California Agriculturist and Live Stock Journal. 



;0vdnc. 



The Wild Hog in India. 



Aff^HE Indian dookur, or -wild pig, if 

 fil not so burly as the great mast-fed 

 hogs of Germany, is a fierce and 

 powerful brute, standing over thirty 

 c>g5 inches at his withers, and wielding 

 tushes which gleam milk-white from his 

 chaps, becoming from six to nine inches 

 long in the well-grown boar. There is 

 nothing in the jungle that he is afraid 

 of, armed with these sharp-edged kmves 

 of ivory and clad in almost impenetra- 

 ble hide. The native shikarris declare 

 that the Deccan boar, when he is thirsty, 

 will " go doOTi to drink at the pool be- 

 tween two tigers, and ask neither for per- 

 mission," while his temper is quick as 

 his courage is high; for they also say 

 that when the wild elephant comes tramp- 

 ling over the sleeping apartments of his 

 wives and children, the iVjokiir will go 

 at the huge intruder and rip at his hocks 

 and tiauk without a moment's considera- 

 tion of their disproportion. Over and 

 over again the panther and the pig have 

 been found lying side by side dead in 

 the forest, after an equal contest; for, 

 once committed to any such struggle, 

 the gray boar goes through with it. Not 

 that he has not speed either, in spite of 

 his short legs and heavy carcass. Colo- 

 nel Shakspeare, a great authority, has 

 just written in his "Wild Sports of In- 

 dia:" " No one but he who has seen it 

 would believe that the wild hog of India 

 can, on his own ground, out-pace at his 

 first burst and run away from the fastest 

 Arab race-horse; but such is the fact. 

 Let the hog be mountain born and bred, 

 —having to travel, in certain seasons of 

 the year, forty or fifty miles every night 

 for his food— then try him on his own 

 hillside, or over the rock and brush of 

 the Deccan, and I will back the hog 

 against the hunter. * * ' No man 

 who has not been an eye-witness of the 

 desperate courage of this animal would 

 believe in his utter recklessness of life, 

 or the fierceness that will make him run 

 up the hunter's spear, which has passed 

 through his vitals, until he buries his 

 tusk in the body of the horse, or, it may 

 be, in the leg of the rider." The boars 

 of the plains, however— especially if 

 they get the run of the sugar-canes and 

 garden grounds— quickly lay on fat and 

 become short-winded; but a pahari, or 

 hill pig, who travels for bis hving, and 

 has to seek it far and wide, does put even 

 a good Arab to his metal over the stones 

 and sun-cracks. He feeds by night, and 

 there is little difficulty in knowing where 

 for the earth w ill be found turned up in 

 heaps as it a subsoil plow or a gang of 

 railway navvies had been at work. "His 

 snout digs sepulchres where'er he goes," 

 and having eaten his fill of forest roots 

 and berries, his "custom always of an 

 afternoon" is to sleep away the hot hght 

 enscoused in some thicket or close cover 

 of spear-grass and coriuda-bush, or per- 

 chance in the coolest and dampest part 

 of the jowarree field or cane plantation. 

 Water he must have near at hand, and 

 thus he is constantly found in the woods 

 which border a stream or the slopes of a 

 hill leading down to a lake or pool. In 

 such places the hunt meets, in the early 

 morning or the later hours of the after- 

 noon, with a village full of beaters eu- 

 gaced to rouse up the great swme, whom 

 they hate because he tramples then- 

 plantations and roots at their young 

 crops. 



"Hog hunting is," says Colonel Camp- 

 bell, "the most exciting sport in India. 

 As for the pace, there is but one— the 



very best your horse can muster, be the 

 ground what it may. A lanky, outlying 

 boar can beat a good horse in a spurt of 

 half a mile over the best ground; what, 

 then, must such an animal do over a 

 country covered with loose stones and 

 cut up by ravines'? A hog usually se- 

 lects the worst ground he can find. Go- 

 ing slowly at a boar is very dangerous; 

 tor not oiily may a miss occasion an ac- 

 cident, but, even if you spear him 

 through, he can run up the shaft and 

 rip the horse's entrails out before he has 

 time to turn." And the old boar is con- 

 sidering how to do that as he bounds 

 along, making for the next cover, but 

 aware that two or three of the pursuers 

 are gaining upon him. It is at this 

 juncture racing, steeple-chasing, fox- 

 hunting and fighting— as some one says 

 —are all blended in one; but before it is 

 over the pig will go shares at least in 

 some of the last. 



Teichinosis ra the West.— Dr. George 

 Sutton has made a report on trichinosis 

 to the Indiana State Medical Society, in 

 which we find some alarming observa- 

 tions: 



From microscopic examination of pork 

 killed in southeastern Indiana, says the 

 report, we have found from three to six- 

 teen per cent, of the hogs affected with 

 trichina, the number of hogs diseased 

 varying gi-eatly in different localities. 



