El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1910-06-20
EVOLUTION Of
AMERICAN HOG
Continued From Page Five)

Il AOAA oSC A'S-(
big packing house is very interest
ing. A chain is first looped around one
of the hind legs of the hog and the
other end attached in hook on big
revolving drum. The squealing porker
is carried up into the air and the end
of the chain attached TO the drum is
transferred to long track, which
transports the hog past the sticker, who
may plunge his knife into the threats
of many thousand hogs in a single day
From this point the bleeding porker
is carried to the scraping machines, and
almost in less time than it takes to tell
it has gone through all the processes
which transform it from a live hog into
dressed pork. Dozens of men take part
in the slaughter of each hog, each man
having his own special work to do,
which may be nothing more than WELD
ing a single stroke with a knife.
A Once Despised Animal.
The hog has had a peculiar history.
Despised by the Brahmins and the an
cient Egyptians pronounced unclean by
the Mohammedans and the Jews, in Eu-
rope hunting the wild hog for genera
tions was regarded as the most thrill
ing sport In which kings and princes
could engage. Yet under the develop
ment which was wrought by the breed
erS or the past, he mas COIuc OOHA "
the American farmer as one Of his great
est assets, a mortgage litter and a debt
payer Zoologically speaking, the hog is
a cousin of the elephant, the long nose
of the wild boar corresponding to the
trunk of that animal.
The first hogs brought to America
came from Spain. arriving in Cuba on
the vessels which brought Columbus
on his second visit to the new world, in
fvN1
portation were those which reached
Florida in 1888. Canada received it's
first swine from England in 1888. The
early domestic hog in Europe was the
result of the crossing Of the wild hog
Of that continent with domesticated
animals from China. It was found that
their progeny took all of the hardi-
ness of the wild boar and all of the
early maturing qualities of the domes-
ticated animals of Asia
United States Breeds the Best.
The hog affords the best Instance
among all domesticated species, unless
1t be the dog, of the working of the
law of natural selection and environ
ment 1t is a far cry from the wild
hogs of Europe to the modern Poland
China, but it has all been brought
about by a judiciOus application of the
laws of selection and environment In
different breeds. England has produced
a great many varieties, but probably
the best breeds are those which have
been established in the United States
No other domestic animal is as pro-
life as the hog. 1t has been calcu-
lated that at II years of age one brood
sow may be the ancestor of more
than 100000 pigs. It is this quality
that makes the hog one of the most
profitable of all the animals on the
farm. 1t is seid moreover, that hogs
Weld greater returns for the food they
eat than any other member of the do
nestle species outside of the feathery
kingdom.
The pig has long been regarded as
tic animals. Yet it is asserted by men
who have made a careful study of their
mental activities. that this seeming
denseness is the result of environment
and not a natural trait. Trainers as
sert that pigs have qualities which
more nearly approximate some Of the
best traits in human nature than those
of any other animal.
For instance, it Is asserted that they
show keener anguish over the suffering
Of their own kind than any other do
nestle creatures They have the in
stinct of fighting together. and will
form themselves into a circle for de-
fence a formation better than which
man himself has nothing to offer. One
NAV see this instinct of the wild hog
manifested when dog goes into the
hog lot and disturbs the peace of its
denizens.