SUGGESTIONS OJSf THE PRESENT « t'i ' *• CONDITION OF IRELAND, AND ON * 1» • * % f* • * « • GOVERNMENT AID FOR CARRYING OTJT AN ii _ '■*$• * •>* EFFICIENT RAILWAY SYSTEM, -o ** * ^ By C. LOCOCK WEBB, Esq., OF TIIE MIDDLE TEMPLE, BARRISTER-AT-LAW, FELLOW OF THE STATISTICAL SOCIETY, ETC. “The claim of Ireland to the consideration of Parliament is irresistible.” The Right Hon. B. D' Israeli. LONDON: SMITH, ELDER, & Co., CORNHILL ; DUBLIN: HODGES & SMITH, GRAFTON STREET. 1852. Price Two Shillings. INDEX. * Condition of Ireland — Introduction Habits of tlie People . Decrease of Population Emigration Decrease in the Holdings Produce and Culture of the Soil Manufactures, Mines, and Sayings Banks PAGE 3 3 to 0 7 8 to 11 11 ' & 12 12 to 17 17 Resources of Ireland — General Resources and richness of the Soil . . 17 & 18 Mineral Resources, Copper, Lead, Coal, and Iron . 18 to 22 Legislative Assistance to Ireland — Loans and Grants . . . . . . 22 to 24 Result arising therefrom . . . . . 25 Proposal for carrying out an Efficient Railway System in Ireland — Signs of Improvement 26 Remarks on Railways in Great Britain . . . 27 Railway Progress in Ireland . . . 28 to 34 , Loans to Irish Railways . . . . . . 35 & 36 Effect of Construction of Railways on Labour . 36 to 38 Existing Trade not necessary to success of Railways 38 to 40 Feeling in favour of extending Railways in Ireland 40 & 41 Proposal ' . . . 41 to 45 k. ^ 2 > % • ^ SUGGESTIONS, &c. The condition of Ireland is a subject to which the sympathies of all classes will be readily enlisted, no less in this than in the sister island, and we feel that no apology is needed for in- troducing the following suggestions to public notice ; for, what- ever differences of opinion exist, wide spread as they are, upon matters of religion and politics, it requires no argument no further experience of the sincerity of all parties, to prove that Sv ^^h ether .catholic or protestant, whether under a Derby, a Russelh^or a Peel administration, the people and the Govern- ment are alike desirous to relieve her distress, to elevate her position, to promote her vast industrial resources, to improve the social and intellectual condition of her people, and to see her contribute to, and participate in, the general prosperity of Great Britain. How this may be brought about is, and always has been, a great question. The attempts to that end have been various, and the result unsatisfactory, or of only partial or tempo- rary success. This has been attributed to different causes, — to the habits of the people — to the absence of that indefatigable industry and determination which mark the Saxon race — to the redundancy of her population — to the poverty of the country — and indeed it w~ould be difficult to say to what the failure has not been attributed. It is undeniable that Ireland has been the difficulty of every administration from the Union to the present time, that she has baffled aylike the wisdom and transcendant genius of some and the expediency of others. It is true that famine, which no human foresight could have averted, however much it could and did mitigate its dreadful consequences, has depopulated the country a 2 p SGbjLO 4 SUGGESTIONS ON THE and added to its pauperism to such an extent that years will be required to repair the devastation it produced. But without arguing further than is necessary to support our views as to the effects of past legislation, is not the present condition of the sister kingdom one which demands the deep attention of England, unless we are content to leave Ireland to work out the old French maxim “Aide toi , et le Ciel faidera ,” “ Aid thyself and heaven will aid thee?” W e may well flinch from the task of seeking to grapple with so great a difficulty as Ireland presents, and we enter upon it with the utmost diffidence and doubt, lest through the feebleness with which the remedy we propose be supported, its importance and value may be unappreciated ; but we feel that however humble our efforts, we shall gain the credit of having at heart sincerity of purpose. In treating this subject we shall avoid all religious and vexed political questions. We ask not for our proposition the support of any particular party, but we seek to make it worthy the consideration of all who would wish to benefit Ireland ; that both the Government and the oppo- sition may on common ground unite in carrying it into effect. And if the measure should be honoured