198 AGRICULTURAL REPORT. 



heifers and four bulls. These were subsequently sold by auction, with their 

 progeny, and served to disseminate the blood very generally through Massa- 

 chusetts. The late J. P. Gushing, of Watertown, Massachusetts, imported 

 several Ayrshire cows and a bull about 18.38. Near this time the late Captain 

 Randall, of New Bedford, ^Massachusetts, commenced his importations, of which 

 he made several, previous to 1844. Hon. Daniel Webster, also, imported some 

 Ayrshires about 1840. 



Mr. Ward, of Lenox, Massachusetts, imported several animals of this breed 

 about 1840 to 1842, some of which were very fine specimens of the so-called 

 Swinley family. These subsequently passed into the hands of Mr. Prentice, 

 of Albany, New York, as did also a portion of the herd of Captain Randall ; the 

 best portion of Mr. Prentice's herd was purchased a few years since by William 

 Bimie, of Springfield, Massachusetts. The late R. L. Colt, of New Jersey, 

 Mr. Watson, of New York city, and others of that city and neighborhood, made 

 various importations from 1844 to 1855, and, perhaps, later. The first impor- 

 tation of the fine stock known as that of Hungerford, Brodie & Co., Brodie & 

 Campbell, &c., of Jefferson county, New York, was made in 1853. 



H. H. Peters, of Southboro,' Massachusetts, made his first importation of 

 Ayrshires, consisting of four heifers, in 1858; a further importation of twenty- 

 one females and two males was made in 1859. This herd now numbers ninety 

 animals, and is the largest of this breed in the country. Mr. Peters has bred 

 with great care and judgment, of which his splendid herd is a full testimonial. 

 He intends to pursue the course of English breeders, and have an annual sale 

 of such stock as he can spare. 



The prominent position which the Ayrshires are taking, particularly as a 

 dairy stock, is indicated by the fact that a herd -book of Ayi'shires was issued 

 in 1863, under the auspices of the "Association of Breeders of Thorough-bred 

 Neat Stock," (Henry A. Dyer, of Brooklyn, Connecticut, Secretary,) in which 

 are recorded the pedigrees of seventy-nine males and two hundred and seventeei 

 females, nearly all owned in New England. It is much desired that breeders 

 from other sections of the country should send their stock for record. 



HOGS AND PORK PACKING IN THE WEST, 



BY H. D. EMERY, CHICAGO, ILLINOIS 



THE POINTS OF A GOOD HOG. 



An English writer gives the following as the points of a good hog : 



" Sufficient depth of carcass, and such an elongation of the body as will insure a sufficient 

 lateral expansion. Let the loin and chest be broad. The breadth of the latter denotes good 

 room for play of the lungs, and a consequent free and healthy circulation, essential to the 

 thriving or fattening of any animal. The bone should be small and the joints fine. Nothing 

 is more indicative of high breeding than this; and the legs should be no longer than, whe 

 fully fat, would just prevent the animal's body from trailing on the ground. The leg is th 

 least profitable portion of the hog, and we require no more of it than is absolutely necessary 

 for the rest. 



"See that the feet be firm and sound, that the toes lie well together, and press straightly 

 upon the ground, as also that the claws are even, upright, and healthy. Many say that the 

 form of the head is of little or no consequence, and that a good hog may have an ugly head; 

 but I regard the head of all animals as one of the very principal points in which pure or im- 

 pure breeding will be most obviously indicated. A high-bred animal will invariably he found 



