STATE CONVENTION—SWINE. 
3 X 9 
heating for an exclusive and continuous diet, hence we must feed 
some kind of slops and vegetables as well as corn, giving whole¬ 
some varieties and sufficient bulk, exercising ordinary care and 
discretion in its use. 
The art of the breeder may mould the type of hog suited to the 
purpose for which it is kept, but it requires the skill of the feeder, 
with great care, to develop those qualities to any degree of per¬ 
fection. A sow with suckling pigs should have free access to 
grass, and a generous supply of rich slop. Corn alone contains 
too much oil for growing pigs; light grain, bran and shorts with 
grass and succulent vegetables should constitute their food. Dur- 
ing the summer before fattening, a clover or timothy pasture is in- 
dispensible to the economical production of pork. The next best 
mode is soiling with clover, timothy or other succulent grasses or 
vegetables. Confining in small pens and feeding corn is the most 
expensive practice. 
I have no faith in a sick hog. The best way is to turn him loose 
where there is plenty of water and leave him to nature and his 
own instincts. A mangy hog is worthless and should be knocked 
in the head at once. 
There is another branch of our subject that is not less import¬ 
ant than the one we have just considered. Cleanliness. Hogs 
should have a dry bed, and absorbants such as straw, saw-dust or 
leaves should be used freely about hog pens to take up all the liquid 
manures, and free the premises from disagreeable odors. This 
course is especially desirable when hogs are kept in villages or in 
the vicinity of the farm dairy. In addition to the benefits result¬ 
ing from absorption and in keeping the air free from bad odors, 
another important advantage is gained in the increased quantity 
of manure. Add to cleanliness the law of kindness, which is the 
key stone and must be in the building, and you have secured a 
proper foundation npon which to base practical experiments in 
the rearing and general management of swine, and I believe the 
field is as wide and promising to-day as it has ever been for the 
intelligent, enthusiastic perservering breeder. 
This paper contains many valuable thoughts relative to breed¬ 
ing, feeding, care, etc., and will be read by those engaged in this 
branch of stock raising with much profit. 
