Semi-weekly south Kentuckian. [volume] (Hopkinsville, Ky.) 1883-1889, 1885-06-02
The Razor-Baok Hog, and How He
Was Made to Simulate a
Berkshire.


| had not been local editor on the
Bugle very long before | discovered
that there were lots Of people who
were willing to help in molding pub
lie opinion, if l would let them,
Some of them seemed to think that
they had right to do so.
In Texas, as elsewhere, there are
any number of queer ROSTERS who
think that the editor of the local pa
per wears the habilimcnts ofpOvcrty,
and nibbles at the tlea-bitten crackers
and pallid cheese Of the free lunch
counter for no other purpose than to
furnish Thomas, Richard and Henry
with facilities for vcntillating their
private grievances in his paper.
The worst one l ever saw was Sim
Holman, who had ranch on Gala
verus creek, and who came to town
once a week to transact business, Il
part of which was gctt ing drunk, and
giving me advice as to how to write
local items.
Ono afternoon, while at work at
my desk, there was smell of whisky
in the air, and few minutes later on
in came Sim Holman, showing his
whisky-laden breath in front Of him
SELF so to speak. IT was evident he
had something on his mind besides
whisky.
lie sat down very close to me, and
although | managed to shut of some
of the distillery aroma with a palm
leaf fan, | got enough of it to make
me think l was in Austin during the
session of the legislature. He was
just drunk enough to talk tiuently.
lie remarked:
There's Matched faced Yankee
living near my ranch who should be
denounced by the Bugle as an enemy
Of the South. lie has swindled me
in a hog trade. You can draw a lit
tie, can't your"
Just a little"
81 want you to draw some pictures
of the hog he sold me. lie sold me "a
razor back for Berkshire, He sold
me one of the slab sided, razor backs
that prowl about the wood, living OIL
acorns, but can spare time to clint
under the fence and help harvest the
corn crop, rather than let it spoil fol
want ofattention. 1t was one of then
pigs that is SO thin, it can't craw
through little hole if you tic knot
on the eud of its tail. That's the
kind of a swine that Yankee abOli-
ZIONIST sold me for full blood Berk
SHIRE
81 suppose you drank glass of COLI
water" | remarked "and not bein!
used to it, you got so drunk yol
couldn't tell razor back hog from {
bronze statue Of Niobe. If you dom
know anything more about hogs than
that, you are toOling away your time
farming. You ought to edit stock
raising journal"
Il wasn't drunk" replied Sim IIol
man. 81 was as sober as | am now
| guess l can tell one kind of a hos
from another. Your name is SwCe.
don't mistake you for anybody else
But as | was saying, that slab-slideC
hog built OH the Swiss cottage stll
Of architecture, wanted TO rub it
back OF something, and not knowing
any better, he allayed the irritation
by rubbing against a beehive.
"The bees" continued Sim, chap
pencd to be in. They just dropped
whatever they were at, and proceed
ed to entertain their visitors. TIL,
hog sang TO them plaintive ditty.
"Well, the busy little bees not onl!
improved the shining hour, but the!
also improved the breed of that pig
When you were boy, and got stuni
by the bees on the exposed parts, the,
swelled all up. You see that thin
razor-back hog was exposed all oven
so he swelled up all over, until h
looked fat and plump like Berk
shire hog.
81 happened to come along, AM
that cussed Yankee incendiary sol,
: me that hog for a Thoroughbred
swine. In few days he began t.
fall off as the swelling went down
and now he is the same old razor
back he always was. If the press o
the country doesn't propose to re
dress those kind of wrongs, it has IL
: lofty mission any more"