10G HAEKIS ON THE PIG. 



admirably suited to cross with the refined English breeds. 

 No cross could be better than a Chester White sow and 

 an Essex, Berkshire, or Small Yorkshire thorough-bred 

 boar. We get the form, refinement, early maturity, and 

 fattening qualities of the latter, combined with the strong 

 digestive powers, hardiness, and vigorous growth of the 

 Chester Whites. If the first cross does not give pigs 

 possessing sufficient refinement and early maturity, a 

 good, thrifty, well-formed sow should be selected from the 

 litter and put to a thorough-bred boar, and this second 

 cross will, so far as our experience goes, be as refined as 

 is desirable for ordinary farm pigs. When the pigs are 

 to be killed at four or five months old for fresh pork, a 

 sow may be selected from this second cross, and again put 

 to a thorough-bred boar. This is probably as far as it is 

 desirable to carry the refining process. The pigs from 

 this third cross would have 87 1 1 2 per cent of thorough- 

 bred blood in them, and so far as the production of pork 

 is concerned, would be more profitable than the thorough- 

 breds. 



We think this is the proper use to make of the Chester 

 White pigs. They have many excellent qualities. They 

 are large, hardy, strong, vigorous, have good constitu- 

 tions, breed well, and are good mothers. Whether, as a 

 breed, they are thoroughly established, is rather doubtful. 

 There are probably families among them that have been 

 bred long enough to permanently establish their good 

 qualities. But it is certain that many Chester Whites 

 have been sent out that produce litters, the pigs of which 

 differ from each other as widely as the litters of common 

 sows and far more widely than the litter of a common 

 sow put to a thorough-bred boar. 



Paschall Morris, of Philadelphia, who has bred Chester 

 Whites for many years, and who is thoroughly acquaint- 

 ed with the breed, describes them as follows : " They are 

 generally recognized now as the best breed in this coun- 



