"At the Iowa Agricultural College, Stalker conducted trials for 120 days in summer with cooked and uncooked shelled corn fed to Berkshire pigs.
"At the Dominion (Canada) Station, Robertson fed grade Chester Whites, a mixture of ground peas, barley, and rye, the trials beginning in December and lasting 141 days.
"At the Ohio Station, Devol fed pure bred Poland Chinas and Berkshires for 112 days in winter. One lot of three pigs received the meal cooked, while to the second lot it was given dry and uncooked.
"At the Wisconsin Station, the writer (Henry) has conducted many trials with cooked and uncooked feed for pigs. Only the later ones are here reported. These trials lasted from 56 to 84 days each, the kinds of feed experimented being given in the table.
"The five trials reported from the Wisconsin Station, as will be seen by consulting the table, are slightly in favour of cooked food, the difference being very small, however. These are the only feeding trials reported from any experiment station, so far as known to the writer, where the results are favourable to cooking. Ten other trials by the writer with cooked and uncooked feed for swine all gave results unfavourable to cooking these, and a number of trials at other stations with cooked and uncooked feed for swine are not included for want of space."
A table showing the stations at which the various experiments were carried out, the numbers and weights of the pigs, the varieties of foods, the duration of the different trials, the daily gain, the weights of cooked and uncooked food consumed, the manner of cooking, the total increases in weight and the quantities of cooked and uncooked food required for increases of 100 lbs. in the live weights of the pigs are given. Professor Henry sums these up and writes: "Including all the trials then, so far as is known, that have been favourable to cooking feed and omitting many for lack of space, that are unfavourable to that operation, the average shows that 476 lbs. of uncooked meal or grain were required for 100 lbs. of gain with pigs, while after it was cooked 505 lbs. were required. This shows a loss of 6 per cent of the feeding value of these substances through cooking."
Some thirty-five years since the present writer made some small experiments in the feeding of cooked and uncooked whole maize; in each case it was found that the pigs ate a greater quantity of uncooked than cooked maize, and made a greater proportionate increase in weight from the food consumed. Only one opinion appears to be possible, and this is that the cooking of food for pigs, save potatoes, entails a loss of time, an increase in cost, and a reduced return.
CHAPTER XVI
A PIG CALENDAR
The pig-keeper, like the gardener, seldom has to seek for employment, indeed his work may be said to be only occasionally completed. There are always many little odd jobs to do, which if neglected may result in loss, or a greatly increased amount of work at some later period. The old proverb "A stitch in time saves nine" is equally as true in connection with pig keeping as with any other form of work.