56 ON FATTENING CATTLE AND SWIiNE. 



No claims have been entered with the committee, for 

 fattening cattle, and as we have very little experi- 

 ence ourselves upon the subject, we will dismiss this 

 part of our duty. 



With respect to the fattening of swine, we have a lit- 

 tle more experience; we usually fat one a year. 



Considerable has been said, of late years, in this 

 county, respecting apples, as food for swine. 



For the last three or four years, we have been in the 

 practice of giving all our refuse apples to our swine. 

 The last year, viz. 1841, we gave him nothing else, 

 except the common wash of two cows and a small fami- 

 ly, for the space of three months, and he had had but 

 three bushels of meal when he was slaughtered. He 

 was of the China breed, small boned, and weighed in 

 December, twenty months old, 289 pounds. 



The swine that we are fattening this year, has had 

 the same food till the apples were exhausted, w^hen raw 

 potatoes were substituted, and has up to this time only 

 eaten four bushels of meal; he will probably weigh be- 

 tween 350 and 400 pounds, dressed, being of the com- 

 mon native breed. 



We have not been able to discover any essential dif- 

 ference, in the progress of his fattening, on the various 

 kinds of food, either on the apples, raw potatoes, or 

 meal. A common sized hog will consume about half a 

 bushel of apples, or a peck of potatoes, or half a peck 

 of meal per day. The feeding with uncooked potatoes 

 was suggested by a good farmer of Topsfield, who has 

 been in the practice of feeding his swine with them for 

 many years, and is of opinion that they are quite as 

 good as when cooked. We have taken particular no- 

 tice of his swine for several years, both before and 

 after killing, and it always has been good. All his 

 stock is of the first order of thrift, and his whole farm 

 gives evidence of being managed by a good farmer. 



There does not appear any difficulty in making swine 

 eat raw potatoes, if they are accustomed to them when 

 young. As to apples they are very fond of them, espe- 

 cially sweet ; and w^e think sweet better than sour, 



