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BRITISH BREEDS OF PIGS. 



Our domestic pigs are believed to be descended from the wild hog, 

 Sus scrofa, crossed with refined white Chinese pigs of a different 

 species, Sus indicus, and also with an earlier black offshoot of that 

 species brought from Italy, under the name of the Neapolitan. 



Pigs may be classified in various ways Large, Medium, and 

 Small ; White, Black, and Sandy but classification is not of such 

 great importance as in the case of cattle or sheep. The number of 

 breeds is small, and the differences between them, while important, 

 are not nearly so pronounced except as regards size. 



In the United Kingdom pigs are kept as producers of pork and 

 bacon only, i.e., they are never fed simply for lard production as in 

 America. 



Points of a Bacon Pig. The desirable points in a bacon pig of 

 any breed are, briefly, as follows : General form fairly rectangular 

 though modified by the slightly greater development and weight 

 of the hams as compared with the forequarters long and deep, 

 with good and uniform width. The body smooth, symmetrical, and 

 well-balanced, supported on somewhat short but straight and strong 

 legs set well apart and not too much under the body. Good 

 constitution and quality as indicated by capacity of chest ; active, 

 easy carriage and freedom from coarseness in head, hair and legs. 

 The head . fairly short in many breeds but longer in others ; wide 

 between the eyes and ears, which should be fine in texture and 

 fringed with fine silky hair, their length and carriage varying 

 according to the breed. Jowl neat, firm, and free from flabbiness ; 

 neck fairly short, substantial towards the shoulder, but narrower 

 at the nape ; shoulder full at its junction with the neck, neat, light, 

 and well covered with flesh, level on the top and free from hollow- 

 ness between the tops of the shoulder blades ; forelegs short, straight, 

 strong and tapering ; pasterns strong ; feet comparatively short and 

 of medium size, the animal standing firm and high on its toes. Chest 

 low and wide ; sides deep and evenly fleshed over long well-sprung 

 ribs ; back long, almost straight when the pig walks, but slightly 

 arched when it is at rest, equally broad throughout, thickly and 

 evenly covered with flesh ; belly line straight ; loin thick and 

 wide, sustaining the width of the back ; hips low, wide, and 

 smoothly covered with flesh ; rump long, smooth, the hip width 

 carried well back, and only slightly drooping ; hams wide and thick, 

 full down to the hocks, but free from flabby fat; hind legs 

 proportionately long, strong, and well set apart, and moved forward 

 in a straight line in walking ; skin not too thick, and free from 

 wrinkles. 



THE WHITE YORKSHIRE BREEDS. 



There are three White Yorkshire breeds, viz., the Large, the 

 Small, and the Middle the last evolved from crosses of the Large 

 and the Small. The Small breed had a preponderating proportion 

 of Chinese blood, and was almost perfect in symmetry, but carried 

 too much fat, was too small and not prolific enough for a com- 

 mercial pig. As a natural result it is now kept in very limited 

 numbers and may be regarded as being of more historical interest 

 than practical importance. 



