The Book of Household Management Part 90

779. THE GREAT QUALITY FIRST SOUGHT FOR IN A HOG is a capacious stomach, and next, a healthy power of digestion; for the greater the quant.i.ty he can eat, and the more rapidly he can digest what he has eaten, the more quickly will he fatten; and the faster he can be made to increase in flesh, without a material increase of bone, the better is the breed considered, and the more valuable the animal. In the usual order of nature, the development of flesh and enlargement of bone proceed together; but here the object is to outstrip the growth of the bones by the quicker development of their fleshy covering.

780. THE CHIEF POINTS SOUGHT FOR IN THE CHOICE OF A HOG are breadth of chest, depth of carcase, width of loin, chine, and ribs, compactness of form, docility, cheerfulness, and general beauty of appearance. The head in a well-bred hog must not be too long, the forehead narrow and convex, cheeks full, snout fine, mouth small, eyes small and quick, ears short, thin, and sharp, pendulous, and pointing forwards; neck full and broad, particularly on the top, where it should join very broad shoulders; the ribs, loin, and haunch should be in a uniform line, and the tail well set, neither too high nor too low; at the same time the back is to be straight or slightly curved, the chest deep, broad, and prominent, the legs short and thick; the belly, when well fattened, should nearly touch the ground, the hair be long, thin, fine, and having few bristles, and whatever the colour, uniform, either white, black, or blue; but not spotted, speckled, brindled, or sandy. Such are the features and requisites that, among breeders and judges, const.i.tute the _beau ideal_ of a perfect pig.

[Ill.u.s.tration: BERKSHIRE SOW.]

781. THE BERKSHIRE PIG IS THE BEST KNOWN AND MOST ESTEEMED of all our English domestic breeds, and so highly is it regarded, that even the varieties of the stock are in as great estimation as the parent breed itself. The characteristics of the Berkshire hog are that it has a tawny colour, spotted with black, large ears hanging over the eyes, a thick, close, and well-made body, legs short and small in the bone; feeds up to a great weight, fattens quickly, and is good either for pork or bacon.

The New or Improved Berkshire possesses all the above qualities, but is infinitely more p.r.o.ne to fatten, while the objectionable colour has been entirely done away with, being now either all white or completely black.

[Ill.u.s.tration: ESs.e.x SOW.]

782. NEXT TO THE FORMER, THE ESs.e.x takes place in public estimation, always competing, and often successfully, with the Berkshire. The peculiar characters of the Ess.e.x breed are that it is tip-eared, has a long sharp head, is roach-backed, with a long flat body, standing high on the legs; is rather bare of hair, is a quick feeder, has an enormous capacity of stomach and belly, and an appet.i.te to match its receiving capability. Its colour is white, or else black and white, and it has a restless habit and an unquiet disposition. The present valuable stock has sprung from a cross between the common native animal and either the White Chinese or Black Neapolitan breeds.

[Ill.u.s.tration: YORKSHIRE SOW.]

783. THE YORKSHIRE, CALLED ALSO THE OLD LINCOLNSHIRE, was at one time the largest stock of the pig family in England, and perhaps, at that time, the worst. It was long-legged, weak in the loins, with coa.r.s.e white curly hair, and flabby flesh. Now, however, it has undergone as great a change as any breed in the kingdom, and by judicious crossing has become the most valuable we possess, being a very well-formed pig throughout, with a good head, a pleasant docile countenance, with moderate-sized drooping ears, a broad back, slightly curved, large chine and loins, with deep sides, full chest, and well covered with long thickly-set white hairs. Besides these qualities of form, he is a quick grower, feeds fast, and will easily make from 20 to 25 stone before completing his first year. The quality of the meat is also uncommonly good, the fat and lean being laid on in almost equal proportions. So capable is this species of development, both in flesh and stature, that examples of the Yorkshire breed have been exhibited weighing as much as a Scotch ox.

[Ill.u.s.tration: c.u.mBERLAND SOW.]

784. THOUGH ALMOST EVERY COUNTRY IN ENGLAND can boast some local variety or other of this useful animal, obtained from the native stock by crossing with some of the foreign kinds, c.u.mberland and the north-west parts of the kingdom have been celebrated for a small breed of white pigs, with a thick, compact, and well-made body, short in the legs, the head and back well formed, ears slouching and a little downwards, and on the whole, a hardy, profitable animal, and one well disposed to fatten.

