O. I. C. BREED 43 



excellent power of locomotion. The O. I. C. is a good forager 

 and a good feeder. The admirers of the breed claim that they are 

 an easy keeper and one of the best fatteners. 



The color of the breed is white. The hair is rather long, 

 slightly coarse, and shows a tendency to curl. Blue pigmented 

 spots in the skin are permissible, but black hair is objectionable 

 and disqualifies. In disposition the 0. I. C. is a quiet, gentle 

 animal, and this is a most valuable characteristic from the stand- 

 point of breeding. The sows are good mothers, nurse their litter 

 well, and bring a large percentage of them to maturity. Large 

 litters is the rule with the O. I. C. breed. The gilts often bring 

 eight to ten pigs, and the older sows, ten to twelve. They cross 

 well with other breeds and impart their desirable qualities to a 

 marked degree. 



In the show ring the record of the O. I. C. is a pleasing one to 

 the admirers of the breed. At the Louisiana Purchase Exposition 

 in St. Louis the Grand Champion Boar of any age was an 0. 1. C, 

 "Jackson Chief," 4759, and at the Alaska-Yukon Exposition the 

 Grand Champion Boar and the Grand Champion Sow were both 

 0. I. C.'s. 



The same unscrupulous tactics that ruined the Chester-White 

 popularity have done a great injury to the 0. I. C. About forty 

 years ago, when there was such an enormous demand through 

 the Central West for the Chester County white hog, these dishonest 

 dealers in Chester County went around over Chester and adjoining 

 counties and bought up every white hog they could find, regardless 

 of whether they were grade or pure-bred stock. These were sold 

 and shipped all over the country as pure-bred Chester County 

 Whites. Being poor quality stuff and mostly grades, they did not 

 breed true to type or form, and, as a result, hog raisers became 

 disgusted not only with the Chester-White, but with all white 

 hogs. This has in large measure retarded the progress of the 0. I. 

 C. breed, but they are gradually coming into their own, and are 

 appearing each year at a larger number of the state and local ex- 

 hibitions. The hog is a massive, well-appearing animal, and one 

 that deserves wider popularity than they now enjoy. Recent 

 improvers of the breed are located principally in Ohio and Illinois. 

 A. M. Foster, of Rushville, 111., is now one of the leading breeders 



