BREEDS OF SWINE 445 



When corn was used alone as a ration for fattening hogs both 

 the daily gains and the financial outcome were unsatisfactory. Money 

 was lost in every case where corn was fed without a supplement. 

 (Ala. B. 143.) Corn alone, however prepared, even when as 

 cheap as 30 cents per bushel, is a very expensive feed for dry-lot pork 

 production. (Mo. B. 65.) 



Cost of Gain With Corn. The cost of a pound of gain where 

 hogs were fed corn meal alone varied from 6.05 to 13.44 cents; where 

 fed corn meal and linseed meal from 3.18 to 3.53 cents; where fed 

 Red Dog and corn meal soaked and unsoaked 5.42 and 4.34 cents, 

 respectively; where fed meat meal and corn meal in varying pro- 

 portions, from 4.69 to 4.93 cents ; where fed skim milk and corn 

 meal in the proportion of 4 to 1, from 3.15 to 3.41 cents; where fed 

 middlings and corn meal in varying proportions, from 5.75 to 6.40 

 cents. A good profit may be anticipated by the careful feeder of 

 hogs on a margin of 50 cents, an excellent profit on a margin of 

 $1.00, and large profits on margins of $1.50 and $2.00. These re- 

 sults show conclusively that it is false economy and wrong theoretic- 

 ally and practically to attempt to maintain hogs on corn meal alone. 

 (Va. B. 167.) 



Experiments show that pork cannot be profitably raised and 

 finished on corn alone when corn sells for 70 cents per bushel. When 

 corn is worth 70 cents a bushel, the cost of each pound of gain will 

 be just about 7 cents. When corn is selling at 60 cents a bushel each 

 pound of gain put on will cost 6 cents ; when corn is worth 50 cents a 

 bushel each pound of gain will cost 5 cents; and when corn is worth 

 only 40 cents a bushel pork can be finished for only 4 cents a pound. 

 It appears, therefore, that when 70-cent corn is fed to 5-cent hogs the 

 feeder is losing 20 cents a bushel on his corn. Seven-cent pork must 

 go along w T ith 70-cent corn if the owner is to strike even on feed- 

 ing corn alone. As a general thing the farmers do not get 7 cents 

 for their hogs. If corn were worth but 40 cents a bushel, as it 

 often is in some of the Wesetrn States, it would be a very profitable 

 thing to raise corn and feed it to 5 and 6 cent hogs; good money 

 could be made out of it, as the farmer would then be selling his 40- 

 cent corn, by means of hogs, at 50 to 60 cents a bushel. But even in 

 the corn-belt States it is more profitable to supplement the corn with 

 other concentrates or green crops, and this practice is followed by the 

 best farmers. (F. B. 411.) 



Corn for Breeding Animals. The professional herdsman, and 

 also many of the successful breeders of pure-bred stock of all kinds, 

 believe that corn is injurious to breeding animals. We believe, how- 

 ever, that there is no time in the life of any farm animal in the Corn 

 Belt when the corn may not properly be used, whether it be with a 

 fast horse or a slow one, a milch cow or a bacon hog, a laying hen or a 

 breeding ewe ; but for many purposes it must be used in moderation, 

 and must be properly supplemented, so as to provide those nutrients 

 in which it is deficient. Animals need energy-producing food, much 

 more of it than of any other sort, and in this region corn will supply 