That over five millions of hogs are 

 slaughtered and packed in the Western 

 States, not including those which are 

 put up for family use by the farmers; 

 that if four per cent, of the pork is dis- 

 eased, which we believe to be a low esti- 

 mate, we have 221,484 diseased hogs put 

 •annually upon the market; or, at an av- 

 erage of 200 pounds to the hog, 44,296,- 

 800 pounds of diseased meat, every 

 ounce of which, under favorable condi- 

 tions, is capable of producing disease. 



That from the cases of trichinosis that 

 came under our observation, and the 

 post mortem examinations, and the eS'ects 

 upon the dog that was fed with the dis- 

 eased meat, we have come to the conclu- 

 sion that ninety per cent, of disease 

 produced from eating trichinous pork 

 appears either as gastro-enteritis, or as a 

 diarrhea or dysentery, and not more 

 than ten per cent, as the fully developed 

 form of trichinosis, in which the muscu- 

 lar system becomes afl'ected. 



That as diarrhea, dysentery, and en- 

 teritis rank high as causes of mortality 

 in the United States, these diseases caus- 

 ing 31,153 deaths in 1870, .as shown by 

 the last census reports; and as we have 

 seen that a large amount of trichinous 

 pork, capable of producing these diseases 

 is among the principal articles of food 

 in our country, we thing it more than 

 probable that trichinai have a much 

 greater influence in the etiology of this 

 class of diseases than has been recog- 

 nized by the profession. 



That'll is highly probable that, when 

 the fact becomes more generally known 

 j that so large a percentage of pork is 

 I swarming with trichina?, capable of pro- 

 ducing disease, it may have an ett'ect 

 upon the use of this meat, and conse- 

 quently affect the sale, to some extent, 

 of one" of the principal articles of com- 

 merce in the West." 



al Live Slock Journal a correspondent, in 

 speaking of the prevalence of this dis- 

 ease in the Western States, makes the 

 following very pertinent remarks on this 

 point: 



The causes of the disease are obscure; 

 but as it is more prevalent in low and 

 undrained localities than on high and 

 well-drained soil, it is considered to be 

 due mainly to miasmatic and mah rious 

 emanations. Confinement in filthy sties, 

 impure drinking water, and a want of 

 change in food, etc., are also among the 

 causes. We are convinced that many 

 animals of this class are annually lost 

 from the effects of improper food, from 

 living in an atmosphere surcharged with 

 poisonous effluvia, the product of animal 

 or vegetable decomposition. Decompos- 

 ing substances, both animal and vegeta- 

 ble, corn that has undergone a change 

 from long keeping or exposure to damp, 

 and w^hicb is loaded, perhaps, with the 

 sporules of poisonous fungi, brine from 

 the meat tub— these and other simDar 

 substances are often given to pigs as 

 food, and in many instances have been 

 known to cause very great losses. Much 

 that we have seen convinces us of the 

 necessity of more attention being paid to 

 the quality of the food of these animals 

 than is generally being done and also to 

 the nature of their lodgings, as well as 

 the air they breathe. 



This disease doubtless assumes differ- 

 ent forms under diffrent circum- 

 stances, but the causes are probably 

 the same in all, and might be 

 traced to something radically wrong in 

 the food or general surroundings of the 

 affected animals. 



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Hog Choleea. — This is a chsease which 

 of late years has prevailed to a fearful 

 extent in various portions of the country. 

 Very little is yet known of the cause or 

 the" best mode of treatment, although 

 thousands of animals are annually lost 

 by what is said to be hog cholera. But, 

 like many other diseases common among 

 farm stock, there is little doubt that this 

 is the result of improper food or general 

 neglect. In a late numberof the \<Uion- 



HONEY - PRODTJOING PLANTS. 



@ 



sSTn' districts where honey-producing 



not so abundant as to fur- 



suificient feed for bees, and a 

 .^..-plusfor honey, bee-keeping can 

 ■K2 not he made a success unless some 

 such plants as furnish honey are culti- 

 vated in such quantities as to supply the 

 want. In the wheat-growing districts 

 bees will nearly starve, unless kept along 

 rivers where tliere is a good deal of wild 

 pasturage within reach. Mustard is 

 good while it lasts, so are several other 

 plants, as willow blossoms and wild 

 spring clover. But, to be successful, 

 there must be a succession of feed from 

 early till late. Grapes are excellent bee 

 feed". As soon as they are ripe the birds 

 and yellow-jackets break through the 

 skins, and then the bees suck out the 

 sweet juices and make lots of honey. 

