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old system of selling at fairs by private bargain is loosing favor as it is felt that buyers who 

 take no risk, have been getting too much of the profit, even more than the packers in many 

 cases. Buying by weight is rapidly coming into vogue and it is felt that it will not be long 

 before markets are conducted as in England and Scotland on the auction principle. 



As already stated fat pigs in the northern part of Ireland are sold dressed. They are 

 brought to weekly markets and sold according to weight at the fixed price of the day. In 

 some cases the farmer kills his own pigs while in others the job is done by a travelling butcher 

 who hangs them up at one shilling a piece. This system of marketing is general throughout 

 the North of Ireland, even in towns where pork curing establishments are in operation. 

 This system is satisfactory alike to seller and buyer as the business is done in a straight and 

 open manner, the farmer delivering the goods and receiving the cash as he would do in selling 

 grain, potatoes, butter or other products at the market price without scheming or bantering. 



Bacon Curing. 



Irish cured bacon and hams are well known and highly prized in the British market. 

 Many of the curing houses are conducted by old established firms that guard with jealous 

 eye the reputation of their products. They not only select with the greatest care the sort 

 of pig they use, but they exercise great caution in the system of curing followed so as to secure 

 the utmost uniformity in the goods bearing established brands. 



To encourage the production of only first-class bacon pigs the old firm of Henry Denny* 

 & Sons distribute freely at markets leaflets of instruction. Following is a copy of a sample 

 leaflet secured by the Commission: 



INSTRUCTIONS TO PIG RAISERS. 



Don't breed from a badly formed, poor quality sow, a portion of every litter reared by such is 

 almost certain to inherit the bad qualities of the mother and when marketed classify as "Unfinished." 

 The best animals, male and female, should be selected for breeding purposes, the results pay better 

 and are more satisfactory every way. 



Commence to fatten your pigs immediately after weaning, and if they are well bred and properly 

 fed and attended to, they should scale live weight, about 1 cwt. 3 qrs. 18 Ibs. (214 Ibs.) at five months old. 



The best food is barley meal and milk. An excellent food, and probably the most economical 

 also, is maize (corn) meal, potatoes, and milk in the proportion of two parts by weight of meal to one 

 part of potatoes. The proper proportion of milk to give is from 2 to 3 gallons to the stone (14 Ibs.) 

 of solid food, and you cannot fatten pigs profitably without milk. 



Separated milk if not pasteurised should be used perfectly fresh, there is no difficulty about this, 

 if the farmer has a separator of his own; keep the vessels scrupulously clean. Separated milk from 

 the Creamery should be pasteurised there. It cannot be too strongly insisted upon that pasteurised 

 separated milk is good food for animals, whereas if not pasteurised, and even one day old, it is in many 

 cases positively injurious. 



Among the very worst foods are turnips, mangels, and brewery or distillery grains; they are 

 most uneconomical foods also, having very poor fattening properties. Every pig fattened on these 

 will classify as 'Unfinished' in our hanging house. 



CLASSIFICATION OF PIGS. 



Sixes. These are pigs, sometimes well finished but only weighing live weight about 1, 2, 19 (187 

 Ibs.) and under, and at the time when they are not wanted, it will pay the farmers to feed them for 

 a few weeks longer. 



Prime Sizeable. These are the most suitable bacon pigs, weighing live weight about 1.2.20 (188 

 Ibs.) to 2,0,9 (233 Ibs.) and if properly bred, well finished, and hard in the fat, are the most profitable 

 to the Curer, and always command the highest price. 



Prime Stout. The same remarks apply, to this classification that are applied to Prime Sizeable, 

 except that the pigs weighing live weight about 2,0,10 (234 Ibs.) to 2,1,9 (260 Ibs.) are somewhat 

 heavier and therefore never quite so suitable. 



Overweights. The pigs for this classification weigh live weight about 2,1,10 (262 Ibs.) to 2,2,0 

 (280 Ibs.) and the bacon manufactured from them is sold for much less money, consequently their 

 value is not so great. 



Unfinished. These are thin, ill-shaped, coarse-legged, thick-skinned, or soft-fatted pigs of all 

 weights, that through being badly bred, badly fed, or both, do not finish properly, and are the opposite 

 to being "well finished" and "hard in the fat." 



MARKET ADVICE. 



The proper weight to market your pigs is 1 cwt. 3 qrs. 18 Ibs. (218 Ibs.) live weight average, don't 

 hurry them out lighter. 



HENRY DENNY & SONS. 



Many of the factories are old in design and system of handling hogs, but the newer 

 plants are large and modern in every particular. 



