The daily chieftain. [volume] (Vinita, Ind. Ter. [Okla.]) 1898-1902, 1899-02-20
H0G-KnLING DAY.
Knit Neighborhoods and Closed
with Social Functions.

are short at least one pleasant recol-
lection" said the guest in the Rhode
Island household. The Rhode Island
host enumerated the catalogue, his
torical and otherwise. for which his
region is conspicuous, but the guest
from the south shook his head
What refer TO-" he replied, "has
not been put into history. 1t has never
figured in speeches or toasts and not
often have | read any dialect poetry
about it. 1t hasn't very elegant name,
but | never heard it called by any
other-just hog killing. I, was great
DAY in my country and in the south
generally about this time of the year.
1t was a neighborhood affair. People
lived in neighborhoods then. There
would be dozen families whose houses
were within one or two miles of each
other. Nearly always these families
were neighbors. They helped each
other at certain seasons. That was be-
fore the days OF hired hands. A few
weeks before Christmas the men and
women and children of neighborhood
would start the inquiry:
When are you to begin your hog
killing"
And after church, or before, as the
farmers gathered about the big box
stove, one would hear the question:
How many shoats are you fattening for
the killing?'
I'm this way the dates were fixed
and the killing usually began at the
farm which had the smallest number
There was always a killer. And as |
recall him he had the same pride in
being pointed out as the champion hog
killer of his region that ! imagine
hangman has in boasting of the num-
Der he has let fall. The usual custom
was to make slit in the animals
throat, using for that purpose long,
sharp blade If the killer was a good
rifle shot he preferred a rifle. 1t was
more to mans credit to be known
as center shot than as sticker.
THE animals for this killing were
always in prime condition. For a
month preceding the killing they were
penned and fed with regularity. Wien
the day dawned for the killing there
was an unusual stir about house and
farm. The neighbors came early. The
slaughter pen was usually on the
bank of stream near by. And all the
members of the family, and the neigh
bors' families, were present. Each
man and boy. as well as each woman,
was assigned TO his or her part of the
work. The killer did nothing but kill
The 'hang-ups' dragged out the slaugh-
tered hog and hung it from the hind
feet TO pole. Boys heated water and
carried it to the scrapers. and the lat
ter removed the bristes and prepared
the animal for the cutters, who took
it down, trimmed each part, and threw
it in its proper place. If it was the ham
or shoulder it was cared for by mas
ter in trimming, and as the feet and |
head were to go to the house for the |
women, who possessed some secret |
whereby those parts of porker were !
ANNhNS0 W ANAlSdSlNSi lAC lldll WIZ AdQ 4
this job was generally unmarried, and |
always ladies' man. He and the killer |
were rivals, if both were single.
"a dinner in the home followed the |
days work, and 10 this, of course, every |
was invited. When every |
farm in the neighborhood had had lis
killing the dances followed, and later
the wives of the household would ex-
change, Mrs. A sending side of
ribs to Mrs. B and the latter a
crock of 'souse meat to Mrs. A..
Whenever stranger dined he was sure
to be informed that at least one course
Of meats was from the kogkilling of
some judge, colonel or squire near by.
To the boy in the south the hog
killing season was one of as much re-
jeicing as the Fourth of July is in your
region. You know that the south
never observed independence day as
you Of the north observed it. The in
terest of the southern boy in the hog
killing season lay in the fact that he
became the possessor of the bladders.
These were inflated and hung up until
Christmas, and when taken down they
we're exploded, the report being like
hat of pistol shot. This was one of
the ways which the southern boy had
of celebrating the day. But the mar
1ets have crowded out the old hog
killing custom In the south, and the
boys now have irecraekers, which are
EXPLODED on Christmas with as much
as the northern boy shows
when he fires them on the Fourth of
Tuly."-N. Y. Sun.
A Reaat That Smoker.