698 SWINE 



institutions in the United States and Canada, it required 369 

 pounds of feed for eachi 100 pounds of gain in live weight, 

 the Tamworth, Chester White, and Poland China surpassing the 

 Berkshire in this respect. In breed tests at the Iowa Experiment 

 Station the Berkshire made an average daily gain of .98 pound, 

 the Poland China .90, and the Chester White .89 pound, the 

 cost per 100 pounds'' gain being ^2.33, ^2.23, and ^2.46 

 respectively. At the Ontario Agricultural College the average of 

 trials for four years show almost identically the same daily gains, 

 requiring a less amount of meal than any other breed ; that is, 

 378| pounds for 100 pounds of gain. At the Massachusetts 

 Experiment Station 7 Berkshires, fed one hundred and forty 

 days, made an average daily gain of 1.16 pounds each, requiring 

 289 pounds of feed for 100 pounds of gain. From the records 

 quoted above or published elsewhere it may be seen that the 

 Berkshire as a feeder ranks well, though the average of breed 

 trials do not give it first place. Among British authorities on 

 swine Professor Long takes high rank, and in his " Book of the 

 Pig" he writes of "its comparative slowness as a feeder" and 

 says that it is generally found that a fast-feeding Berkshire has 

 not only alien blood in its veins but that, when killed, it exhibits 

 far too large a proportion of fat. At the International Live-Stock 

 Exposition in past years most of the grand-champion carload lots 

 of feeders have been pure-bred or high-grade Berkshires. 



The maturing qualities of the Berkshire are not of the first 

 rank. Individual animals of the breed may attain ample size and 

 mature early, but as a breed the Berkshire is secondary in the 

 capacity to mature early and yet reach a satisfactory weight. 

 Without question many persons have discontinued breeding 

 Berkshires on account of slow maturity and lack of size. The 

 most successful Berkshire breeders of to-day are those who have 

 produced a large type of pig which matured with fair rapidity, 

 making satisfactory comparison with other breeds. 



The adaptability of the Berkshire to a wide range of conditions 

 is of the first class. The breed is found in special favor over 

 much of the United States and Canada, irrespective of elevation 

 or temperature. There are famous herds on the Atlantic and 

 Pacific coasts, as well as in Canada and the gulf states of the 



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