THIRTEENTH ANNUAL YEAR BOOK— PART XII 637 



the American hog well at the top of the list." A comparison of the 

 growth of the swine industry expressed in monetary values is found in the 

 fact that the market value of the commercial hog crop in 1873-4, at all 

 points reporting, was $75,000,000 in round figures, while that of the killing 

 year ending March 1, 1911, was $424,328,000, the high prices of that year 

 offsetting diminished production. During thirty-seven years, from 1873 to 

 1910, the commercial hog crop of the country sold for approximately seven 

 billion dollars. An almost incredible amount of wealth has been accumu- 

 lated in the principal hog-growing states during the past half century by 

 hog production. An illustration of this is afforded by the statement of an 

 Iowa banker that two-thirds of deposits of nearly one million dollars in 

 his institution was hog money, and the same factor created much of the 

 accumulation of the two other banks of his town. "I make this state- 

 ment advisedly," he added, "because hog buyers pay for their purchases 

 with checks which are promptly deposited. Cattle feeders must deduct 

 from their gross sales the original cost of the feeders, but money real- 

 ized for hogs represents newly created wealth, and each year this pro- 

 duction process is repeated." 



The hog is legatee to some very serious diseases and probably nature 

 has designed them as a restraint to overproduction. It must be admitted 

 that as repressive measures these diseases are highly successful. A large 

 percentage of the mortality among hogs is due to overcrowding, and 

 failure to provide abundant quarters with proper ventilation is bound 

 to invite reprisals in the shape of an outbreak of cholera, or some other 

 virulent disease. It is a law of nature that overcrowding increases mor- 

 tality and this law applies equally to all living things. That crowding 

 the farm is to invite disease may be questioned by some, but I submit 

 that in years when the pig crop is light, cholera is seldom in evidence 

 and, for the same reason, a high-priced pig crop is usually a healthy one. 



The necessity for selecting a well-drained location for the hog plant is 

 recognized by all practical growers. Dampness is sure death to young 

 pigs and adult hogs soon become unthrifty if confined in perpetually 

 damp quarters, and for this reason hog houses of cement construction 

 are seldom found satisfactory. Sunshine, ventilation and exercise are 

 three essentials in hog growing that are most frequently overlooked. 

 A Wisconsin breeder once said: "I raise my hogs on sunshine, pure 

 air and enough other food to make up a balanced ration." I know of no 

 better method of raising healthy hogs. It has been observed that hogs 

 seem to thrive best on a sandy or gravelly soil. This sort of land affords 

 the best of drainage, and sanitation becomes less a problem. Soils of 

 this character are nearly always suited to the growth of clover or other 

 leguminous plants and profitable hog production is likely to depend 

 largely upon the quality and extent of your pastures. Any farm that is 

 adapted to hog raising should grow practically all the grain and rough- 

 age essential to the welfare of the pig. Packers do not discriminate as 

 to breed, and market prices are governed by the condition of the animal 

 rather than by the breed he represents. 



Generally speaking, the hog to grow is the breed you like best. All 

 the standard breeds of swine are so well established that there seems to 



