covering the best of his sows and so reserving them and
their produce to form the nucleus of a really good herd. The system is
not an entirely new one, as it is practised to a great extent in some
parts of Lincolnshire and other Northern counties, where there is not
the excuse made for it in the States that it avoids the trouble and
risk from the intense cold attending the farrowing of sows in the
winter.

It may be that the severity of our winters is not usually great, but the
cold, damp and foggy weather commonly experienced in England during the
last two or three months of the year render it necessary to warmly house
young pigs, and this is difficult in wooden houses of limited size, as
these become hot and stuffy when entirely closed, or damp and cold when
unclosed. Again, the labour attending the feeding of a large herd housed
in isolated sties must be very considerable. Another objection raised
against this farrowing of sows in these small houses is that it is
difficult if not impossible at night to have the pigman in attendance on
the sow, further, that it is not advisable to allow the young pigs to
roam about with their dam until they are some weeks old, as when the
weather is cold or wet they become chilled and when the sun is hot they
quickly become blistered, both conditions materially interfering with
their well doing.

It is claimed that both sow and pigs are able to secure a large portion
of their living, but a sow with a good litter of pigs on her requires a
considerable amount of food in addition to grass to enable her to do
justice to her young, whilst the younger pigs are unable to digest any
quantity of grass until they are some weeks old; besides this, the
youngsters thrive much better during their early life when confined in
quarters than when trailing about after the sow. Could we ensure fairly
fine weather, and an absence of cold nights and very changeable
weather, the little pigs' chances of thriving under outdoor conditions
would be considerably enhanced.

Another alleged new discovery is the permitting of pigs to roam at large
in woods and plantations, wooden huts or open sheds being provided as
shelter. By this plan a considerable amount of pig food is obtained
where the trees are not closely planted, so that grass grows freely, or,
in the autumn, in the woods in which oaks, beech, hazel, or sweet
chestnut form a portion of the trees. In such woods strong store pigs
are able to obtain the m