785. THERE IS NO VARIETY OF THIS USEFUL ANIMAL that presents such peculiar features as the species known to us as the Chinese pig; and as it is the general belief that to this animal and the Neapolitan hog we are indebted for that remarkable improvement which has taken place in the breeds of the English pig, it is necessary to be minute in the description of this, in all respects, singular animal. The Chinese, in the first place, consists of many varieties, and presents as many forms of body as differences of colour; the best kind, however, has a beautiful white skin of singular thinness and delicacy; the hair too is perfectly white, and thinly set over the body, with here and there a few bristles. He has a broad snout, short head, eyes bright and fiery, very small fine pink ears, wide cheeks, high chine, with a neck of such immense thickness, that when the animal is fat it looks like an elongated carcase,--a ma.s.s of fat, without shape or form, like a feather pillow. The belly is dependent, and almost trailing on the ground, the legs very short, and the tail so small as to be little more than a rudiment. It has a ravenous appet.i.te, and will eat anything that the wonderful a.s.similating powers of its stomach can digest; and to that capability, there seems no limit in the whole range of animal or vegetable nature. The consequence of this perfect and singularly rapid digestion is an unprecedented p.r.o.neness to obesity, a process of fattening that, once commenced, goes on with such rapid development, that, in a short time, it loses all form, depositing such an amount of fat, that it in fact ceases to have any refuse part or offal, and, beyond the hair on its back and the callous extremity of the snout, _the whole carcase is eatable_.

[Ill.u.s.tration: CHINESE SOW.]

786. WHEN JUDICIOUSLY FED ON VEGETABLE DIET, and this obese tendency checked, the flesh of the Chinese pig is extremely delicate and delicious; but when left to gorge almost exclusively on animal food, it becomes oily, coa.r.s.e, and unpleasant. Perhaps there is no other instance in nature where the effect of rapid and perfect digestion is so well shown as in this animal, which thrives on _everything_, and turns to the benefit of its physical economy, food of the most _opposite nature_, and of the most unwholesome and _offensive_ character. When fully fattened, the thin cuticle, that is one of its characteristics, cracks, from the adipose distension beneath, exposing the fatty ma.s.s, which discharges a liquid oil from the adjacent tissues. The great fault in this breed is the remarkably small quant.i.ty of lean laid down, to the immense proportion of fat. Some idea of the growth of this species may be inferred from the fact of their attaining to 18 stone before two years, and when further advanced, as much as 40 stone. In its pure state, except for roasters, the Chinese pig is too disproportionate for the English market; but when crossed with some of our lean stock, the breed becomes almost invaluable.

[Ill.u.s.tration: WESTPHALIAN BOAR.]

787. THE WILD BOAR is a much more cleanly and sagacious animal than the domesticated hog; he is longer in the snout, has his ears shorter and his tusks considerably longer, very frequently measuring as much as 10 inches. They are extremely sharp, and are bent in an upward circle.

Unlike his domestic brother, who roots up here and there, or wherever his fancy takes, the wild boar ploughs the ground in continuous lines or furrows. The boar, when selected as the parent of a stock, should have a small head, be deep and broad in the chest; the chine should be arched, the ribs and barrel well rounded, with the haunches falling full down nearly to the hock; and he should always be more compact and smaller than the female. The colour of the wild boar is always of a uniform hue, and generally of an iron grey; shading off into a black. The hair of the boar is of considerable length, especially about the head and mane; he stands, in general, from 20 to 30 inches in height at the shoulders, though instances have occurred where he has reached 42 inches. The young are of a pale yellowish tint, irregularly brindled with light brown. The boar of Germany is a large and formidable animal, and the hunting of him, with a small species of mastiff, is still a national sport. From living almost exclusively on acorns and nuts, his flesh is held in great esteem, and in Westphalia his legs are made into hams by a process which, it is said, enhances the flavour and quality of the meat in a remarkable degree.