as we have ventured to hope, it will confirm still more that universal feeling of con- fidence in the honesty of purpose which actuates the Govern- ment in seeking to consolidate and promote the welfare of the empire without distinction of party, whilst Ireland especially will witness it with gratitude as a step towards her future prosperity. Before we proceed to consider the present condition of Ireland, we may refer briefly to one cause which has been assigned as mainly operating against her advancement, namely, the habits of the people.” Whoever has travelled in Ireland will readily admit that, especially in the west and south of Ireland, the great mass of the peasantry live in a way of which happily we know no parallel in old England, — that their cabins are a disgrace to civilization, — that their food scarce fit for human kind, is of the meanest description — and that sloth and indigence go hand in hand. But why is this ? Transplant the peasant of Skibbereen to an English railway where he has employment at good wages, or to America or Australia, where plenty is the proper return for the sweat of his brow, and he is no longer the lazy and indifferent pauper you witnessed lounging about the mud huts of Skibbereen, but he is an industrious, honest, and useful member of society. His improved condition creates in him a respect for himself and for his family ; and his first care is, after providing for his own immediate wants, to send home money to bring his family out of the land of poverty, to partici- pate with him in the fruits of his honest toil. We contend that the habits of the Irish labourer at home are PRESENT CONDITION OF IRELAND 5 not consequent on his natural want of energy, or his natural slothfulness, but that they are the productions of the sad circumstances by which he is surrounded. It is as unfair to stamp the peasantry of Ireland as a slothful race as it would be to draw an opinion of the English or Scottish labourer or artizan from the character of the inmates of a Lancashire union workhouse, or from that of the pauperised districts of the Orkneys. Sir R. Kane in his Industrial Resources of Ireland (page 397) says “ thousands of men remain unemployed during the greater portion of the year. A wretched man who can earn by his own exertion but four or five shillings a week on which to support his family and pay the rent of a sort of habitation, must be so ill fed and depressed in mind that to work as a man should work is beyond his power. They do their best honestly to earn their wages, but supplied only with the coarsest de- scription of food and perhaps in insufficient quantity, they have not the physical ability for labour, and being without any direct prospect of advancement they are not excited by that laudable ambition to any display of superior energy.” The following incident related by him so fully exemplifies the view which we have taken that we cannot refrain from quoting it. The occurrence took place at certain public works. Many hundreds of men were employed at tenpence a day, they worked slowly and ineffectually, and a parcel of English labourers were introduced, who were paid eighteen- pence per day, which they fully earned. None of the Irish were dismissed, but they struck work and demanded that all should have eighteenpence per day. A riot was apprehended and the police and military called out. At the moment one of the principal engineers, respected by the people for his abilities and esteemed by them as a countryman, came amongst them, and penetrating into the mass of excited labourers, arrested and gave into custody all the ringleaders. The crowd of labourers would not do him an injury. He then, in place of the common practice of saying they were brutes and none but English labourers were fit for any useful purpose, quietly explained to them that the Englishmen did much more work and deserved to be paid higher, but that he would be willing to secure eighteenpence per day to every man who would do as much work as the Englishmen, and more if they could do more. The people knew and trusted him, the police and mili- tary were withdrawn, the whole body of labourers went to w T ork; and after some weeks there were few of the men earning less than eighteenpence, and many of them were earning at the rate of half-a-crown per day. We believe it to be true as stated by the Railway Commis- sioners for Ireland, in their report, 1838, (page 84), that — u The