PRACTICAL FACTS ABOUT PORK AND BACON. 
63 
clinging moss hangs in graceful festoons. This 
appears to be exclusively an air plant. Its slender 
stem throws out minute tendrils or branches, some 
two inches long, and about the same distance from 
each other, and it is suspended from the twigs 
solely by the mechanical attachment of the stem. 
When this has become dead for a long distance 
from the point of its origin, the fresh shoots con¬ 
tinue to multiply and grow on with undiminished 
vigor. Cattle are said to be fond of it, and if 
suited to impart nourishment to them, it seems im¬ 
provident that such quantities of it are hung so 
far above their reach. This moss is exported 
largely to the Northern States, and is used for stuf¬ 
fing cushions, making beds, &c. 
The Alabama, in the color of its water, its width, 
depth, current, and the general character of its 
banks, reminds one strongly of the Connecticut. 
When within 50 miles of Mobile, the land on either 
side begins rapidly to decline, and within 25 or 30, 
sinks almost to a level with the water. Still lower 
down, it assumes that amphibious state between 
land and water, that fits it only to bear a matted 
mass of useless aquatic reeds and grass, and it 
is appropriately employed in breeding interminable 
shoals of alligators, musquitoes, and a full supply 
of yellow fever. 
The soil on both sides of the river is almost in¬ 
variably good, as is much of that in Central Alaba¬ 
ma. It is employed mostly in the production of cot¬ 
ton, though corn enough is raised for consumption, 
and some for exportation. 
Mobile occupies a low sandy level at the junc¬ 
tion of the river with the bay, just behind the 
lowest forming delta, which is annually encroach¬ 
ing on the tide waters of the -gulf. Except 'in its 
southern water view towards the gulf, and the re¬ 
freshing sea breezes wafted from it, Mobile has 
a position as little suited both to health and taste, 
as any city in the Union. The real estate and 
business is very much in the hands of non-residents ; 
and the few who profess to be citizens spend much 
of their summers and autumns at the North. W hen 
all the cits and attaches are fairly in winter quarters, 
it is said to contain nearly 20,000 inhabitants. 
There is very little present growth or improve¬ 
ment here, as the greater facilities and encourage¬ 
ment for doing business in New Orleans, have 
drawn off the natural increase resulting from the 
Augmented acres brought into cultivation, which 
border upon the streams having their outlets at 
Mobile. R. L. Allen. 
New Orleans, December 1st, 1846. 
(a) Our readers will bear in mind that the writer 
is here speaking of only a small class of back- 
woods tavern-keepers, who are to be found in a 
narrow locality. We dare say Southern travellers 
could tell a tale nearly a match to this, of their 
experience, north of Mason and Dixon. 
To render Paper incombustible.— Pound a 
quantity of alum in a mortar, add to it a small quan¬ 
tity of gunpowder, and dissolve the whole in three 
times its weight of water over a slow fire. Paper 
dipped twice or three times in this solution while 
it is warm, and then dried, will be incombustible. 
MORE FACTS ABOUT PORK AND BACON. 
Since the publication of my article in your Sep¬ 
tember number about pork, I have received so many 
inquiries about the matter, that T desire to answer 
them through you, and as all the minutiae are desired 
to be known, 1 will commence at the beginning. 
Have the hogs well fatted. To scald them you 
don’t need a kettle as big as a thimble. The most 
convenient vessel is a trough to scald in. To heat 
a hogshead of water, build up a fire of logs and 
chunks near your killing place, and heat a dozen 
stones as big as your head, red-hot, or us near it 
as you can. Put these, or a part of them, in the 
water until hot enough, and then take out and 
repeat if needed. It is the easiest way you ever 
heated water. If you have a trough, the stones 
may remain in one end while you scald in the 
other. When ready to cut up, lay the carcass on 
the cutting bench upon its back, and first take off 
its head leaving all the neck with the shoulder, 
take off the jowls, for they make excellent bacon. 
Now if the hog weighs over 200, cut off the ribs 
on each side of the back bone—if smaller, split the 
back-bone—take out the back-bone clear to the 
tail, with as little meat as possible—now cut the 
two halves apart, and next take out the lard, then 
the ribs as thin as possible—next cut out a large 
handsome-shaped ham, then the shoulder just as 
close to the point of the blade bone as you can— 
now trim off the tender loin, and all loose lean 
pieces for sausage meat, and strips of belly and skirts 
of fat on all the pieces for lard. Your hog is now 
cut into six pieces (excluding head and scraps), 
which will be about three-fourths of the entire 
weight. Lay these pieces, flesh side up, on a 
bench or floor, and sprinkle fine saltpetre at the 
rate of two ounces to the cwt., and then sprinkle 
or rub fine salt over them at the rate of six 
pounds to the cwt, and continue to pile up one 
piece upon another as long as you like. If the 
hams weigh about 25lbs. each, and do not freeze, 
they will salt in four weeks, being overhauled once 
in the time for the air to come to all parts, and to 
rub a little of the loose salt upon fresh looking spots. 
When ready to hang up, sweep off all loose salt, 
and smoke in a room that is not tight, and be sure 
never to have the fire near enough to heat the meat 
in the least degree—use sweet'wood, and continue 
a moderate smoke for four or five weeks. New 
take a cotton bag (the weather being still cool), big 
enough to cover the ham and hang loosely, and lie 
the mouth of it closely around the string of the 
ham, and as long as you let it hang, so long you 
will have just such good, old, sweet bacon as I do. 
I am aware that this is in part a repetition of the 
other article, but it seems so hard to make your Down 
East folks understand how to make Hoosier bacon. 
I will give you another detailed table of weights of 
a dozen hogs and all the separate parts in the spring. 
Those who have written to me upon this subject 
will please accept this as an answer. 
The price of dressed hogs, weighing 200 to 250 
lbs., in Chicago at this time is .2-to 2| cents per 
lb. ; butter 10 to 12k cts ; wheat, first quality, 50 
cents per bushel; corn 22 cents; oats 14 to 16 
cents. Solon Robinson. 
Crown Point, Lake Co., la., Dec. 23 d, 1846 
