The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1919-05-20
: TOPEKA. STATE JOURNAL
INFORM ALTON
BUREAU
FREDERIC J. HAskRy. Director.
washingtou, d. c
MUNICIPAL PIGGERIEs.
Warrington. D. c


Washington, d. c., May 1.-THE
capital, which aspires to be a model
for all other American cities, has gone
in for hog raising. Instead of paying
out many thousands OF dollars every
year for the collection of garbage
which is thrown away or sold for a
trifle, the District government will try
the experiment of converting it's gar
bage into pork on it's own farm.
The plan did not originate here. 1t
is being carried out with success In
a number of New England cities, and
in a few other parts of the country.
1t is hoped that the capital piggery
will attract the attention of cities all
over the United States, so that the
conversion of garbage into pork as
municipal enterprise will become gen.
eral 1t is said that the food wasted
| by seventeen persons will fatten a pig.
You know the population. A little
over half OF it lives in cities. Do the
arithmetic for yourself.
The commissioners of the District
of Columbia have already purchased
| several hundred feeder pigs. The ex-
pertinent will continue for three or
four months, and if at the end of that
period it has proved successful, the
DlSltlCl Will cIllDdTh III the IOB IdlS-
ing business on as large scale as the
daily collection of garbage will per-
nit 1t is estimated that sufficient
garbage is collected in the national
capital daily to feed at least 1900
hoes.
BY going in for hog-raising, Wash
ington hopes to do what other cities
have done in the same way by reduc-
ing. if not entirely wiping out, the
large sum expended annually for gar
bage collection. At the present time,
it costs the district more than $35, 900
per month to keep the garbage cans
clean. At that rate, it is figured that
for the fiscal year ending June 80, the
district will have paid out something
like $450,000 for this item of street
cleaning, to which is added many more
thousands for collecting ashes and
miscellaneous refuse, such as tins cans
and paper.
However. the district does not now
entirely waste its garbage as many
other cities do, but derives quite a
large revenue from its reduction plant.
The garbage is reduced to grease, ard
this, together with the residue which
is sold for hog feed, is expected to
bring into the districts Golfers about
S225,OOO for the present fiscal year,
making the actual cost of collecting
garbage about the same amount
Worcester, Mass, has been feeding
its garbage to hogs for many years,
and was one of the first towns in the
country to adopt the method. 1t has
been successful. Worcester raises an
average of $500 hogs yearly on its
! 700-acre farm.
All thru New England, municipal
hog raising is in vogue, with Massa-
chusetts leading all other states in the
! industry. Boston is the only city of
! 10
| adopted the plan. Raising hogs on
garbage is also successfully practiced
in st. Paul, Kansas City, Omaha. To-
peka, Leavenworth. Denver, Phila-
delphia and Baltimore.
In Baltimore, the city collects the
garbage and sells it to contractor
who is engaged in hog raising. The
contractor pays the city for the gar
bage at a rate based upon the market
price of hogs. He pays price per
ton equal to 8 ~ times the market
price per pound of pork.
1t is estimated that more than
100000 hogs were fed on the garbage
collected at the various environments
during the war. Private individuals
got the garbage concessions" and in
this way thousands of tons of garbage
which would have otherwise been
wasted was put to good use in fatten-
ing hogs for market.
MANY large private
such as boarding schools, have come
to realize the advantage of raising
hogs for their own use on the garbage
from the table. The United States
naval academy, at Annapolis, has been
raising much of the pork it uses for
some time A record was recently
kept at the naval academy. farm of
10 feeder pigs purchased by the
academy. From December l until
April 80, the record showed that the
pigs gained an average of 1917
pounds each, or more than a pound
day. Before the naval academy de-
cided upon the economical hog rails
| ing plan, it had to pay a contractor to
haul away the garbage.
The department of agriculture is
| greatly interested in the municipal
hog raising idea, and is making a
careful study of it in the cities where
| it has been successfully worked out.
The whole idea is new in many re-
spects, and the department plans to
get out bulletin on this subject after
completing it's investigation, as
guide to cities and towns that plan to
| embark in the business The bulletin
| will be of much aid to the beginners
| in avoiding the mistakes made by pio-
| neers in this business.
a city desiring to start In the hog
raising business can get the co-opera-
| ton of the department. An expert
| will be furnished to help select the
| hogs, and to direct the feeding and
care of them until the municipality is
/ started properly.
In its investigation of feeding gar
bage to hogs, the department uhearth-
| ed the interesting fact that during the
war. in towns and cities all over the
| country, the garbage can lost weight
as a result of the nation wide food
| saving campaign. In many towns, the
| quantity of garbage was cut in half,
and in the language of the garbage
man the garbage lacked quality"
An interesting experiment was con-
| Quoted some time ago by the animal
/ husbandry department of the Iowa
| Agricultural college in the feeding of
garbage to hogs. These pigs were fed
| on garbage from Y. NJ. c. A. cafe
/ terra and results were carefully re-
| corded. During the first 10 days,
/ eight pigs, averaging So pounds each.