spirit of the Irish peasant is by no means so sunk by the 6 SUGGESTIONS ON THE adverse circumstances of his lot, as to be insensible to the stimulus which a due measure of encouragement to laborious industry supplies. When employment is to be obtained without difficulty, and at a fair rate of compensation, his character and habits rise in an incredibly short space of time, with the alteration of his circumstances.” The view which the (e Times Commissioner” has taken in his most instructive and valuable “ Letters on the Condition of the People of Ireland,” (p. 582,) appears to be that — ■“ if taught and urged on, the people of Ireland have many qualifica- tions for success. But they are like a rich soil unculti- vated which grows but rank weeds. Partly from apathy and partly from neglect, a people capable of accomplishing any- thing are sunk in the lowest degradation. Left to themselves they will remain stationary, as they have ever done.” We admit that apathy exists, and that it seems rooted in the very character of the people ; but there is abundant proof that when properly employed — when there is a stimulus given to call forth a spirit of industry and laudable ambition — that apathy is cast off, and the Irish peasant becomes energetic and perse- vering. Is this so with a people naturally slothful ? The means of employment and the attainment of comforts is no stimulus to the apathetic Spaniard or the lazy emancipated slave of the Indies ; they are content to work just enough to provide themselves with their own actual wants (leaving their women to shift for themselves and their children), and no in- ducement that can be offered will get them to work beyond it. Neither the certainty of obtaining comforts to improve their condition, nor the prospect of attaining independence, is any spur to them ; they work lazily, and after work they relapse into the most sluggish indifference. How different is this from the Irish peasant, he is only apathetic when he cannot obtain proper employment. We have been favoured by Mr. Hamilton H. Fulton, C.E., with an abstract from a letter addressed to him by Mr. William Dargan, one of the largest and most respectable contractors for public works in Ireland, dated January 19th, 1852. Speaking of the Irish people in connection with public works, he says : — “ There is nothing to be feared from turbulence or want of industry. To be peaceable and well-conditioned the people require but fair and judicious treatment, and put an object before them wherein their exertions will ensure them an inde- pendence, and they will work earnestly and faithfully for it. I need scarcely tell you I have had more general experience of them than any other man, and this is my opinion.” The Irish are proverbially a quick and warm-hearted race ; no people upon the face of the globe are more likely to dis- criminate their true friends ; and, as with the English, the best way to raise a disturbance is to agitate the existence or pre- sumed existence of an injury or wrong, and to appeal to passions PRESENT CONDITION OF IRELAND. 7 excited by the pangs of hunger or by the misery which surrounds the hearth* where the fond and faithful wife keeps watch over her naked and famishing children, craving for food which she has not to give (beings as dear to the peasant as those who surround the hearth of the rich man are to him) ; so, on the other hand, the best way to quiet agitation is to remedy the evil. Give the poor Irish labourer work, and thereby wages, enough to properly supply his wants, and we think his grati- tude would be shewn by his attachment to his native soil, and by a spirit of contentment and loyalty. The present condition of Ireland, as regards the extent of her population, the prosperity of her agricultural and mining pursuits, and we are not wrong, we fear, in adding her manu- facturing and commercial industry, is worse than at a period of thirty years back. In the year 1821 the population surpassed the present number by 386,033 persons. Up to that year, and, indeed, up to the year 1831, the population returns, shew an increase fully proportionate with the other parts of the United Kingdom, the. population in 1731 was . . . . . 