The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1900-03-20

One of the most PHEASANT lHIHSS III Soh-
nection with the writing OF these letters
is the commendation one gets. A preach
81. in Western North Carolina writes,
We're 1 farming | could get the pay for
years subscription very quickly indeed
nut of YOUR articles alone. | have some
thing to do with the management of a
farm in county for my wife
and while the tenant is good farmer,
ploughs deep. subsoils, etc, yet he is not
u reading farmer. ] try to read some for
his benefit and also am enabled to make
suggestions to my people as / move
among them, and help them materially
as we'll as spiritually. \ full gospel lifts
man up in every interest he has.
You mentioned the curing of hams and
said you would write again on that sub
ject but if you did we have missed the
paper. and would like to have that also.
We are smoking our hams now, and will
be ready to put them up in few days.
We had really intended to say something
on the subject of home curing of pork,
and if we failed to do SO we are sorry,
for most of the work has now been done
on all the farms. We were taught when
Il boy by our mother one of the best
managers on a small salary such as
] Mthodist preachers got in those days,
\ how to cut and trim pork to best advan-
tage ana | have always tried to follow
] her instructions. One of the great faults
i among farmers in cutting up pork is the
failure to trim the pieces properly, and
. they leave long fanky pieces of fat on
the hams that is the first part to get rus
ty. The packers trim their right and
always take out the little projecting bone
that we always see in country hams. We
remove that and trim the hams as neat
and round as the packers hams are
trimmed. OF course where one is sell
ing hams these pieces left on the ham
may bring more money than they would
IN lard, but we are sure that reputation
Tor neatly trimmed hams and we'll
cured meat would soon enable the farm
crs to realize enough more for his hams
10 make it pay to trim properly. Then.
too the long hook left on most country
hams is only Il species of dishonesty to
get pay for Il part that is of no value,
and anyone who wants to make a reputa-
lion for honesty trimmed hams should
cut the hook short, We were raised up
in the notion that the way to cure hams
and bacon was by drysalting, and this is
the CuiN point in which we have depart
ed from Our mothers method. We have
found that curing in brine is better and
hams and shoulders from the thinner
parts, make a good strong brine and
drop them into it as soon as trimmed.
They stay in this brine only day or two
simply to draw out the blood They are
then taken out and the brine is made
AGAIN. and this time for every 100 lbs of
meat we put in a pint Of black strap mo-
lasses and an ounce of saltpetre, and put
the meat in again, placing weights on it
to keep il under the brine The hams
and shoulders We let stay in the brine
from four to six weeks and the back
bone pieces a shorter time. Or if the
bacon is cut into sides without removing
the ribs We take it out to smoke in about
three weeks In hanging the hams and
shoulders to smoke We always hang them
hock end down and smoke thoroughly
after they have hung long enough to
drain we'll. Hickory wood corn cobs.
and cedar brush all make good smoking
materials. Hickory smothercd dowr
with green cedar brush is the best we
think When we'll smoked-and a ham
is not liam till we'll smoked though
some of our people have gotten a notion
that smoking is not needed-we take.
them down and paint the whole ham
over with a mixture of molasses and
black pepper. We then wrap them in
STOUT paper and cover with cotton bags.
Inc Tags are then dipped in whitewash
- make them still tigher, and are agaI1,
ILu'lS up III perfectly dark smokehouse.
they are at their best when year olo.
SHch hams as these will bring a good
price on any market. Here in Raleigh:
we see at stores the sO-called hams of the
western packers, the we'll cured hams
from southeast Virginia. and the white
an8moked and badly trimmed hams from
the country around. The last bring the
poorest price of all, and the Virginia
hams always bring the highest price
The meat is not bit better than the
North Carolina meat. but is better cured
ana IS well smoked. And still. with the
example right before them dailv our
farmers bring in their long shanked
badly trimmed meat without a smoking
ana get 10 cents per pound when the
Virginia hams are selling from il to 20
cents per pound and are well worth
the difference to anyone who wants a
good ham. The western packers hams
are neatly trimmed but the process they
are put through of injecting brine into
them and then running them through
Il tank OF creosote to make them look
like they are smoked is destructive to a
good ham. But they are prettier and
iholt ecohOnlcal at little higher price
than the white North Carolina hams and
lhey sell faster too. There is not the
slightest reason why North Carolina
mans should not be as good as Vir-
sinia hams, and there are here and there
farmers who make them as good but
they generally keep them at home SO far
Il" we nave observed. difference. of so
cents IN the price of ham will pay for a
great deal Of smoking and extra trou-
BILE.
we are having d great deal OF wet wea-
iiler lateiY. and farmers will be get
ing impatient to get the plows running
bul 100 great haste in this is not wise
'lay lands plowed too wet in the sprinp
VIII De years IN recovering their mellow
'hatactef, and the time gained in plow-
,"S LOO So'h VIII be lost in the additional
lahor OF cultvatng during the summer.