burning, and let the little fellows occupy this till the sow takes them good-naturedly, which perhaps may be after two or three have been born, perhaps not till she is through, and in extreme cases in three or four days. After a reasonable time the young ones must have some nourishment, and the sow must be carefully placed on her side and held down till the youngsters have filled themselves. Many advocate the idea of not feeding the sow till the pigs are twenty-four hours old, and the plan works all right; but a little warm water to drink will do no harm. Great care should be taken not to overfeed the sow for the first two weeks.

ARRANGEMENT OF PLANT.

If the business goes well, many farmers will feel encouraged to continue, and the question of a well-arranged plant will come up for consideration. Opinions will differ as to which is the better, all things considered, one or two very long buildings, or a number of smaller ones systematically arranged, so the effect when viewed from a distance will be pleasing. Both plans have their advantages, and both can be managed successfully. The colony of small buildings has the advantage if disease of any kind breaks out, because at the start probably not more than one lot would be affected, and I consider this isolation of great value. The work of caring for a herd of any size would be less in a long building; still, there would not be very much difference with either system well started. Buildings of any considerable magnitude would refer to the winter management of the stock. In case a long building is thought best, arrange the pens on each side of an alleyway six feet wide, with a track in the middle for a swill tank. The pens should be about ten feet square, though all these dimensions can be changed to suit the fancy of the owner. The floor can be of any material, but the most satisfactory I have tried is to pave with brick. Second-hand brick are all right, and sometimes can be gotten for the asking. In cold weather enough bedding must be used to keep the animals off the floor. The hoof of the hog is very sharp, and will cut through concrete floors in a very short time. Plank floors must be replaced too often. If

the small buildings are thought to be preferable, about ten by sixteen feet, with single roof, is a good size. These buildings can have plank floors, sufficiently off the ground to allow cats to move freely about underneath, because rats and mice will trouble more or less, unless a few good cats are kept. With this precaution, little trouble may be anticipated from this source. This set of buildings can be so arranged as to give the premises a very pleasing appearance. Arranged one after the other in a straight line, and about six feet apart, the work of caring for the stock would not be pleasant, of course, in snow storms; but, aside from this, the plan would work well. For high-priced stock I like this plan much the best. They can be made more comfortable, and in case of disease the loss would be reduced to the minimum. Free ventilation is an absolute necessity. Plenty of sunlight should be admitted.

-

WINTER FEEDING.

The summer pork will not cost much, but in winter quite an amount of feed must be provided. I heard a farmer once make the remark and he was a man who knew what he was saying-that, with corn at a dollar a bushel and pork at seven cents a pound, it paid well to keep hogs. There are so many circumstances and such a variety of conditions under which this class of stock is kept, that instances could be cited where the meat would cost double what it would sell for. Enterprising farmers will produce the greater part of the feed consumed, and this should be charged to the business at what it has cost to produce it. Very much of the feed that a pig has consumed up to five months old does not stand for any value at all.

CITY SWILL.

A word in regard to city swill, so called. Men of the soundest judgment do not hesitate to say that this is the best material for growing the pig; and I think there is no doubt as to the correctness of the statement. The manner of feeding it is in too many cases wrong, and some of it is not worth the hauling; but that collected from hotels, large boarding houses and the like is the best of hog feed. Just before feed

ing this should be treated with just scalding water sufficient to warm the mass. It is of importance to consider the temperature of the feed. It may be all right to feed cold swill, but we often hear of outbreaks of disease that can be traced directly to the faulty condition of the feed. During my nearly forty years, which has been almost continuous, in the pig business, disease has not troubled in any form, and I do not remember of feeding cold swill at any time. This would seem to be a safe method to follow, but I doubt not many who feed cold swill are equally successful, and in this one must be his own judge as to the safety of the course to be followed.

WHEN TO SELL.

The good, solid, satisfactory income will depend upon the quality of the pigs being fed. If a pig is kept eight months when fully as good results should have been obtained in six, the profit is not anything as good as it should be. A pair of thoroughbred Berkshires, both barrows, fed on good growing swill, with a finishing-off the last three weeks of as good feed as we could give them, dressed four hundred and five pounds at six months old. This is no enormous weight, and instances can be cited of very much larger weight at this age; but the quality was perfect, and the price obtained was all right.

On

When to sell is a nice question to decide. As a rule, I have found it best when the pigs are ready and a customer is on hand; but sometimes a delay of a few days might mean one hundred and fifty dollars more on a carload. the other hand, some disease might break out, and spoil the whole deal. So the owner must be his own judge in the matter. If the pigs are just the right weight and quality, an extra three weeks' gain might be detrimental to a profitable sale. Close watch of market conditions and good judgment are the best guides.

FENCING.

The subject of fencing is worth considering. If a field of some three acres is well fenced with a stone wall, the pigs ought to keep their place; but if larger fields must be divided, there is nothing superior to woven wire three feet high. An

excellent thing to do, when sweet corn gets well filled out and in the milk is to drive along this fence with a small load, and throw in about two stalks to each pig. The corn is much relished, and they seem to chew the stalk for the juice.

It goes without saying that the writer is interested in this pleasant and profitable branch of farming, and has made this class of stock a life-long study; and, although a despised animal, the hog is a very interesting thing in nature. No two are alike in disposition and peculiarities, and a new set of ideas must be studied up for the management of each.

I look for increasing interest along this profitable line of farming, although I appreciate the strong hold of the two rival industries, dairy and poultry farming. There is room for all of them, and plenty of chance for improvement.

CLEAN MILK: SUGGESTIONS FOR THE AVERAGE PRODUCER.

BY P. M. HARWOOD, GENERAL AGENT, STATE DAIRY BUREAU.

Milk has been truly termed "the world's first food." The importance of a pure, clean article can hardly be overestimated. The health, happiness, vigor and prosperity of a people are in no small degree dependent upon the food consumed, and especially is this true of the food of children, who are later to become the men and women of the nation.

As secreted from the udder of the healthy animal, milk is in perfect condition. In the case of cow's milk, the calf roaming in clean pasture with its mother has a monopoly on the perfect article. The troubles which come to milk most frequently come from without, and are attendant upon artificial conditions. These conditions begin with the housing of the animals, and do not end until the product is finally consumed as food. Added to this is the present artificial method of rearing babies on cow's milk.

The changes which take place in milk are usually caused by the presence and development of certain micro-organisms, vegetable in their nature, known as bacteria; for example, the lactic bacteria which cause souring. Milk also serves as a medium for the conveyance of other forms, known as pathogenic bacteria, all of which do not multiply in the milk, but produce diseases, such as tuberculosis, typhoid fever, scarlet fever, etc.

The bacteria which cause changes in the milk itself multiply with great rapidity after the milk is a few hours old, at certain temperatures. For instance, the bacteria which cause ordinary souring multiply most rapidly at about 70° F. to 80° F., and still others, though more slowly, at about 50° F.