46 



THE FARMERS' REGISTER. 



No. 3, a shoat purchased from a drove weighed i 

 on 28th March, - 100 lbs. 

 do. on 30lh April, - 151 



Gain in 33 days, - . - .51 lbs. 

 This is a (raciion over 1 lb. Soz, per day each, 

 I'.earlj 1 lb. 9 oz. 



in ihis case iheir food was exclusively boiled 

 potatoes mashed with Indian meal. The exact 

 amount consumed not ascertained, but led as 

 Ireely as they would bear. 



Experiment 3. The two last-named hogs were 

 for the next 20 days put upon Indian hasty pud- 

 ding exclusively, with the following result : 



No. 2 weighed on 30th April, - 312 lbs. 

 " " 20th May, - 382 



Gain in 20 days, - - 70 lbs. 



No. 3 weighed on 30ih April, - 151 

 " " 20th May, - 185 



Gain in 20 days, - - 34 lbs. 



The two in the above named 20 days, consumed 

 4^ bushels ot meal, cooked as above. Meal 78 

 cents per bushel. Gain oT the two, 104 lbs. in 20 

 days. 



Experiment 4. Sundry swine purchased from a 

 drove, and led with meal and potatoes, washed 

 and mashed — 



28ih March, 1831. 19th May, 1831. 



lbs. lbs. lbs. 



No. 1 weighed 97, 165, gain in 52 days 68 



2 " 134, 182, '« " 48 



3 " 100, 186, «' " 86 

 The two following, raised on the larm, and fed 



as above — 



25ih Aprd, 1831. 19th Muy, 1831. 



lbs. Ibe. lbs. 



No. 4 weighed 151 206, gain in 24 days, 55 



5 " 140 165, " " " 25 



Experiment 5. In this case it was not intended 

 to Ibrce their thrift, but to keep the swine in an 

 improving condition. They were shoats of the 

 last autumn, and were of a good breed. 



Tuesday, 3d April, 1833. Put up four shoats, 

 and began leeding them with Indian hasiy pud- 

 ding. 



3d April. 22d April, 25th June. 



No. 1 176 lbs. 2021bs. gain 25 264lbs.gain 62 



2 119 153 " .34 226 " 73 



3 150 170 " 20 218 " 48 



[Total 1831 bs. 



4 121 145 " 24 Killed May 30. 

 From 3d April, to 22d April, the above swine 



consumed seven bushels and one peck of Indian 

 meal. From 22(1 April, to 25th June, seven bush- 

 els of Indian meal, cooked as above. 



One of the above. No. 4, was killed on 30th 

 May; being absent, the live weight was not as- 

 certained. 



On the 25th June, the three remaining hogs 

 were weighed, and in the 63 days from 22d April 

 to 25th June, they had gained in that time 183 lbs. 

 as above. 



After 30th May, when one of them was killed, 

 one peck ol meal made into hasty pudding with 

 a small allowance of the waste of the kitchen for 

 a part of that time, lasted them three days, that 

 is 22;25 or less than a quart, say | of a quart per 

 day to each. 



At first we employed half a bushel of Indian 

 meal to make a kettle of hasty pudding; but we 



soon found that a peck of meal by being boiled 

 sufficiently would make the same ketlle nearly full 

 of hasty pudding and of sufficient consistency. 

 The ketlle was a common-sized five-pail ketlle, 

 set in brick work in the house ; and it was re- 

 markable that the peck of meal produced nearly 

 the same quantiiy of pudding, that we obtained 

 from the half bushel, which showed the import- 

 ance of inducing (he meal to take up all the wa- 

 ter it could be made to absorb. 



The price of Indian corn was at that time 75 

 cents per bushel — 30 quarts of meal to a bushel 

 deducting the toll. The amount of meal consum- 

 ed in the whole time from 3d April to 25th June 

 was 14^ bushels — the cost SIO 69»— the total gain, 

 making no allowance for the gain of No. 4, from 

 22d April to30ih May, which was not ascertain- 

 ed, was 287 lbs. 



The siain of No. 1, 2 and 3, from 22d April to 

 25ih June was 183 lbs. in 63 days ; and tallowing 

 one peck to serve (he three hogs for three days, 

 required 5\ bushels, the cost of which was $3 94. 

 The live weight could not be estimated at less 

 (han 4 cents per lb. when pork was at market 6 

 cents. 



The value of (he 183 lbs. (herefore was equal to 

 $7 32, or at 5 rents to $9 15 cents. 



The gain of the swine for the first 19 days, 

 from 3d to 22d April, was : 



No. 1, 26 lbs. or 1.368 per day. 



" 2, 34 " or 1.789 " 



'< 3, 20 " or 1.052 " 



" 4, 24 " or 1.263 " 



The gain from 22d April to 25th June, 63 days, 



was : 



No. 1, 62 lbs. or 0.984 per day. 

 " 2, 73 " or 1.158 " 

 •' 3, 48 '•' or 0.761 " 



The difference of daily gain in the two periods 

 was attributable to the diminished quantity of 

 meal. The question then arises, whether the 

 first mode of leeding was as economical as the 

 second. 



In the first 19 days, 7 lbs. 1 peck consumed, 

 gave 104 lbs. gain. In the next 63 days, 5 lbs. 1 

 peck consumed, gave 183 lbs. gain. 



Had the first gain been in proportion to the 

 second gain in reference to the meal consumed, 

 the 7^ bushels which gave 104 lbs. shouPd have 

 given 252 5-7 lbs. This great disparity can be 

 explained only in the more economical prepara- 

 tion of the meal, by which a peck, taking up aa 

 much water as it would contain, gave a kettle 

 nearly full of pudding, when half a bushel of 

 meal imperfectly prepared, gave little more. This 

 seems to demonstrate the great advantage of 

 cooked food, both as it respects its increase of 

 bulk and the improvement of its nutritive proper- 

 ties. Whether it would apply to those substances, 

 whose bulk is not increased by cooking equally as 

 to Indian meal and the like, is a matter which ex- 

 periments only can determine. 



Such are some few trials in reference to the 

 feeding and fattening of swine, which I have 

 made, or information of which I have obtained 

 from other sources, which may at least lead 

 the inquisitive farmer to further experiments and 

 inquiries, on a subject of great importance to 

 his interest. The inferences to be made from 

 them I shall leave to others. The results, as will 

 be observed, are not uniform. The thrift of ani- 

 ' raals must depend on various other circumstances 



