84 



I have said that the flesh of the hog is forbidden as an article 

 of food among the followers of Moses and Mahomet. But the 

 genuiness of that piety may be well questioned which leads to 

 such monstrous conclusions, and demands such a terrible self-sac- 

 rifice. 



It is also the case that some descendants of Christian progeni- 

 tors exhibit a strange and unconquerable dislike to jwrk, and turn 

 away with disgust from a roasted 82?are-rih or a shoulder which has 

 been well boiled after being judiciously corned. But learning and 

 philosophy teach us that there are natural causes for what often 

 appears to be an unnatural antipathy. There are few species of 

 animal which have not an instinctive aversion to become cannibals 

 and riot in their own flesh and blood. 



Be this as it will, there can be no doubt that the flesh of a hog 

 is grateful to a well-regulated palate, and' highly nutritious ; and 

 that unfortunate man is greatly to be pitied, whether Jew or Gen- 

 tile, who, instead of chewing;, esclieivs the flesh of a hos;. It con- 

 stitutes a food particularly proper for persons employed in labori- 

 ous occupations, and may not only be cooked in a great variety of 

 ways, but furnishes " yoeman's service " in cooking other kinds 

 of food. The question has been shrewdly put, " What could we 

 do with all our beans without j9orA; .^ " and the question maybe 

 regai-ded as a poser. 



The flesh of the hog takes salt, and is susceptible to the anti- 

 septic qualities of smoke, more easily and to a greater extent than 

 that of any other animal, and hence forms the most im.portant 

 article among military and naval stores. Lard is used in a count- 

 less variety of preparations, and is often employed to throw light 

 on a dark subject. Bristles are required in immense quantities, 

 and many bales are imported from abroad to manufacture not only 

 brushes of many kinds for household purposes, but articles of a 

 more delicate nature, as the indispensable adjunct to a beautiful 

 woman's toilet. ****** 



That the hog is a valuable animal so far as dollars and cents are 

 concerned, may be shown by a few facts and figures which cannot 

 be disputed : — 



In 1850 the number of neat cattle of every description in the 

 United States was 18,300,000, while in the same year the number 

 of swine was 30,350,000, which at the very moderate average of 

 one hundred and eighty pounds each, at only four cents a pound, 

 will reach the enormous sum of 218,500,000 dollars. 



In the same year, the cotton crop was worth only 98,600,000 

 dollars, and the value of hay was only 90,800,000, Hence, as 

 few hogs are kept more than twelve months, we may safely calcu- 

 late that the pork crop is worth considerably more than the united 

 value of the cotton and hay crops of the United States ! 



