36 



THE AGrJCULTUEAL NEWS. 



January 29, 191G. 



PIGS. 



A SUCCESSFUL BACON FACTORY. 



In this Journal foi- April 10, 1910, space was devoted 

 to an account of Dr. Watis' .-cheme for the production of 

 bacon as an industry for these islands. Concurrently an 

 ■•account was given of a bacon factory which is now working 

 in Rhodesia, and a few facts were published concerning the 

 method of curing bacon. The interest which is now being 

 shown in certain West Indian quarters in connexion with 

 pig raising for bacon and pork, iiiakes it desirable to publish 

 further detail concerning the curing of bacon. This infor- 

 mation, which is given below, has been abstracted from an 

 article entitled, Th'e Hitching Bacon Factory, appearing in the 

 Journal of the Board of Agriculture, England, for July 

 191.'3. It may be of interest to point out that this success- 

 ful factory was established through the initiative of a group 

 oi farmers, and that its continued progress is only hindered 

 through inability to obtain a large enough supplyof pigs — 

 a circumstance which would not be likely to arise in the 

 West Indies, where, as J)r. Watts has shown, the amount 

 of available land, the nature of the crops that can be grown, 

 iind the thrifty growth of the pigs in these islands, would be 

 likely to ensure more than an adequate supply. The article 

 in the journal referred to, because of its inipoitance and 

 useful character, will be reproduced in full in the next issue 

 of the West Indian Bulletin. As alreaily stated, we present 

 now the main facts concerning the curing of bacon, since 

 experimeTits are being made in this connexion in one or two 

 of the ice-making factories in the West Indies. 



After the pigs have been cleaned, disembowelled, and 

 the hair removed, the carcases are put in a chilling room 

 at a temperature of 28° F., until the following morning 

 when they are trimmed up and all the ragged pieces removed. 

 After having once more been placed in the chill room for 

 twenty-four hours, the loin stakes are sent to the pie depart- 

 ment, and the trimmings to the sausage room for making 

 saveloys, polonies, etc. 



After the sides have been chilled for more than thirty- 

 six to forty hours they are dry salted. The first of the process 

 is to injec't the pickle of salt and saltpetre (no other chemicals 

 are used) by the aid of a pump. To ensure uniformity in 

 curing, the pickle is first injected into the thick part, i.e. 

 the gammon. The sides are then piled on top of each other, 

 ten sides high, in the curing room, at a temperature of 40 

 to ii° Y. As each side is placed on the top of the one 

 below, it is lightly dusted with fine saltpetre and the thin 

 layer of curing salt. The sides are left in the pile for nine 

 or ten days, according to their weight. .\t the end of this 

 period they are taken from the i)ile and the pickle is drained 

 off, after which tbey are again piled up, this time with the 

 skin uppermost, to drain, dry, and mature for another ten 

 days. The sides are then ready for use as green bacon, or 

 for smoking. If smoked bacon is reijuired, the sides are 

 waslied and dusted over with Hour, hung in the smoke hou.ses 

 and smoked and dried with hardwood sawdust for from 

 three to four days, according to the weather. In wet weather 

 the drying takes longer. 



The article goes on to state that the heads of the pigs 

 -are used for making brawn, and the feet find a ready market. 

 The pigs are killed by the humane method of shooting by 

 means of a special appliance, and they are bled afterwards 

 in the bleeding passage where the blood is run into a tank 

 >ind dried each day to be u.sed eventually as a manure. 



Dry-Salting Bacon and Hams.— In connexion 

 with the foregoing, the following recipes taken from a well- 

 known texl-bo(jk, 'Profitable Pig Riising, may be found 

 useful: 'For hogs weighing not over 12.J lb. or 1-30 tt). each, 

 intended for dry curing, 1 bushel of fine salt, 2 lb. of brown 

 sugar, and lib. of saltpetre will suffice for each 800 Oi. of pork: 

 but if the meat is large and thick, or weighs from 1.50 lb. to 

 200tb. per carcass, from 1 gallon to 1 peck more of salt, and 

 a little more of both the other ingredients should be taken. 

 Xeither the sugar nor the saltpetre is absolutely necessary 

 for the preservatioi>,of the meat, and they are often omitted. 

 But both are preservatives; the sugar improves the flavour of 

 tlie bacon, and the saltpetre gives it greater firmness and 

 a finer colour, if used sparingly " 



GROWING PLANTS UNDER CHEESE- 

 CLOTH. 



Of special interest in connexion with our editorial 

 in this Journal of May <S, 1915, on the qtiestion of 

 increasing the plant's efficiency, is the following 

 abstract of a paper in the Monthly Bulletin of A;jri- 

 ndtural Intelligence and Plant Diseases for Decem- 

 ber 1914:— 



The experiments described in this paper were undertaken 

 in the year 1908-9 at the Cuban Agricultural E.xperiment 

 Station at Santiago de las Vagas (Western Cuba), with the 

 object of determining the ctfect on transpiration and assimil- 

 ation in the tobacco plant of the cheese-cloth shade which i.s 

 frequently used in that region for shading tobacco. This 

 cloth is a kind of net work of coarse thread with meshe.s 

 about a tenth of an inch wide; during the middle of the day 

 this cloth casts a barely perceptible shadow; which, however, 

 is more noticeable' early in the morning or late in the 

 afternoon. 



Six tobacco plants were grown in vessels in the open, 

 and .six under cheese-cloth shade. The light intensity under 

 the two conditions was measured by the photometric method. 

 The temperatures were recorded by thermograph.-: the 

 relative humidity and rainfall were also determined. 



It was observed that: 



1. The .shade of the cheese-cloth tent reduced the total 

 light by about one-third, but the diffuse light showed very 

 little difference on bright days; when, however, there was no 

 bright sun, the total light (all diffuse) was reduced by about 

 one-third. 



2. There wa,s no marked difference between tiie temper- 

 ature within the tent and that outside. The average daily 

 excess of the temperature outside the tent over that inside 

 was, for sixty days, 0' 14° F. It seems that the tendtncy of 

 the tent to retain heat is balanced by the smaller i|u;uuity 

 of radiant energy which passes into it. 



3. The relative humidity is higher inside the tent than 

 outside, the difference being more marked during the daj', 

 for at night in both stations it reaches 100 per cent. l)uring 

 the day the difference is eniianced by the partial retention of 

 the moisture transpired by the plant. 



4. The rate of evaporation is greater in the open tlian 

 under the tent. The difference in the rates of evajioration in 

 the two stations increases with the ilevelopment of the i-lants, 

 and the consequent increa.-e in relative humidity under the 

 chee.se-cloth. IJesides diminishing the amount of light and 

 increasing the relative humidity, the tent reduces the currents 

 of air: all these changes tend to diminish transpiration. 



The plants used in this work were grown from .•<eed 

 obtained frcmi a single .self-fertilized mother- pi ant of a [mro. 

 strain. 



