On the subject of swimming pigs an evolutionist (I take
him to be one) presses upon me the theory that since every- thing emerged from the water, all creatures can swim. I wonder if this will give a great deal of confidence to a large number of people who think they can't swim. I much prefer the information I had from a man who once swam ashore in the company of three or four shipwrecked pigs, or the story of a friend living in Norfolk who writes: 'On the subject, Can Pigs Swim?—some years ago my son had a sow which swam across a large pond several times. He was warned by his man that she would cut her throat if she did so. However, he was quite sure a pig would never try to swim and therefore took no precautions and she swam happily across the pond several times and did not cut her throat!' If pigs can't fly it seems that they can swim and that on occasions they swim for pleasure like many other animals. I imagine the story that they cut their throats is one in keeping with the belief that a swift, once grounded, is incapable of getting into the air again.
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