96 ON SWINE. 



are entertained. " Elder Turner, of New York, says, that hogs 

 should never know what liberty is, but should be kept close all 

 their lives, and as inactive as possible. That by this method 

 double the quantity of pork can be produced with the same ex- 

 pense of feed."* F. Peabody, Esq. informed me that the Sha- 

 kers at Canterbury, N. H. told him that they deemed it indis- 

 pensable to the thriving of their swine that they should have ac- 

 cess to water to wallow or wash themselves in ; and that they 

 by no means did so well without it. On this point I have had 

 no trial farther than to satisfy myself that fatting hogs are injured 

 by being suffered to root in the earth. 



With respect to the age at which it is advantageous to put up 

 swine to fatten, I have only to remark, that it is with swine as 

 with other animals, there are some breeds which come much 

 sooner to maturity than others. A successful farmer in Saratoga, 

 county, N. Y., says that March pigs, killed about christmas, are 

 the most profitable for pork. Four pigs of what is called the 

 Grass breed, were slaughtered at Greenfield, New York, which 

 weighed 348 lbs. 318 lbs. 310 lbs. and 306 lbs. at nine months 

 and seventeen days old. 



On this point, however, I take leave to present a letter with 

 which I was honored by John Lowell, Esq. whose authority in 

 the agricultural community is justly estimated. 



"Boston, April 18, 1831, 



"" To Rev. Henry Colman. 



" Dear Sir — 

 " I have been prevented by the state of my eyes from answer- 

 ing your inquiries as to my experience in raising old or young pigs. 

 *****! never wintered any pigs, as no person re- 

 sides on my place from Dec. 1st, to May 1st. It was therefore 

 matter of importance to me to ascertain on what description of 

 pigs, or rather of what age, the most flesh could be put in my 

 limited time with similar treatment. I may say that I have fully 

 and clearly ascertained, from a trial of 20 years, that young pigs 

 of from 25 to 30 pounds, will give nearly double, in some remark- 

 able cases three times, as many pounds as shoats of 6 months 



* N, T. Memoirs of Agri. Vol. . p. 50. 



