42 SOUTHERN PORK PRODUCTION 



its ancestors were especially selected animals, all possess- 

 ing certain desirable characteristics insisted upon by the 

 men who founded and developed the breed. 



Grades. — The term "grade" is generally used in con- 

 junction with one of the breeds, as "grade Duroc-Jerseys," 

 or "grade Berkshires." It indicates that the animal has 

 one-half or more of the blood of the breed mentioned. 

 In its use the term "high grade" is closely related to that 

 of "grade." "High grades" are those hogs containing as 

 much as seven-eighths of the blood of one of the improved 

 breeds. When an animal becomes a high grade it is 

 almost impossible to tell it from a pure bred by a casual 

 observation. 



Scrub swine. — Used synonymously with the term 

 "scrub swine" are "native" and "unimproved." All of 

 these terms ^.re applicable to those animals that do not 

 carry more than at least a small amount of the blood of 

 any of the improved breeds. They bear no evidence of 

 superior breeding. None of their ancestors were pure 

 bred, or at least if they were it is so distant that none of 

 their influence is manifested in the offspring. The term 

 "scrub" may be, and often is, applied to inferior swine of 

 any breeding. In general, the term "native" has a little 

 broader application than the other two terms, and is often 

 used to designate the swine of all kinds gathered up in a 

 certain locality. 



Breeding management of a pork-producing herd. — To 



start with, a uniform lot of sows should be secured. The 

 breeding and degree of excellence of these will be deter- 

 mined by several factors. If pork production alone is 

 desired, and high grades are secured, these should have 

 indications of the blood of one breed only. From the 



