PIETRO DELLA VIGNA or PIER DELLE VIGNE [PETRUS DE VINEAS or DE VINEIS] (C. 1190-1249), chancellor and secretary to the emperor Frederick II., born at Capua in humble circumstances, studied law at Padua. He became secretary to Frederick II., who made him judex magnae curiae, councillor, governor of Apulia, prothonotary and chancellor. The emperor, "of whose heart he held the keys," as Dante says, sent him to Rome in 1232 and 1237 to negotiate with the pope, to Padua in 1239 to induce the citizens to accept imperial protection, to England in 1234-35 to arrange a marriage between Frederick and Isabella, sister of King Henry III. He proved a skilful and trustworthy diplomat, and he persistently defended the em peror against his traducers and against the pope's menaces. At the Council of Lyons Pietro della Vigna entrusted the defence of his master to the jurist Taddeo of Suessa, who failed to pre vent his condemnation. Frederick had his chancellor imprisoned and blinded without giving him a chance to rebut his accusers. He is said to have committed suicide in his prison at Pisa in 1249. His tragic fate gave rise to many legends.
Pietro della Vigna wrote verse in the vernacular tongue, of which two canzon.i and a sonnet are extant. His letters (Episto larum libri vi., 2 vols., Basel, 1740), are of historical value. A collection of the laws of Sicily, a Tractatus de potestate im periali, and another treatise, "On Consolation," in the style of Boethius, are also attributed to him.
See Huillard-Breholles, Vie et correspondance de Pierre de la Vigtia (Paris, 1864) ; Presta, Pier delle Vigne (Milan, 188o) ; Capasso and Ianelli, Pier delle Vigne (Caserta, 1882) ; see also FREDERICK II.
wide and level, the tail set high, and the legs straight and set well outside the carcass. The whole body, including the back of the neck, is covered with straight silky hair, which denotes quality and lean meat. Pigs of this breed are very prolific, and they may be grown to enormous weights—over II cwt. alive.
The Middle White is considered to have been produced by crossing the Large White and the now extinct Small White. The latter was a small early maturing and excessively fat type of pig. The Middle Whites are built on a smaller scale than the Large Whites. They are shorter in the heads and legs, and fuller at the jowl, thicker and more compact in the body. The sows are not quite as prolific as those of the Large White breed, but, as their produce matures earlier, they are much in demand for breeding porkers. If fed to heavy weights the animals become too fat.
The Lincolnshire Curly Coated or Boston pig is a local breed of great size and capacity for producing pork. It is very hardy and prolific, but somewhat coarse in the bone. It has an abun dance of long curly hair, a short face and a straight nose, and the ears, not too long and heavy, fall over the face. It crosses well with the Large White, the Large Black and the Berkshire.
The Large Black breed, which vies with the Large White breed for size, has only since 190o received national show-yard recog nition; but there is ample evidence that, with its characteristic whole black colour with a mealy hue, length, fine hair and lop ear, the Large Black existed in the south of England for genera tions. It has been continuously and carefully bred in Cornwall, Devon, Essex and Suffolk, and from these centres it has rapidly spread all over the country. Large Blacks are exceedingly docile, and the ears, hanging well forward over the eyes, contribute materially to a quietness of habit which renders them peculiarly adapted to field grazing. On account of their hardiness and dis position to early maturity they have proved valuable for cross ing. The Large Black Pig Society was incorporated in 1899.