 We have known bees to fill several hives 

 from less than half an acre of grapes in 

 a month's time. But without the aid of 

 birds, or other insects, the bees could 

 not get through the skins into the con- 

 centrated juices and sweets of the fruit. 

 There are several plants indigenous to 

 this coast that are superior honey-pro- 

 ducing plants, such as the tnaurinata, 

 willow, white sage of Southern Califor- 

 nia, and others. 



The following article we quote from 

 the Amerkan Bee Journal. _ It wiU be 

 found instructive and interesting: 



" We will first mention those which 

 are a valuable crop, aside from the honey 

 which they produce: 



"Buckwheat {polygonum fagopyrum) 

 succeeds best on a dry, rich, sandy loam. 

 It is a valuable crop for family use, farm 

 stock, poultry, etc., and will rapidly en- 

 rich the soil, if deeply plowed under 

 while in full bloom. Its yield of honey 



while in bloom, which is of quite short 

 duration, in a favorable season, compares 

 well with any plant with which we are 

 acquainted, but it is of very inferior 

 quality both in taste aud color. The 

 seed should be sown in June, broadcast, 

 using three to five pecks per acre. 



" Chinese mustard (Sbiapsis Chiner^yj 

 is about as well adapted to the wants of 

 the bee-keeping farmer as any plant can 

 well be. It is well adapted to most soils 

 and does not seem to be afl'ected by at- 

 mospheric changes. Prof. J. P. Kirtland 

 says of it in 'Gleanings' (vol. 3, page 

 IS) : 'In my belief, the true Chinese 

 mustard holds out the best prospects for 

 this purpose (profitable cultivation) of 

 any ijlant at present known. * * It 

 produces more than double the quantity 

 of flowers aud seed than either the black 

 or white mustard; the species usually 

 cultivated in this state, the last named.is 

 too frequently sent out from our seed 

 stores as the Chinese. If patches of 

 ground be sown at suitable intervals of 

 time from early Spring till near the close 

 of Summer, our bees will be constantly 

 occupied in collecting honey during those 

 periods when they are usually idle for 

 the want of such supplies as will be thus 

 furnished. The seed of this kind is 

 peculiarly adapted for grinding into the 

 popular condiment, always commands a 

 ready sale and good price, aud will insure 

 sufficient income to repay for its cultiva- 

 tion.' 



" It is highly prized, when young, as 

 a salad, or as greens; the seed is also 

 eaten by poultrj'. The honey which it 

 produces is of a very beautiful light yel- 

 low color, is of fine flavor, and always 

 commands the highest market price. 



"Common mustard fSbutp/ii's yigraj, 

 is a valuable bee plant, cultivated to 

 some extent for its seed; but it is a bad 



weed. 



" Rape (Brassica Xapus Okifera, Fr. 

 CoUa, Ger. liapxj is an important plant 

 both as a bee plant and field crop, and is 

 so well known that no description from 

 us is needed. 



"Sunflower (HelianllMs) has deservedly 

 received much attention during the past 

 few years, for indeed it is as useful a 

 crop as a farmer can raise, the leaves 

 producing an enormous quantity of nu- 

 tritious forage for stock, and the seeds 

 are eagerly devoured by all kinds of 

 poultry, hogs, etc. They also have a 

 real commercial value, being used in the 

 manufacture of vegetable oil. It yields 

 a large amount of beautiful, yellow 

 honey. 



"Lucerne or French clover (alfalfa) 

 (Medicago saliva) is one of the best kinds 

 for sandy soil. It is notable for its long 

 tap roots, which penetrate the soil to a 

 great depth, rendering it capable of with- 

 standing a severe drought, and causing a 

 prodigous growth of fine food for stock. 

 As a bee plant it is nearly equal to Alsike 

 clover. . 



"Italian or scarlet treefoil (T. mcarna- 

 tum), introduced from Italy, where it is 

 extensively grown, as also in France, is a 

 profitable "crop. Its flowers are produced 

 in long heads of bright scarlet and are 

 sought for by the bees from morning till 

 night. We recommend this variety for 

 trial to our brother bee-keepers. For a 

 crop it should be sown the same as Alsike 

 clover, for soiling during Summer, using 

 I from fi to 10 &s per acre. 



" Yellow treefoil e\o\er (Medicago Lu- 



\pulb\a) is very prolific and perfectly 



hardy. It grows very rank and produces 



honey during our severest droughts. Sow 



in Spring 7 fts per acre. 



"Espareette or sanfoin (Iledysarum 

 Onobrychis). This plant is an acquisi- 

 tion alike to the stock-raiser and the bee- 

 keeper, and though usually classed with 



