CHAPTER VI. 

 ORIGIN OF THE BREEDS. 



In*order to be able to breed swine intelligently, a man 

 must not only know the characteristics, but he must be 

 familiar with the origin of the breeds as well as with the 

 way they were developed. With this knowledge of the 

 breeds during their past history he will be better able to 

 judge what characteristics are likely to be transmitted 

 cr what may be expected in the future development of the 

 breed. The principal breeds of swine today originated 

 in two places — Great Britain and the United States. The 

 conditions in the two countries in which the breeds orig- 

 inated are widely different and must be considered sepa- 

 rately. 



ENGLISH BREEDS. 



Swine in general, as found by modern civilization, 

 existed in two types: First, the type of wild boar as 

 found in central and northern Europe and called Sus 

 Scrofa ; second, the type found in southern Europe which 

 is called Sus Indica. The latter as found in the early part 

 of the present state of civilization, was a highly improved 

 hog; the former existed and still exists to some extent in 

 a wild state. These two types are characteristic of hogs 

 in general, those of the north being rather large, coarse, 

 rangy and active, while those of the south are small, fat, 

 plump, early-maturing and inactive. 



The Wild Boar. — ^The wild boar is characterized as be- 

 ing strong, vigorous and active, requiring four or five 



(74) 



