EXPERIMENTS IN PIG FEEDING. 



121 



the fact that, in the case of the small eaters, nearly all the 

 food is used merely to support the vital functions. In a 

 previous chapter (page 21) we have endeavored to ex- 

 plain this matter in detail. 



One of the pigs in pen A gained nearly as much as 

 those in pen B ; and had the pigs been fed separately, the 

 result would doubtless have been even more strikingly in 

 favor of the large eaters. 



The following table shows the weight of the pigs -when 

 six weeks old (the fourth week of the experiment), and 

 for each month afterwards. 



Pen A. 



'I, 



21 



. 



f 



86 

 88 



47 



42 



49i/ 2 

 71 1/ 2 



58 



GO 

 101 



% 



I 



52 

 64 



1201/2 



8* 



46 



Pen BJ 



5 



1231/2 48i/2 1 so 1100141131 

 |23 44 I 64 | 79i/ 2 | 964 



142il29 



At ten weeks old, the pigs were not allowed any more 

 milk, but were allowed all the corn-meal they would eat. 

 From this time, until they were 30 weeks old, a period of 

 five months, pig 1 gained 27 l \ 9 Ibs., pig 2, 35 3 | 4 Ibs., and 

 pig 3, 97 1 1 4 Ibs., all in the same pen. Taking the pens to- 

 gether, we have shown that the pigs in pen A ate about 

 5'lj Ibs. of food to produce 1 Ib. of increase, while the 

 pigs in pen B required only 4 1 1 2 Ibs. to produce the same 

 result. But it is undoubtedly true that these figures do 

 not show the whole advantage to be gained by having 

 pigs that can eat and assimilate a large amount of food. 

 Pig 3 probably ate much more than his proportion of the 

 food, and gained even still more in proportion to the food 

 consumed. Thanks to Professor Miles, we are not left 

 wholly to conjecture on this important point. Finding 

 6 



