Page:The Hog.djvu/180

178, unshapely beasts. But it is not our feeble voice alone which is raised against this unnatural stuffing: public attention has latterly been much called to this point; and among others, our merry critic Punch, who fails not to lash each passing folly of the age, has, as will be seen by the following epitaph, not been unmindful of this one:—

"Epitaph on a Prize Pig.

HERE LIES ALL THAT WAS EATABLE OF A PRIZE PIG.

HE WAS BORN ON FEBRUARY 1, 1845:

HE WAS FED ON MILK, POTATOES, AND BARLEY-MEAL: HE WAS SLAUGHTERED ON DECEMBER 24, 1846, WEIGHING 80st. 9lbs. STOP, TRAVELLER! AND REFLECT HOW SMALL A PORTION OF THIS VAST PIG WAS PORK SUITABLE FOR HUMAN FOOD

Hurtrel D'Arboval, treating of Obesity, says, "There is, however no animal so liable to become over-fat, as the pig, and especially the Chinese and Siamese swine. Naturally inclined to corpulence and gluttony, they easily acquire an enormous bulk; and when fat has once begun to accumulate, the animal eats little, breathes with difficulty, becomes inert, unable to sustain his own weight, and deficient in sensation. We have seen wretched pigs so fat that they were obliged to be lifted or dragged out of the sty whenever it was necessary to move them. We have also made incisions in their buttocks and even taken off portions of skin from their backs, without their betraying any sense of pain. We saw one hog that had lain for a considerable period on one side, too powerless or too inert even to shift its position, and when it was raised, a large hole was perceived in that part of the back which had been undermost. This had been made by rats feeding and gnawing into the fat of the beast, evidently without its being in the least conscious of their proceedings.

"Animals that have been castrated are always more disposed to obesity."

We will now proceed to consider the various modes of keeping and feeding swine and their relative value, and the other incidental matters which may develop themselves as we proceed.