ThCn we can say to the immigrant ;
that ours is Il land Ofabundunt supplies,
and we will have no difficulty in oh
tanning i suttiCiCuvy Of labor to insure
further developments. Until we be-
como producers instead of cOuSumpiS-
until we raise Il surplus Of prnNiSiuns--