162 



THE FARMERS' REGISTER. 



last summer of the Shaker family at Niskayuna, ' 

 and of Messrs. JMeifis and Middle'.on ol' Albany, 

 ail select animals of excellent (brm and propor- 

 tions. Then, again, were a fine pnir of young 

 sows from the stock of Mr. Koich, of. Oisego, one 

 of the most scientific, perlect, and fastidious of 

 breeders, not excelling in size, but in beauty of 

 proportion and fineness of limb, perhaps surpass- 

 ing almost any other. Here loo were Ravenhair 

 and Picaninny, ihe prize animals of the ilocks, 

 bred with all the honesty and good manai^ement 

 of Justice Harvvood, one of the principal mana- 

 gers, besides many others, the reserved stock from 

 time to time bred by Mr. Allen himself Many 

 of these noble sous would weigh lour to five 

 hundred pounds in good breeding condition as I 

 saw them. Their (bod was principally cooked 

 shorts obtained from the flouring mills at Black 

 Kock, a coarse yet substantial food, with occa- 

 sional changes of corn meal, potatoes, raw and 

 boiled, sugar beet, boiled corn and oats, as the 

 health or appetite of the animals required, both 

 of which were studiously observed, daily and 

 continually by a careful manager. No animal 

 tliat I saw was fat, yet all were in good condition, 

 and of course contented and ivell to do. Scattered 

 along throughout the pens, I observed several 

 pigs of various ages and sizes, which the closing 

 navigation had prevented shipping away, or which 

 had been reserved to add to the stock of grown 

 animals ; for 1 found that it was the policy of Mr. 

 A. occasionally to part with a superior, or even a 

 favorite from a well established breedmg sow or 

 boar, in extraordinary cases, when he had others 

 equally good at hand, or coming on ; but that he 

 made it an undeviating rule never to sell the very 

 best sows in -liis herd; and by that restriction 

 never suffering any one to possess abetter ani- 

 mal than himself. " I fancy that if all breeders 

 would adopt and adhere to a rule so correct as 

 this, the standard of perfection in domestic ani- 

 mals would not fall so low as is olien witnessed in 

 our country. 



After inspecting for several hours, and with 

 great interest, the inmates of the piggery, I was 

 shown in another building, each in his own dis- 

 tinct apartment, the two boars Sultan and Prince 

 Regent. The former is of the tatesi importation, 

 ancfis now two years and a half old ; an enormous 

 animal, whose weight, if in high condition, would 

 be about 600 pounds. For so large an animal he 

 is fine in his points, being long, rangy, high 

 shouldered, and broad in his hams ; of great con- 

 stitution and vigor, in fine, a most valuable ani- 

 mal for the extensive pork countries of the west, 

 where great size and hardihood are in demand. 

 The other, Prince Regent, now about 18 months 

 old, is the most perfect male animal of the swine 

 family that 1 ever saw. His size is medium, now 

 weiofhing, 1 should judge, about 300 pounds; his 

 head remarkably small and pointed, his ears short 

 and erect ; his neck short and highly set ; his 

 shoulders broad and firm, body round, deep and 

 long ; hams large, well set, and tail properly 

 elevated, with a beautiful silky black hair, and 

 the usual white intermixture of the improved 

 Berkshire in the finest style and fashion. His 

 pigs have proved remarkably fine. Several of 

 them were shown me of uncommon symmetry 

 and excellence. The stock also of Sultan, has 

 proved remarkably good, and those which I saw 



at this establishment can hardly be excelled. In 

 short, 1 know not how JMr. A. can improve his 

 present selection. He has been for several years 

 engaged in breeding and selecting his animals. 

 No one has taken so much pains as he has ; his 

 opportunities liave been good, and thoroughly 

 improved; his eye and judgment are correct and 

 discreet; and he has, as a matter of course, ex- 

 celled when perseverance, intelligence and a high 

 sense of integrity in his business have been call- 

 ed to the aid of a natural emhusiasm, and lauda- 

 ble public sjjirit. Not only personal advantage 

 to himself is the result of all this labor, but a vast 

 public good, and it is no exaggeration to assert, 

 that by the services of this individual, and other 

 spirited breeders of domestic stock in ilsis country, 

 our agricultural profns will in a few years be 

 enhanced millions in the diffusion of improved 

 breeds of domestic animals throughout -our se- 

 veral states. 



I should not omit to slate that I also saw seve- 

 ral breeding sows of the celebrated China breed, 

 which is yet retained in its perfection ai his esta- 

 blishment. Although much less in size and 

 length than the Berkshires, they are still the ori- 

 ginal of all true excellence in the family of swine, 

 and by many are preferred for crossing the native 

 breeds of the country, to any other. They are 

 exceedingly scarce in the United States, and 1 

 know of no other piggery in the country that 

 possesses them. They are beautifully spotted of 

 about equal parts of while and black ; are quiet 

 feeders, easily kept and early matured. The gen- 

 tlemaii's hog, the world over. 



Having viewed the piggery in all its parts, and 

 admired its order and good management, 1 ac- 

 companied Mr. A. into the house, where he 

 showed me numerous letters and correspondence, 

 which, to judge by their bulk, must be no trifling 

 affair of itself There were letters of inquiry; 

 others containing ordeis; some soliciting informa- 

 tion ; others imparting it. The writers were 

 statesmen, planters, farmers, large and small — 

 professional men and merchants, breeders of fine 

 stock in distant parts — in fact, from all classes of 

 our citizens, the attention of each of whom has 

 been turned to improvement in his domestic stock, 

 and who intends to be on the high road to excel- 

 lence in all these important subjects of domestic 

 economy. I found that during the past year Mr. 

 A. had sent pigs to Maine and Georgia, and to 

 almost every intervening state on the sea-board, 

 and to Wisconsin and Missouri at the west, and 

 to Tennessee, Kentucky, and the intermediate 

 states in the Ohio Valley. I confess I saw with 

 honest pride that the highest talent of our coun- 

 try was not too exalted to overlook the substantial 

 improvements so rapidly making in our agricul- 

 tural stock ; and when we find numerous exalted 

 individuals of the present time, diligently devot- 

 ing a part of their attention to the improvement 

 of domestic animals as they now do, it is a gra- 

 tilying indication that we are in a stale of rapid 

 proaression. Henry Clay is said to be one of the 

 besfand most extensive stock breeders in Ken- 

 tucky. He last year ordered a pair of Berkshire 

 and China pigs, each from Mr. Allen, and a pair 

 of valuable Chinas were also ordered by one of 

 the wealthiest retired gentlemen in the vicinity of 

 Boston. I name these things as no matter of 

 form, but to show that gentlemen of the first 



