nAMPsiiinE iioo.] AND THEIR VARIOUS BREEDS. [hampsuiuk iioo. 



acorna or bt'ecli-uuidt, which ho had already 

 provided ; sounding liia Iiorn during tlio repast. 

 IIo then tnrii3 them into tho littor, whore, 

 after a lo'ii; journey and a hearty meal, they 

 eleep comfortably. Tho next morning ho lets 

 them look a little around, and shows them 

 the pool or stream where they may occasionally 

 drink; then leaves them to pick the oflalof the 

 last night's meal ; and, as evening draws on, 

 gives another plentiful repast, scattering acorns 

 among them for an hour together, to the 

 sound of his horn, lie now scuds them again to 

 sleep. The following day ho is perhaps at 

 the pains of procuring them another meal, 

 with music playing as usual ; and then leaves 

 them a little more to themselves, having an 

 eye, however, to their evening hours. But as 

 their stomachs are full, they seldom wander far 

 from home, retiring generally very early to 

 bed. After this he throws the sty open, and 

 leaves them to cater for themselves ; and from 

 henceforward has little more trouble with 

 them during the whole time of their migration. 

 Now and then, in calm weather, when acorns 

 fall sparing!}', he calls them perhaps together, 

 by the music of his horn, to a gratuitous meal ; 

 but in general they need little attention, re- 

 turning regularly home at night, though they 

 often wander, in the day, two or three miles 

 from their sty. There are experienced leaders 

 in all herds, which have spent the roving 

 life before, and can instruct their juniors 

 iu the method of it. By this management 

 the herd is carried home to their respective 

 owners iu such condition that a little dry meal 

 will soou fatten them. The hog is commonly 

 supposed to be an obstinate, headstrong, un- 

 manageable brute. lie may, perhaps, have a 

 degree of positiveness iu his temper ; in gen- 

 eral, however, if properly managed, he is an 

 orderly, docile animal. The only difficulty is 

 to make your wishes, when they are fair and 

 friendly, intelligible to him. Effect this, and 

 you may lead him with a straw. 



"Nor is he without his social feelings, when 

 be is at liberty to indulge them. In these 

 forest migrations, it is commonly observed, that 

 of whatever number the herd consists, they 

 generally separate, in their daily excursions, 

 into such little knots and societies as have 

 formerly had habits of intimacy together ; and 

 iu theic friendly groups they range the forest, 



returning homo at night in difleront parties, 

 some earlier aiul some later, as they havo been 

 more or less fortunato in tho purnuits of tlio 

 day. It sounds oddly to afllrm tho life of u 

 hog to bo enviable ; and yet thero is something 

 uncommonly pleasing iu tho lives of tlicHO 

 emigrants — something at least more desirablo 

 than is to bo found iu a hog Epicuri dc greye. 

 They seem themselves, also, to eujoy their modo 

 of life. Tho hog has a greater variety of lan- 

 guage than, perhaps, any other quadruped, lie 

 signifies his want of food with great energv ; 

 when affronted, his note is very significant; 

 and his cries of distress are truly lameutable. 

 But here you see him perfectly happy, going 

 about at his ease, and conversing with hia 

 friends iu short, pithy, interrupted sentences, 

 which are, no doubt, expressive of his enjoy- 

 ments and of his social feelings. Besides tho 

 hogs thus led out iu the mast season to fatten, 

 there are others, the property of forest-keepers, 

 which spend the whole year in such societies. 

 After the mast season is over, the indigenous 

 forest-hog depends chiefly for his livelihood on 

 the roots of fern ; and he would find this food 

 very nourishing if he could have it in abun- 

 dance. But he is obliged to procure it- by so 

 laborious an operation, that his meals are rarely 

 accompanied with satiety. He continues, how- 

 ever, by great industry, to obtain a tolerable 

 subsistence through the winter, except in 

 frosty weather, when the ground resists his 

 delving snout; he must then perish if he do 

 not, in some degree, experience his master's 

 care. As spring advances, fresh grasses, and 

 salads of diflerent kinds, add a variety to his 

 bill of fare ; and, as summer comes on, he finds 

 juicy berries and grateful seeds, ou which he 

 lives plentifully, till autumn returns and brings 

 with it the extreme of abundance. Besides 

 these stationary hogs, there are others, which, 

 in some of the more desolate parts of the forest, 

 arc bred wild, and left to themselves without 

 any settled habitation ; and, as their owners 

 are at no expense, either in feeding or attending 

 them, they are content with tho precarious 

 profit of such as they are able to reclaim." 



This kind of feeding has brought the Hamp- 

 shire bacon much into demand ; and it brings 

 even a higher price than the Westphalian. 

 This is, in some measure, to be attributed to 

 the manner in which it is cured, and which 



763 



