SWINE 



511 



At the Minnesota station, first cross 

 Improved Yorkshire pigs made slightly 

 better gains in a test than second cross 

 Improved Yorkshire pigs, but the dif- 

 ference was too slight to indicate any 

 superiority of one cross over the other 

 for fattening. Tests of a number of 

 breeds and crosses resulted in showing 

 that pork could be produced more cheap- 

 ly from the Large Improved Yorkshire 

 and Tamworth than from the Poland- 

 Chinas. A cross of these breeds on the 

 Poland-Chinas produced vigorous, shape- 

 ly pigs that gained more rapidly and 



tests of breeds and crosses op pigs. 



This table brings out clearly the 

 smaller amount of food eaten by the 



Fig. 327 — A GOOD TYPE OF TAMWORTH SOW 



fattened more perfectly than Poland- 

 Chinas. 



These experiments did not sustain the 

 views sometimes advanced that the re- 

 sults will be less satisfactory from each 

 succeeding cross with Yorkshire or 

 Berkshire. The lard types did not grow 

 faster up to 196 days from birth than 

 swine of the bacon type. 



At the Wisconsin station tests were 

 made of Razorbacks, small Yorkshires, 

 and Razorbacks crossed on Poland- 

 Chinas, and on Berkshires. The amount 

 of grain eaten daily, the total gain of 

 the pigs and the cost per 100 pounds of 

 gain is shown in the following table: 



Razorbacks in comparison with the im- 

 proved crosses and the pure bred York- 

 shire, the smaller gain made during the 

 same feeding period and the much great- 

 er cost per pound of gain. The experi- 

 ment also emphasizes the fact that all 

 of our improved breeds are much heavier 

 eaters than the unimproved breeds and 

 they make much better use of the food, 

 gaining more rapidly and reaching a 

 marketable size much sooner than the 

 unimproved forms. 



A farmer must never make the mis- 

 take of thinking that because he has 

 pure breeds or improved breeds he can 

 feed them less and that they will make 

 better gain than with unimproved stock. 