788. THERE ARE TWO POINTS to be taken into consideration by all breeders of pigs--to what ultimate use is the flesh to be put; for, if meant to be eaten fresh, or simply salted, the _small_ breed of pigs is host suited for the purpose; if for hams or bacon, the large variety of the animal is necessary. Pigs are usually weaned between six and eight weeks after birth, after which they are fed on soft food, such as mashed potatoes in skimmed or b.u.t.ter-milk. The general period at which the small hogs are killed for the market is from 12 to 16 weeks; from 4 to 5 mouths, they are called store pigs, and are turned out to graze till the animal has acquired its full stature. As soon as this point has been reached, the pig should be forced to maturity as quickly as possible; he should therefore be taken from the fields and farm-yard, and shut up on boiled potatoes, b.u.t.termilk, and peas-meal, after a time to be followed by grains, oil-cake, wash, barley, and Indian meal; supplying his sty at the same time with plenty of water, cinders, and a quant.i.ty of salt in every mess of food presented to him.

789. THE ESTIMATED NUMBER OF PIGS IN GREAT BRITAIN is supposed to exceed 20 millions; and, considering the third of the number as worth 2 apiece, and the remaining two-thirds as of the relative value of _10s_.

each, would give a marketable estimate of over 20,000,000 for this animal alone.

790. THE BEST AND MOST HUMANE MODE OF KILLING ALL LARGE HOGS is to strike them down like a bullock, with the pointed end of a poleaxe, on the forehead, which has the effect of killing the animal at once; all the butcher has then to do, is to open the aorta and great arteries, and laying the animal's neck over a trough, let out the blood as quickly as possible. The carcase is then to be scalded, either on a board or by immersion in a tub of very hot water, and all the hair and dirt rapidly sc.r.a.ped off, till the skin is made perfectly white, when it is hung up, opened, and dressed, as it is called, in the usual way. It is then allowed to cool, a sheet being thrown around the carcase, to prevent the air from discolouring the newly-cleaned skin. When meant for bacon, the hair is singed instead of being scalded off.

791. IN THE COUNTRY, where for ordinary consumption the pork killed for sale is usually both larger and fatter than that supplied to the London consumer, it is customary to remove the skin and fat down to the lean, and, salting that, roast what remains of the joint. Pork goes further, and is consequently a more economical food than other meats, simply because the texture is closer, and there is less waste in the cooking, either in roasting or boiling.

792. IN FRESH PORK, the leg is the most economical family joint, and the loin the richest.

793. COMPARATIVELY SPEAKING, very little difference exists between the weight of the live and dead pig, and this, simply because there is neither the head nor the hide to be removed. It has been proved that pork loses in cooking 13-1/2, per cent. of its weight. A salted hand weighing 4 lbs. 5 oz. lost in the cooking 11 oz.; after cooking, the meat weighing only 3 lbs. 1 oz., and the bone 9 oz. The original cost was 7-1/2d. a pound; but by this deduction, the cost rose to 9d. per pound with the bone, and 10-1/4d. without it.

794. PORK, TO BE PRESERVED, is cured in several ways,--either by covering it with salt, or immersing it in ready-made brine, where it is kept till required; or it is only partially salted, and then hung up to dry, when the meat is called white bacon; or, after salting, it is hung in wood smoke till the flesh is impregnated with the aroma from the wood. The Wiltshire bacon, which is regarded as the finest in the kingdom, is prepared by laying the sides of a hog in large wooden troughs, and then rubbing into the flesh quant.i.ties of powdered bay-salt, made hot in a frying-pan. This process is repeated for four days; they are then left for three weeks, merely turning the flitches every other day. After that time they are hung up to dry. The hogs usually killed for purposes of bacon in England average from 18 to 20 stone; on the other hand, the hogs killed in the country for farm-house purposes, seldom weigh less than 26 stone. The legs of boars, hogs, and, in Germany, those of bears, are prepared differently, and called hams.

795. THE PRACTICE IN VOGUE FORMERLY in this country was to cut out the hams and cure them separately; then to remove the ribs, which were roasted as "spare-ribs," and, curing the remainder of the side, call it a "gammon of bacon."

Small pork to cut for table in joints, is cut up, in most places throughout the kingdom, as represented in the engraving. The sale is divided with nine ribs to the fore quarter; and the following is an enumeration of the joints in the two respective quarters:--

1. The leg.

HIND QUARTER 2. The loin.

3. The spring, or belly.

4. The hand.

FORE QUARTER 5. The fore-loin.

6. The cheek.

[Ill.u.s.tration: SIDE OF A PIG, SHOWING THE SEVERAL JOINTS.]

The weight of the several joints of a good pork pig of four stone may be as follows; viz.:--

The leg 8 lbs.

The loin and spring 7 lbs.

The hand 6 lbs.

The chine 7 lbs.

