The Norfolk weekly news-journal., 1906-01-12
THIS HOG HAD BLIND SrAGGERS
Many Remedies Were Tried-Cuttino
off the TaiI. Whiskey. Etc.

off the Tail WhisNey Etc.
Editor News: We and Pa had a ev
Doriencc with a hog with the blind
staggcrs that | thought some of your
farmer readers that have hogs might
like to know. We found a hog that
would way about One-iifty in the wal
ler-hole one morning goin' round and
round looRdn' as happy as a turtle on
sand bar although the water was
nigh on to freezin'. Pa said the brute
must have the blind staggers and that
we must get him out or he'd go up.
So waded in and steered him ashore
and he lay down for a rest. We put
him in another lot by himself so he
wouldn't get in the waller-hole agin.
and there was a ash tree in the lot
that thought might do him good if
! he'd go around it, fer I'd hcerd that
ashes wa2 good fer hogs. Pa says
"ah bosh" when ] mentions the ash
tree to him, but anyways | stccred the
| hog over to the tree and he com
mencod goin' round and round it but
! he didn't seem to cit either better err
wus. Pa thought that a good warmin'
| uD after his cold swim would do him
good so he warmed up some slOp with
| some condishun powder in it and I
| slipped rope over the hogs nose and
into his mouth and over a linn of that
ash tree and pulled his face up so
that pa could pore the dope down his
throat. The hog seemed to feel better
after this and went round and round
little faster'n he had been goin'. Pa
threw some ears Of corn fer him to eat
but he walked right over 'em as if
| they's only wuth eight cents bushel.
Next day a nayber happened along
and pa took him out to see the hog
which was still goin' round and round.
! The nayber said he'd never had hog
in that fix, but that his grandfather
| had and that he always cured 'em by
cuttin piece off the end of their tales
and rubbin' their foreheads with a
bag of salt and pepper. He said 1t waz
caused by a boadjucation of blood in
the forehead that made 'em blind and
that the salt and pepper would drive
the blood away and the excess could
git out O. their tales. So me and pa
gone and | rubbed the hogs head with
bag of pepper'n salt while pa cut a
piece off his tale. When we got done
with him the hog went round and
round jest the same as afore. BY this
time pa waz gettin' discouraged and
ba cnid if tho nrittar uoap't anv halter
next mornin' he'd shoot him out of his
mizery. But that evenin' a lrishman
who worked on the section happened
in to see about some wood and he told
pa that blind staggers waz caused by
snake-bite. He said there'd never bin
a case of blind staggers in all ireland
since st. Patrick drove out the snakes
but before that his annsisters lost
hundreds every year from that cause
He said that the sure remedy that had
been handed down for genyrations in
the ould country waz to give the hog
quart of pure Irish whiskey to get
him drunk and he'd git well just the
same as a man would that had been
bit by a snake. Pa thought it wa2
wuth tryin' so he Civ the Irishman q
dollar to git quart of the real Irish
whiskey.
When he got back me and pa tool
the lantern and we all went out Il
the hog-olt and | put the rope on ager
and they poured the whiskey dowr
his throat. The hog seemed dazed a
first, then he walked up all at once
and started round the other direction
from what he'd bin goin', an his tall
stuck out and he went part of the tim'
on three legs and seemed to stagge
wus than ever. The Irishman said tha
was a good sign and that he'd be al
right in the mornin', but that "It's ,
pity to waste such good whiskey OF