A DISSERTATION ON HOGS.

Waimate Daily Advertiser, Volume III, Issue 122, 12 March 1901, Page 4

A DISSERTATION ON HOGS.

By some quaint chance it fell out that Mr A. W. Hogg, M.HR., was called uj on to propose the toast of “ The Pig Industry ” at the Mi.d Cure Bacon Company’s dinner at Woodville recently. The member for Masterton, as s usuai with him, rose right up to ibo occasion. ‘'This is,” he said, ‘the first bacon factory I have ,:ver visited, and it has pleased me greatly to observe the uncomplaining and philosophical manner in sH'th nwMgkswtim life for the benefit of humanity. (Laughter.) Hundreds of our young men have recmtly gone in for a pig-hunting expeuitiju ; they have left New Zealand for the purpose of killing a few Boers at the other end of the world, (Loud laughter.) Their sacrifice is entirely voluntary, and here, too we have a largo numb'vr of true martyrs prepared to sacrifice their lives in a voluntary way for the sake of the settlers around them. (Applause and laughter.) And have we no tribute, on an occasion of this kind, for Captain Cook and the good work that he did ? (Laughter.) He has done more to Christianise New Zealand and to improve the Maoris and to change their habits than all the missionaries that ever were sent here. (Great laughter.) What was the effect of this man’s philanthropic work? Was it not to give the natives of this colony new tastes, new desires and new ambitions ? Was it not to civilise their palates, so that they learned to prefer roast pork to baked missionary, and has not the effect of that been to save a large number of valuable human lives ? (Yells and cries of ‘ Morepork.’) You may say what you like about it, the pig industry has been the salvation of numbers of our settlers, who would have starved many a time but for that.

“ I went to a show some years ago, and I found to ere a young man ;u charge of a boiler working a cream separator. He showed me its points, and explained how it would not only work separator, but how it would.boil up food products for stock as well. He said to me, ‘ See, now, mister, if you was going in for rearin’ hogs.’ (Great laughter.) ‘My boy,’ I replied, * I have been doing that for years past.’ (Shrieks of laughter.) And do you know, I could not get away from him for about half an hour, he was so anxious for me to buy one cf his machines. (Renewed laughter and applause.) He was so anxious to show me how I could feed my pigs and scald them through the instrumentality of that neat little invention of his,” (Applause.)