The cheek from 2 to 3 lbs.

Of a bacon pig, the legs are reserved for curing, and when cured are called hams: when the meat is separated from the shoulder-blade and bones and cured, it is called bacon. The bones, with part of the meat left on them, are divided into spare-ribs, griskins, and chines.

CHAPTER XVII.

PORK CUTLETS (Cold Meat Cookery).

796. INGREDIENTS.--The remains of cold roast loin of pork, 1 oz. of b.u.t.ter, 2 onions, 1 dessertspoonful of flour, 1/2 pint of gravy, pepper and salt to taste, 1 teaspoonful of vinegar and mustard.

_Mode_.--Cut the pork into nice-sized cutlets, trim off most of the fat, and chop the onions. Put the b.u.t.ter into a stewpan, lay in the cutlets and chopped onions, and fry a light brown; then add the remaining ingredients, simmer gently for 5 or 7 minutes, and serve.

_Time_.--5 to 7 minutes. _Average cost_, exclusive of the meat, 4d.

_Seasonable_ from October to March.

AUSTRIAN METHOD OF HERDING PIGS.--In the Austrian empire there are great numbers of wild swine, while, among the wandering tribes peopling the interior of Hungary, and spreading over the vast steppes of that country, droves of swine form a great portion of the wealth of the people, who chiefly live on a coa.r.s.e bread and wind-dried bacon.

In German Switzerland, the Tyrol, and other mountainous districts of continental Europe, though the inhabitants, almost everywhere, as in England, keep one or more pigs, they are at little or no trouble in feeding them, one or more men being employed by one or several villages as swine-herds; who, at a certain hour, every morning, call for the pig or pigs, and driving them to their feeding-grounds on the mountain-side and in the wood, take custody of the herd till, on the approach of night, they are collected into a compact body and driven home for a night's repose in their several sties.

The amount of intelligence and docility displayed by the pigs in these mountain regions, is much more considerable than that usually allowed to this animal, and the manner in which these immense herds of swine are collected, and again distributed, without an accident or mistake, is a sight both curious and interesting; for it is all done without the a.s.sistance of a dog, or the aid even of the human voice, and solely by the crack of the long-lashed and heavily-loaded whip, which the swine-herd carries, and cracks much after the fashion of the French postilion; and which, though he frequently cracks, waking a hundred sharp echoes from the woods and rocks, he seldom has to use correctionally; the animal soon acquiring a thorough knowledge of the meaning of each crack; and once having felt its leaded thong, a lasting remembrance of its power. At early dawn, the swine-herd takes his stand at the outskirts of the first village, and begins flourishing through the misty air his immensely long lash, keeping a sort of rude time with the crack, crack, crack, crack, crack, crack of his whip. The nearest pigs, hearing the well-remembered sound, rouse from their straw, and rush from their sties into the road, followed by all their litters. As soon as a sufficient number are collected, the drove is set in motion, receiving, right and left, as they advance, fresh numbers; whole communities, or solitary individuals, streaming in from all quarters, and taking their place, without distinction, in the general herd; and, as if conscious where their breakfast lay, without wasting a moment on idle investigation, all eagerly push on to the mountains. In this manner village after village is collected, till the drove not unfrequently consists of several thousands. The feeding-ground has, of course, often to be changed, and the drove have sometimes to be driven many miles, and to a considerable height up the mountain, before the whip gives the signal for the dispersion of the body and the order to feed, when the herdsman proceeds to form himself a shelter, and look after his own comfort for the rest of the day. As soon as twilight sets in, the whip is again heard echoing the signal for muster; and in the same order in which they were collected, the swine are driven back, each group tailing off to its respective sty, as the herd approaches the villages, till the last grunter, having found his home, the drover seeks his cottage and repose.

PORK CUTLETS OR CHOPS.

I.

797. INGREDIENTS.--Loin of pork, pepper and salt to taste.

_Mode_.--Cut the cutlets from a delicate loin of pork, bone and trim them neatly, and cut away the greater portion of the fat. Season them with pepper; place the gridiron on the fire; when quite hot, lay on the chops and broil them for about 1/4 hour, turning them 3 or 4 times; and be particular that they are _thoroughly_ done, but not dry. Dish them, sprinkle over a little fine salt, and serve plain, or with tomato sauce, sauce piquante, or pickled gherkins, a few of which should be laid round the dish as a garnish.