Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1889-02-22
THE FARMER.
The Need of Grooming.

No man, says the Western Rura1, can
groom, horse intelligently unless he
has correct idea of the purpose of
grooming and the characteristics of the
skin. We have seen people dig into the
skin of a horse with a sharp curry comb
as if they were smoothing down stone,
and the pitiable crineing of the animal
has no effect in getting the fact into the
mind that the horse was being hurt.
The skin is to be reached, for one of
the chief purposes of the operation is
to cleanse the skin--to remove the dirt
and collections that have gathered on it.
In one sense, when the skin is covered
with dirt and the dried excretions that
have come through the pores, it is like
head covered with danGrutf, and those
who have had an experience of that
kind know how much discomfort there
is in it. The pores of the skin become
clogeed. and they cannot, while in this
condition, fully perform their functions.
Their Importance is so we'll understood
that some have even gone so far as to
recommend the Turkish bath for the
horse, and we honestly believe that it
would often prove valuable.
The skin is. therefore, to be distinctly
and effectively reached by the curry
comb, that it may Go all it may do i'll re-
moving from the surface whatever may
irritate the skin or clog the pores. The
pores cannot be fully cleaned by the
rry-comb, but they can be partially
cleansed by it. But while it is necessary
to scratch" the skin. it must be gently
done. The horse should never be made
to cringe under the process of grooming.
OF late years combs have been manufac-
tured that do not harm the skin, and
some of them are valuable. 1t need not
be said that farm houses are often neg
lected in this respect. Frequently it
is the result of the hurry in our work.
But suppose the trotting horse should
be thus neglected. If it could be with
impunity, certainly the owner would not
go to the expense that he incurs for
having the animal thoroughly groomed.
1t is the only way that the trotting horse
can be kept in good condition. But the
work horse has the same sort of organ
ism that the trotting horse has, and
other. The truth is that if we paid more
attention to grooming we could feed
less, and our horses would be much less
liable to disease. Time spent in per-
forming these little things" on q farm
is usually we'll spent.
A Perfect Market Hog.
committee OF experts at the Amerl-
can Swine Breeders Convention gave
the following as a standard of a hog
best fitted to meet the requirements Of
the market:
Such hog must have short head,
heavy jowl, and thick, short neck; ear
small, thin and tolerably erect, but is
not Objectionable if it droops slightly
forward. 1t must be straight on the
bottom from the neck to the flank, let
we'll down to the knee in the brisket,
and possess good length from head to
tail; back broad and slightly curved or
arched from the shoulder to the setting
on the tail; ribs rather barrel-shaped;
tail small. The hams should be long
from the back to the letting off at the
loin, and be broad and full; shoulders
not large, and yet sufficient to give SYM
metry to the animal; hair smooth and
evenly set on; skin soft and elastic to
the touch; legs short and small, set un-
der the body, and the space between
wide; good depth between the bottom
andtop Of the carcass. "-Chicago Globe.