The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1901-12-04
AGRICULTURAL.
SOME BREEDS AND CROSSES.

SOME BREEDS AND CROSSES.
We read in an exchange that the Berk-
shire hog is the best forager in exist
ence, feeding on grass and weeds that
no other animal will eat. He is also
kind in his disposition, and fattens
readily on corn or ground feed at any
age He carries more loin steak and
more lean ham than any other, and
can be fitted for market at any age
from one to three years. The Poland
China needs but little room and but
little fence. He is the best hog to
keep in small Enclosures, and can CON
dense all kinds of food into nice
marbled pork, or that in which the
fat is well mixed with the lean. If
this is true we should prefer the
Poland China to the Berkshire. But
if we were raising pigs to fatten,
we would take a grade Chester White,
or one of what many people call a
native white, that was long bodied,
perhaps long legged, but not long
nosed with twelve or more teats ON
her, and one that was so good natured
that she would lie down when we
scratched her back with a curry comb
or corn cob, and we should mate her
with pure bred Berkshire, Poland
China or Small Yorkshire, and we
should expect pigs that would fatten
quickly, or, if we wanted breeding
sows, some that would be prolific of
pigs that would fatten readily and
cheaply.
Some one must grow pure bred
stock if we desire to improve our
swine, even if the half or three-quarter
breed make good pork at less cost
than the pure breeds, as we know that
breeding from half breeds results
in mongrels, which cannot be relied
upon to breed true to any type but
we think the large or medium York
shire can be depended upon to prove
more prolific, to furnish their pigs
more milk up to the weaving age, and
thus grow better pigs, or to make
more pounds of pork at six to eight
months old than any other pure breeds
we ever saw.
In saying this we do not mean to
say that i'll these particulars they will
excel or even equal the cross of York
shire on the Berkshire, or Yorkshire
on Poland China, as we have not had
much experience with these crosses,
favorite with many Western pork
growers The pure Yorkshire may be
better, but we have no evidence of it.
OF the Duroc or Red Jersey we
know but little as pure breed or for
crossing with others. We have seen
more of them at cattle shows than at
any other places, and our opinion has
not been very favorable toward them
as we saw them, or as we read the
claims made by their advocates. We
allow that they can be made to attain
good size, and that they are near the
popular style for the bacon hog, thin
sided and with the streak Of lean
among the fat, which some so much
like; but we do not think they fat
ten quickly or cheaply, and we prefer
the pig of two hundred pounds at six
months.
Nor did we like the Essex though
we thought they fattened more rapidly
than almost any other breed at less
cost of food than any others we ever
had, but we rarely saw them produce
over four pigs in litter, and thus
they were not very profitable breed
ing stock. Attempts to remedy this
by scanty feeding to prevent them
from fattening did not prove success
full, while those who fed literally Of
ten found them not to breed at all
To fatten readily at any age from six
weeks to six months may be charac-
teristic of this breed but prolific
breeding is not. = Massachusetts
Ploughman.