HOGS — SHEEP. 47 



Two well bred cows, if properly bred, will stock an ordinary- 

 sized farm in a few years with a good herd of cattle, and a few 

 choice bull calves sold for breeding purposes at current prices 

 will more than refund the original purchase, and leave the 

 herd clear profit. Beside the gain, it is a great pleasure to a 

 farmer of good taste, to care for and feed a herd of broad 

 backed, round bodied, and beautifully formed cattle ; and he 

 is not ashamed to put them in a jD^sture along the highway 

 where they will be seen by passers-by. 



HOGS. 



The hogs kept are all pure bred Berkshires, with the ex- 

 ception of a few Poland Chinas. Each breed is bred pure, and 

 no grades are raised. Twelve to fifteen brood sows are kept, 

 and most of the pigs farrowed in March, April, and May. The 

 younger sows are allowed to raise but one litter of pigs each 

 year, but the older and matured ones bring out two litters, 

 early Spring and Fall. After the storms of Spring are past, the 

 sows and pigs are turned out on a blue grass pasture and fed 

 dry corn and slop. The stock hogs run on blue grass pastures 

 and are fed corn, and are usually fattened while running on 

 grass. The grass, as well as corn, is thus turned into pork, 

 and I think that hogs keep healther and fat better when they 

 have an abundance of such green food, which is produced without 

 labor ; besides none of the manure is lost, being distributed over 

 the pastures by the stock. 



SHEEP. 



A small flock of pure bred Cotswold sheep are kept, and 

 are the most profitable stock on the farm. The lambs are 

 dropped in March, the ewes are housed nights and in bad 

 weather. A small field of rye is sown for early pasture, which 

 makes rich food for suckling ewes and causes them to yield 

 an abundance of rich milk, giving the lambs a good start ; 

 the lambs soon learn to eat the green rye and grow very fast 

 and become very fat. Lambs thus raised will weigh at five 

 or six months old one hundred pounds, and, with good grass 

 and feed, two hundred pounds at two years old, and will bring 



