572 IOWA DEPARTMENT OP AGRICULTURE. 



sympathy with their sufferings and no pity for their foibles. The man 

 who said that the more he saw of men the better he liked dogs did not say 

 a smart thing; in fact, he said a very silly thing; but the man who is 

 much with chickens and sheep and hogs and horses and does not have a 

 growing interest in them, does not find the study of them increasingly 

 attractive, is unfortunately lacking in one of the prime qualities of a 

 husbandman, or, what is of more importance, in one of the prime qualities 

 of human sympathy. The more one sees of men the more he ought to 

 like animals, but not because he likes men less. The more he sees of 

 animals the more he ought to be in sympathy with all life, most of all 

 human life. 



If one is in the Duroc-Jersey business — that is, the pure-bred business — 

 he must give some attention to the fancy points of the hog. That is, he 

 must get and keep the approved type as nearly as possible, and this means 

 a certain amount of care in regard to the things that constitute elegance 

 in the Duroc-Jersey. And yet I am moved to say that that statement needs 

 to be taken with considerable caution, in view of the fact that there is a 

 manifest tendency often to sacrifice utility points to fancy qualities. This 

 is seen in several lines of breeding — in poultry, in cattle and in hogs. For 

 instance, I read the other day an article from a noted breeder of Barred 

 Plymouth Rocks, in which he compared the finest specimens of that breed 

 today with the best of ten years ago, and he went on to say that a 

 marvelous progress has been made in that time in this great American 

 fowl, that in the next ten years a like development may be expected, 

 and that indeed there is no limit to be set to what might be done. But 

 he is in error. There is a law which the economist calls the law of 

 diminishing returns that puts its decree of limitation upon what can 

 be done. For instance, it is good to exercise, it promotes strength and 

 health and long life, but one can exercise till he passes the pivotal point 

 and then it becomes a menace to health and life. Eating gives strength 

 to a certain point, but carried beyond that it induces disease and death. 

 People wonder often whether there is any limit to the speed at which a 

 train of cars may be run. It can reach the point at which the expenditure 

 of force and the risks are too great to be profitable. 



This law is in force in breeding. There are limits to fine breeding. 

 You can push the demand for fancy points, for certain elegant qualities, 

 till you pass the point of progress when the animal suffers a loss in 

 stamina and a consequent loss in the power of reproduction. 



The show room and the sale room and the ambition to produce some- 

 thing just a little more elegant than anybody else are things that threaten 

 the virility of the red hog, as they have already worked harm in other 

 breeds. The Duroc-Jersey can be made to reach the overripe stage when 

 elegant specimens will vex their owners with litters of from three to 

 five pigs. 



The red hog first of all must have a good back and loin, good legs and 

 feet. These are the foundation, and no number of merely pretty points 

 can make amends there. The Duroc-Jersey should carry its size 

 throughout from head to tail, should stand up well on its feet; its back 

 should be arched enough to indicate strength, and there should be every 

 indication of constitutional vigor. Another thing that needs careful 



