SIZE, PROLIFICACY AND QUALITY 29 



breeding condition. Hence, there are two principal 

 points, form and condition, in a hog, besides quality. 



Quality in a hog should be considered in the same sense 

 a& quality in a piece of cloth. When a piece of cloth is 

 coarse and made of poor material, it is said to be of poor 

 quality. When it is finely woven of high-class material, 

 it is said to have fine or good quality. In the same sense 

 a hog is of fine or good quality, or is coarse or poor in 

 quality. 



In general a hog is said to be good in quality when the 

 whole appearance is that of smoothness and refinement 

 rather than of coarseness and ungainliness. The hair 

 should be fine; the skin smooth and fine in texture; the 

 bone as indicated in the snout, head and legs should be 

 smooth, and not too large, and the flesh should be fine 

 in grain and show considerable firmness together with 

 elasticity, which is indicative of a large proportion of lean 

 meat. 



In order to be the best kind of hog for the farmer as 

 well as for the breeder, the hog should have these three 

 characteristics well developed, — size, prolificacy, and 

 quality. Along with these there are various considera- 

 tions that come under the head of form as well as con- 

 dition which should be duly considered, but these will be 

 taken up later. 



