The Somerset press. [volume] (Somerset, Ohio) 1873-1977, 1881-11-24
lnportance of Pasturase for Swine.

For some years past there has been
much increased dissatisfaction at the
greatly diminished proportion of mus
Gle in pork and bacon. The complaint
is frequently heard about beef as well as
pork. The generality of hogs are mass
es of mere lard, aud if the production of
lard Is the only. or even the leading, OBJ
ject of the modern system Of breeding
hogs, the system had better be aban-
ioned, as the vegetable fats and oils can
be express ed 10 much more advantage,
and 10 pGrcr state. Much food that
is capable nf forming muscle or flesh Is
now wasted in the feeding of hogs Il
form II al me. have frei iusntiy stated
-haI very fat hog of 400 pounds can
not bleed as much when killed, or sup
ply as much nptririont, as muscular
or lean-lcsbnd oEe weighing only 2O0 t
pounds.
1t is also the fact that the IN.
natural management, which has led to
The great reduction of muscular struct-
ure, L.s led to a still greater increase in
the proportion of fat in the hog as gen
orally raised at present
Hog meat is only valuable for food in |
proportion to the quantity of muscle or .
cfllA tIt>tl IL anu
or flesh in pork can not be produced in |
the growing pig. or maintained in a full |
crown hog. except in proportion to the |
animals activity or use of his muscles, |
it follows that exercise is as much Of |
necessity to supply food value IN cattle |
and swine as to supply working value in |
horses
70 increase the muscle and food value, |
Digs aud growing swine should have fuli |
voluntary, natural exercise. Before as
,uming that we can improve upon na- !
cure, it should be remembered that ma
5ure makes no mistakes. Nature says
muscle is the only part of meat that is
,Ourishing as food, and that the exerci-o
which supplies food in muscle is indis
)ensabe to III intain the hog in
healthy condition, and to prevent the
iecimatiOn of the hog race by cholera.
| Nature and science teach these facts be-
.ond denial or controversy. | believe,
| therefore,, that the locomotive organs
| must be used alike to maintain health
md increase food value in pigs.
Accordingly any hog raiser should
| Irovide q ten-aere pasture lot for every
100 hogs, which would be three ten-acre
| OTIS for 600 hogs. These lots can be
enced with good portable fence. The
eed lots can be changed to any place as
| equired, the posts being set in ard
| iriven with a bar, and the panels of the
,ence bolted one on each side of the post
| )y one long bolt to each joint. Not
more than half the food of the hogs, at
| my age or at any time, should be COM
,osed of cOrn-rye or barley meal or
'niled pumpkins mixed, or artichokes,
| )oiled swedes, or some better food than
orn, forming the other half of the ra-
lon for hogs, large and small. In
prouting, corn is matted, by which
tarch supplies sugar, and hogs are very
ond of newly sprnuted corn, as corn
erowers are well aware. 1t is best,
therefore,, to have five or six acres in each
eed lot planted, and strew the shelled
orn over the blowing, and lightly har-
CIV it into the ground, say twice week.
" this process hogs are provided with
Xercise in their natural manner, and to
ent They gather the corn out of the
round, either before or after its germi-
alton. This keeps tn IN active, and
ais exercise increases the muscular or
| BOD supplying structure, and maintains
& in hogs which are full grown. Hogs
hpuld have an abundance of water
hree times day, at all times, and it is
,est to have a windmill pump ON high
sround, and cement pipes to convey
water into the feed lots where there are
10 streams, TO insure a full and regular
upply of water, without which the hogs
Gn not be kept healthy.
There are experienced hog-feeders
Who think grazing like cattle supplies
he hng with safti len exercise to devel-
,p in ilieln fail >Aed III ,scles and MAIN
ain them ~ good hca,th But I differ
yery decidedly from uch notions. In
,ooting, the hogs nose rises and falls
rom two to six inches, or about four
| inches on the average, at each ion
! ,f the head, and the back OF the hog
, rises and falls 10 a corresponding eX-
tent, giving corresponding motion in all
she pOrk-folming parts Of the hog, AID
, in this way forming the layers of red
flcsh, and supplying mingled fat and
can in pork and bacon. But ia grazing
: ike a COW, the head is kept nearly in a
7 horizontal line, not being raised or low
cred half as much az in ro)ting; in fact,
he head is only occasionally lifted 90
facilitate swallowing) by cattle or hogs
when grazing, and the body mott n in
grazing is probably less than half as
t great in extent as while engaged in
roofing. Consequently the muscular
1 exercise taken by hogs in roofing in
creases their muscle ard meat-value as
food more rapidly, and to Il much larger
extent, than in grazing.
r While clover is a good grazing crop
for hogs, and supplies excellent hay for
+ horses, it is also a root crop, for it has
been proved by weighing that there is
Y about as much substance in an acre OF
clover roots as in an acre of tops. L
the root half of clover can be harvested
e or consumed with as little expense, il
Q will yield as much profit as the par
J. grown above ground. We have seer
: the roots of clover harvested and consum
ed by a herd of roofing hogs, at great
d saving of other feed, and therefore with
y great profit in the excellent quality O
=, feshy pork so cheaply and naturally
VI produced. This gives great satisfaction
l. to the owner, who derives double prof
. from his clover field by allowing thu
J hogs to root and live, and thrive an(
. keep healthy, while making the very
g best quality of pork in their own natura
:, way.
q The French are sometimes laughed a
4 with an assumption of superior wisdom
v because they consume the flesh of thu
# muscular horse as fool. But when tht
N fact that one pound of horse flesh
"a which is as pure us the food it is formet
II from is select and wholesome contain
Z. as much 'aoarishing food as fire pound
,s of pork of average fatness is considered
it is seen that after all the French con
sumers of horse flesh have a very prac
teal appreciation of the value of muscl
nd &c o1x, l,