St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1897-05-01
FARMER AND PLANTER.
SWINE GROWING.

C004o4o0D - IL Meth oA4 h to0 Do0oo
IA paper read belsse Mississippi stock Areed-
es' Association. b z r. ColemaA1
Without any preliminary introduc-
ton, shall proceed 1t once TO the
theme Of this paper: assert that we
can not raise swine in competition
against the north, on lines laid down
by the hog growers Of the north. This
discussion is from the standpoint that
the final end Of the hog IS the pork
house, 80 its references are not directly
applicable to the breeder, who performs
. function distinct from that of the
pork grower. The person who attempts
to follow in toto the idea of the north
ern swine grower and apply 1t to the
conditions that exist in our section will
find that his pork would be like Horace
Greeley's potatoes. cost more than 1t
could be sold for. In the north
the hog il . necessary auxiliary
to the corn grower. It converts
50 many pounds Of corn into 50
many pounds Of pork-that is almost
the entire function performed. 1t IL
used for NO other purpose and expected
to accomplish no other. Do we want
to feed corn to our hogsf Certainly
not. Will . bushel Of 20 cent Missis-
sippi corn make any more pork than .
bushel Of II cent Iowa corn? It is
true the young pigs sometimes get
milk and sometimes clover to push
them along to early maturity. But
how different are our environments,
and repeat it, the hog performs IN
entirely different mission in the great
corn-growing northwest and the south
erner who attempts to follow him viii
fail.
Well, why failf This brings N 10
the gist of the whole matter. Have we
not conditions, however different,
quite g strong in opportunity If we
only avail ourselves Of them? There is
no country that furnishes . more con-
tinu0us and varied assortment of foods,
its cheapness only excelled by its album
dance. And greater than all Of these the
hog can be his own feeder. BY intelli-
gent rotation nine months out OF
twelve our swine can CLEAN their own
food. This saves more than half the
expense. This Is our archimedean lev
er, and we have the fulcrum, too. Can
we not feed Irish potatoes in spring?
Their food value il one-half that Of
corn. Will swine eat them uncookedf
Yes, especially II balanced with . small
ration Of corn. Wheat In ripe in May
and while we can not produce u much
- the plains of Kansas and Minnesota,
we get the winter pasture for young
pigs and raise over half Is much grain,
with . nominal cost to harvest, and
with hogs, our land il in . more pro-
ductive condition for corn or cow peas.
Oats can follow two weeks later under
like conditions have fed canteloupes
largely in July, making from 5000 70
5000 per acre. Their food value is un-
known to me. bat they contain large
per cent Of saccharine matter.
In August We strike our staple hog
food, cow peas and corn supplemented
by sorghum and sweet potatoes for
dessert Remember the text, let the
hog gather everything. As to pastures,
you can have them all the year round.
l mean green food, not . few '.sand-
papered" corn stalks and dry sedge
grass; but real, live, green pastures.
Now you will ak, how are we going
to do Ill this? Prepare for hogs or let
the business alone. that is what il the
matter now. Many 60 into improved
swine raising in . two-acre lot of mud,
and the balance have NO lot ut sll, but
60 it on the old style root pig or die"
principle. Let N borrow the improved
stock from the north, but nothing else.
Let N work our own destiny and de-
velop and utilize the Incompatible ad-
vantages We possess l for one be-
lieve this fair land Of ours is the fair
est and most blessed u sun shines on,
and il we only use Whist . kind Provi-
dence has given ~ We can meet COM
petition from any source. = Rural
World