THE FAT OR LARD BREEDS OF SWINE 425 



crossing on other breeds, as well as on common, or grade 

 stock. A cross between the Large Yorkshire and the 

 Poland-China has been found to give an excellent hog, 

 both from a farmer's and a packer's standpoint. For 

 crossing with the Berkshire, Duroc-Jersey and Chester- 

 White, the breed is very highly esteemed, and the cross- 

 breds are generally regarded as superior to the pure- 

 breds for feeding purposes. 



The most serious criticism directed against the Poland- 

 China is on the score of fecundity. In any breed in which 

 so much attention has been paid to the development of 

 fine bone and a very marked tendency to fatten, it is only 

 natural to expect that there would be some loss of fecun- 

 dity, and statistics appear to indicate that the Poland- 

 China is no exception to the rule. This criticism applies 

 especially to the very fine-boned types. 



514. Distribution. The Poland-China is widely dis- 

 tributed over the United States. The principal states in 

 which the breed is found, according to the Secretary of 

 the American Poland-China Record Association, are Iowa, 

 Illinois, Texas, Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, Indiana, 

 Ohio, Minnesota, South Dakota, Wisconsin, Oklahoma 

 and Michigan, but there are few states where Poland- 

 Chinas are not to be found. 



In Canada, the breed has not obtained a very strong 

 foothold. Outside of the United States and Canada the 

 breed is but little known. 



515. Organizations and records. Organizations in 

 the interests of Poland-Chinas are numerous. The largest 

 organization is the American Poland-China Record Asso- 

 ciation, which was organized in 1878 and published its 

 first herd-book in 1879, and has published sixty-four 

 volumes to date, containing the names of 390,000 animals. 



