74 HARRIS ON THE PIG. 



"For breeding purposes, the black breeds may be divided 

 into two the improved Berkshire and the improved 

 Essex, because there is no dark breed that has special 

 characteristics so well worth cultivation as these two, and 

 there is no black pig that may not be advantageously 

 crossed by boars of one or both of these breeds. Hamp- 

 shire has an ancient, coarse, and useful breed of black 

 pigs. They are inferior to Berkshire, and not in the same 

 refined class as Essex, therefore not worth taking from 

 their native county" 



BERKSHIRE. 



" Among the black breeds," says Mr. Sidney, " by uni- 

 versal consent, the improved Berkshire hog stands at the 

 head of the list, either to breed pure, or to cross with 

 inferior breeds. The Berkshire was originally a large 

 breed (it has very recently cariied off prizes in the large 

 classes at Royal Agricultural and other shows) of a 

 black-and-white and sandy-spotted color, as represented in 

 the portrait given by Mr. Youatt (fig. 12), in this respect 

 distinctly differing from its neighbor, the old black 

 Hampshire hog, rather coarse, but of general form very 

 superior to the old white and black-and-white farm hog 

 of the northern counties. 



" The late Lord Barrington (who died in 1829) did a 

 great deal towards improving the Berkshire breed, and the 

 improved Berkshires are almost all traced back to his herd. 

 They are now considered by Berkshire farmers to be di- 

 vided into middle (not a large breed) and a small breed. 

 If first-class, they should be well covered with long black 

 silky hair, so soft that the problem of ' making a silk 

 purse out of a sow's ear ' might be solved with a prize 

 Berkshire. The white should be confined to 'four white 

 feet, a white spot between the eyes, and a few white hairs 

 behind each shoulder* 



