Matter of Pedigrees. 119 



few outstanding sires that are worthy of special note in 

 any breed of pure bred hogs, and buyers of boars, when 

 they order a boar for use, should not expect him to be " one 

 in a thousand," unless he has investigated the animal's 

 get and has proof of the fact that he is "one in a thou- 

 sand," and if such a boar is found he, the buyer, must 

 expect to pay a very large price to secure him, for the 

 owner can ill afford to part with this kind. 



Correspondence. 



The breeder of pure-bred hogs, after he is established, 

 will have a large amount of daily correspondence to look 

 after. He should make a rule to be prompt in his replies, 

 answering all questions carefully, describing the animal he 

 offers so that the man will not be disappointed, should he 

 order. He should keep a carbon copy of each letter writ- 

 ten. He should always keep a letter file of some kind, 

 whereby he can keep each man's correspondence by itself. 

 I think we have every letter received in thirty years, and 

 pasted to it is a carbon cppy of the reply. A card system 

 should be kept with the name of each and every correspond- 

 ent you do business with, and a follow-up card system would 

 be well, as a follow-up letter often results in getting an 

 order that would be overlooked otherwise. 



Every breeder should procure a typewriter and learn to 

 use it, and write all letters on this machine. It is rather 

 hard for some men to write a nice hand with a pen, and 

 there are often some words in the letter that are not plainly 

 written and that puzzle the one receiving it ; besides, when 

 writing a letter on the machine the copy can be made at the 

 same time and filed with the original letter. 



System. 



System is a great thing, even in the hog business. Sys- 

 tematic methods of keeping all records, filing all letters, 

 keeping the cards, the breeding records, the feeding records, 

 a.nd everything connected with the business, is most im- 

 portant. 



