1922.] 



Gloucestershire Old Spots Pigs. 



1105 



stripping of the leaves weakens the vigour of growth, and, 

 consequently, must not be carried too close to the growing 

 point, especially in the case of weak hills. 



Training. — The responsibility of the tyer is generally 

 supposed to have ended by the time the heads of the bines have 

 been placed upon the sloping strings, but this does not com- 

 plete the training; for if the strings have a considerable slope 

 or if windy weather prevails some of the bines are blown away 

 from the strings and require to be replaced. This necessitates 

 frequent trainings at first from the ground or with short steps, 

 and later on by men on stilts or with ladders until the bines 

 have grown over the top wire. This stage with most varieties 

 should be attained by the end of July, at which time training 

 may be said to be complete. 



****** 



GLOUCESTERSHIRE OLD SPOTS PIGS. 



Sanders Spencer. 



Until recent years it was not generally recognised that in 

 these islands we had several quite distinct types of pigs which, 

 notwithstanding the fact that no particular and continued 

 attempts have been made to preserve their special character- 

 istics, still retained their peculiar points, which were trans- 

 mitted generation after generation to their progeny. 



One of these, which might probably be termed original types 

 of pigs, was of a black and white or, as it appears to be becom- 

 ing more every year, a white and black spotted colour, 

 has been found for many years in the County of Gloucester 

 and the adjoining districts. The persistency with which boars 

 of the Gloucestershire Old Spots breed impress their peculiar 

 colour on their progeny, even from sows of other breeds and 

 colour, appears to prove that the breed is actually an original 

 one and not the result of chance or of crossing two or more 

 breeds within recent times. In the first volume of the herd 

 book of the Gloucestershire Old Spots Society it is claimed 

 that if a Gloucestershire Old Spots boar be mated with a sow 

 of any other pure or cross-breed the resultant produce will 

 almost certainly be a litter of pigs of a spotted colour and with 

 the well-known type. of ear of the sire. No record is given of 

 the extent to which experiment on this point has been carried, 

 nor whether the crossing of a Gloucestershire Old Spots sow 



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