No. 7. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 697 



AMERICAN PORK PRODUCTS ABROAD. 



It is a recorded fact that the highest-priced pork products sold 

 in Ireland by the Limerick dealers was put up in Chicago, and by 

 special instructions marked with private brands of Limerick dealers, 

 who for years have been selling American hams and bacon on the 

 continent as "Best Irish Hams and Bacon." 



The authority for this may be found in the Consular Reports Nos. 

 122 and 129. It is also a matter of record that the Bacon Curers' 

 Association of Great Britain, who prosecuted the Junior Army and 

 Navy Stores of London for selling American hams for Irish, secured 

 a fine and costs amounting to |360. Investigation showed that the 

 American hams were changed to Wiltshire by oiling and rubbing 

 them with meal, then branding ''Best Wiltshire," they were put on 

 the market as genuine Irish product and brought 24 cents a pound, 

 while the remainder of the identical shipment sold for 17 cents a 

 pound, as American product. This is sufficient evidence that all the 

 American farmer needs to do is to keep up the quality of his product 

 and the English market is assured. It would thus seem that we do 

 not need any special bacon type of hogs to produce the highest qual- 

 ity of product. 



While I am an advocate of the early maturing breeds, I want a 

 pig that will make 225 pounds at six months of age when properly 

 fed, or 250 to 285 at eight months of age for the market, and I want 

 him of such conformation that he can be made much heavier when 

 pushed for the show ring. Or one that when in shape will at one 

 year of age weigh 500 pounds. Or at maturity will weigh 800 pounds 

 or more. 



We have in our own herd even greater weights, having a boar 

 that at 16 months weighed 740, and another that when shown in 

 his yearling form weighed 787, and also a two-year-old that at St. 

 Louis this year weighed 926, and could have been fed to 1,100 

 pounds very easily, in fact, we had to hold back the feeder who 

 wanted to make him weigh more. This early maturing type that with 

 present conformation can at maturity be made to great weights is 

 the result of years of selection and good breeding and feeding. 



so MUCH IN GENERAL REGARDING SWINE GROWING. 



Now how are we to produce the best and most profitable kind of 

 hogs. This can only be done by using pure-bred sires, and still bet- 

 ter if we use pure-bred dams as well. That brings me to the sub- 

 ject of my paper. 



THE BREEDING AND SELLING OF PURE-BRED SWINE. 



I have no ax to grind as to what breed a man should breed; will 

 only say that a man who wishes to commence the breeding of pure- 

 bred hogs should select the breed that he likes best, and that is best 

 adapted to his part of the country. We have been breeding but one 

 breed for about 30 years. We commenced with the Berkshires and 

 have never had any reason to change our breed. We commenced at 

 the bottom, and almost below the bottom, and in a very small way 

 commenced what has become our life business. It has been a some- 

 what slow gait, but have kept at it till we now enjoy a national repu- 



