The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1889-01-31
SOUTHERN AGRICULTURAL
Pork-KiIIing.


We wonder how many farmers in the
cotton belt will be prepared, on the
first ''real cold'' morning this month,
to kill hogs. If earlier suggestions
about feeding have been adopted, the
porkers ought now to be ready for the
knife, at least part of them. How
many have adopted, or now remember,
the suggestions made last winter about
temperature of the water, the use of a
thermometer, etc.P "What we preach
we have ourselves practiced and know
whereof we affirm. Farmers are too
much inclined to follow the ''old ways"
and disregard the aid of science in
many of the ordinary duties of the
farm. Every farmer should have
one or more of the cheap Their
mometers if he can not afford
to pay a dollar and get better one.
From long observation we learned that
the normal or ordinary reduction of
the temperature of the air between 9
p. m. and daylight next morning is
seven degrees. The usual reduction,
or fall of temperature, from p. m. to
9 P. m. is ten degrees. In other words,
when the weather is stationary, the
range of the temperature between 2 D.
m. and p. m. is ten degrees, and be-
tween 9 p. m. and daylight next morn
ing it is seven degrees. The knowl-
edge of this law will enable any one
who has access to a properly-exposed
thermometer to determine at either of
the three hours named whether the
weather temperature is undergoing
a change, either growing warmer or
colder. For instance: If at 8 D. m.
the mercury has fallen more than
ten degrees since 2 p. M, or if at day.
light it has fallen more than seven
degrees since p. m. (the night
before), or if at 2 p. m. it has fallen
less than ten degrees since daylight,
then we may safely conclude that the
weather is growing colder. By OBJ
serving these rules we may sometimes
safely 'kill hogs" day in advance of
others, or, on the other hand, we will
occasionally ''save our bacon" by not
killing when-although cold at the
time-the thermometer indicates a
change in the direction of warmer
weather.
We always use the thermometer to
indicate when the water is at the right
temperature for scalding properly,
having found, after repeated tests,
that l60 degrees is the best tempera-
ture, and that it should not be
lower than $50 nor higher than
40 degrees. Kill early in the morn
ing, let hang in the shade until stiff,
cut out and rub the joints well with
salt at once and spread on shelves,
pack down by daybreak next morning,
with plenty of salt, and in tight casks,
are safe rules. Why do not farmers
generally put up a barrel or two of
picked porkP It is much better for
boiling with vegetables, etc. than
bacon. The following is a good recipe
for picking pork: Large fat hogs
make the best picked pork.
Cut off the tops of the shoulders and
the thick part of the sides, trim off the
lean (for sausage meat) and cut
into pieces of convenient size, sag four
or five pounds. Have tub or tight
molasses barrel (whisky barrels will
not do) ready. Cover the bottom of
the vessel with ground alum salt; pack
on this one layer of pork, skin side
down, as closely as possible; cover this
with a layer of alum salt, and SO on,
with alternate layers of pork and salt,
pressing each layer down as closely as
possible. The salt on each layer
should be half inch thick. After
standing three or four days cover the
whole with as strong brine as the
alum salt win make, and put weights
on the meat so as to keep it under the
brine.