The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1883-04-19
. What Causes Hog Cholera.

Inc following drJlc1e from Inc pei
| Of w. q. Cranberry, in the Farming
World, is full of sensible suggest ionS
to raisers of hogs: For the past few
years l have noticed, from time tC
time, in nearly all the journals which
have perused, articles by
farmers and stock breeders on the
subject of hog cholera, some asking
for preyentives, others giving what
may be termed antidotes, for this
Scourge that at one time was decimat-
ing the hog family. Finally the gov
eminent took the subject in hand
and appointed commission to
thoroughly investigate the disease so
destructive to hogs. Many of those
who have written on the subject have
come to the conclusion that too much
corn is the cause of this dreadful
scourge among swine, and they think
that they have proved the fact that
an almost exclusive diet of corn
to hogs will produce this
disease called hog cholera
1t is a remarkable and strange con-
cluSion to arrive at. never knew OF
heard of this disease till within the
past few years, but we feed our hogs
in this section almost entirely upon
Indian corn, when they are fed at all,
but neither this disease nor anything
like it has ever proved so fatal to the
hog family before. Then, if corn
feeding is the cause Of it, why does it
not continue? We feed our hogs on
corn still, but they are as thrifty now
as before the advent Of this disease.
And why, also, did not corn-feeding
e
certain food will produce it, and that
food has been used almost exclusively
for hogs, and they did not die
on it, the conclusion is irresist-
IDLE that corn does not kill hogs
1 have Hnown Of and seen hogs die
on account of corn, but it was from
the want of it, not too much OF it.
admit that corn alone will not make
them grow so fast or so large as other
kinds of food, yet do deny that corn
feeding ever produced the so-called
hog cholera any more than it did the
epidemic, or whatever disease it was,
that was few years ago so deStruc-
tive to the horses of this country.
Now for the facts as they occurred in
this section: The disease first made
its appearance in the lower or southern
portion of the country, and it kept on
coming toward the northwest some
three or four miles in so many days.
The affected hogs would refuse to eat;
lie about. Some would die very soon
after being taken, while others would
linger for weeks. The hair would
shed off, and they would become full
of sores. Sometimes one would re-
cover, but generally they would die.
The most of these hogs, it will be
borne in mind, were fed on corn, but
not enough to kill them. And very
many died of this disease (what we
call here marsh hogs which were not
in the habit of eating corn once a
week, and they would all die-sows
pigs, shoats, boars and all. Many
persons lost every one, and / believe
the disease was more fatal among
the marsh hogs, that only got an ear
OF. corn occasionally, than it was with
those who ate it every day. Thus we
see that corn did not produce that dis
ease then, nor does it now. Some
writers, notice, have proven that ar
tichokeS and chufaS will prevent hogs
having this disease, as they fed their
hogs on them and they did not have
~. AAOJ uOAA P1ONO t1C quCOGlOu, dt
least with me, for l have no arti-
chokes nor any chufas, but fed my
hogs on corn, and never. had one
to be sick, even during the
prevalence of the diseases. So
it will be seen that 1 can prove
that corn did not cause my hogs to
have the cholera, but that it prevented
them from having it, when the hogs
of others were dying all around me.
In my humble opinion, this disease
among the hogs is, so to speak, very
similar to yellow fever among the
human race. 1t is an epidemic, and
do not believe that one kind of food
produces it more than another. 1t
appears to be blood and skin disease,
and when one is first taken, / believe
a teaspoonful of arsenic would be of
more benefit than any food that could
be given, or if those having hogs would
give them a dose of arsenic occa-
sionally, am almost confident that
they would never be troubled with
the cholera. l see that cattle, horses,
and even the human family are Wis
tied occasionally with destructive
diseases, and can give no reason why
the hog family alone should be ex-
empt. In this section, "a few years
since. an epidemic of some kind of
disease was manifested, even among
the crows. One could see them dull,
sick and feeble, along the road fences,
wherefrom they would not fly at the
approach OF man, and l have even