THE PIG. 223 



his race in the past, as eloquent and emphatic 

 as a Fourth of July oration. In the wild state 

 it was his appeal for help, to which he knew 

 his brethren, one and all, would respond with 

 splendid loyalty and courage. Many a hunter 

 has had to climb a tree to save his life after 

 wounding one of a herd of peccaries. Now 

 the hog would not expend his breath in ear- 

 splitting squeaks unless he felt pretty sure of 

 getting some benefit from so doing. His squeal- 

 ing, therefore, amounts to a lively expression 

 of faith in the noble moral qualities of his 

 brethren. It conveys precisely the same sen- 

 timent as do the words of a stump orator when 

 he says : " Gentlemen, I well know your con- 

 stancy and your courage ! You have proved 

 many times in the past that you are worthy 

 of all trust when the party is in danger ! I 

 confidently look to you, therefore, to stand by 

 me in the present tremendous crisis." 



The continual grunting of the pig is also of 

 interest, as revealing something of the condi- 

 tions of life of his wild ancestors. A herd of 

 swine searching for food in the Iowj; gfrass of 

 the jungle or among the brackens of a P3uro- 

 pean forest would soon lose sight of one another, 