2,010,221 1791 „ 4,206,602 1821 „ 6,801,827 1831 „ 7,767,401 1841 „ 8,175,125 1851 „ 6,515,794 Thus the increase in the population from 1731 to 1841 was as follows (leaving out the decimals) : From 1731 to 1791 at the rate of 36,606 or If per cent, per annum. „ 1791 „ 1821 „ 86,597 or 2 do. do. „ 1821 „ 1831 „ 96,557 or If do. do. „ 1832 „ 1841 „ 40,772 or f do. do. or an average increase of 65,110 per annum, whilst from the year 1841 to 1851 the decrease was at the rate of 165,933, or more than 3f per cent, per annum, shewing in the last ten years a total decrease from the year 1841 of no less than 1,659,331 persons. But in order to arrive at an estimate of the entire loss of population within that period, we should add the ordinary increase which would have taken place ; thus, taking the average from the above tables, we find that the increase was 65,110 per annum, this in the ten years from 1841 to 1851 would amount to 651,100, making the total loss in that period 2,310,431 persons, irrespective of the loss caused by the in- crease which has taken place by emigration. This fearful decrease in the population has not been confined to any particular parts of Ireland ; the whole of the 163 unions shew a similar result, with four exceptions only, where an increase has occurred, those are 8 SUGGESTIONS ON THE Population. 1841. 1851. Increase. Belfast ... . 100,595 125,491 24,896 Dublin, North . 123,095 135,182 ) 17,273 ,, South . 178,408 183,594 S Rathdown . . , 44,505 48,294 3,789 From a return made to Parliament a few days since, it would appear that the following has been the extent of emigration since the year 1842 : — Embarcation. 1842. 1843. 1844. 1845. 1846. 1847. 1848. 1849. 1850. 1851. Total. Ports in England : — Liverpool } All other Ports j 74,683 29,496 6,759 44,427 5,830 *58,686 6,838 75,211 12,400 132,459 21,439 131,132 45,751 153,902 58,222 174,188 40,424 206,015 48,955 1,080,199 246,618 36,255 50,257 65,524 87,611 153,898 176,883 212,124 214,612 254,970 1,326,817 Ports in Ireland 40,553 13,026 15,925 23,705 38,813 95,756 59,701 70,247 51,083 62,350 471,159 „ Scotland 13,108 7,931 4,504 4,272 3,427 8,616 11,505 17,127 15,154 18,646 104,200 128,344 57,212 70,686 93,501 129,851 258,270 248,809 299,498 | 280,849 335,966 1,902,266 * There is a discrepancy in the return with regard to Liverpool. We presume “ 58,686” to he correct. It would appear therefrom that the emigration from ports in Ireland from the years 1842 to 1851 amounted to 471,159 persons, all of whom we may assume were natives of that country; it is moreover well known that a very large proportion of the emigrants from Liverpool and other parts of England, and also from Glasgow were Irish. We have taken some pains to ascertain the probable proportion of that class of emigrants, but the government emigration agents at Liverpool and Glasgow either would not or could not give the information relative to those ports, and there is no other authentic source from which it could be obtained. From all that we have been able to collect however, we may assume that the number of Irish emigrating from England and Scotland during the above period w^ere as follows, viz. : — From Liverpool, one-half, or 540,099 ,, All other ports of England, one-tenth, or 24,661 ,, Scotland, one-twentieth, or 5,214 569,974 Emigrating from Irish ports .... 471,159 Estimated total . . 1,041,133 That of the ten years preceding (from 1832 to 1841 inclusive) PRESENT CONDITION OF IRELAND. 9 may be estimated to have been as follows ( Census , Ireland , 1841, p. 9):— From Irish ports . . . 214,047 ,, England and Scotland . 189,412 Total . . . 403,459 Showing an excess of Irish emigration in the ten years ending 1851, over the preceding ten years, of 637,673 persons. The emigration returns include the year 1851 whilst the census was taken at the commencement of that year, but after making allowance for the increase of the year 1851, the entire loss in the population during the years 1841 to the com- mencement of the year 1851 may be taken to have been as follows — Difference in the population from 1841 to 1851 1,659,331 Ordinary increase (say) . . . . . 651,100 Excess of emigration (after deducting 120,000 estimated increase in the year 1851 over the year 1841) 517,675 Aggregate total Loss of population from 1841 to 1851 (inclusive of the former and to the commencement of the latter year) 2,828,106 If we are nearly correct in the above estimate is it not a state of things which imperatively demands deep and serious atten- tion? The famine years of 1846-7 and 8 called for extraordi- nary relief from Parliament and from the people of this country, and it will ever be recollected to the honour of both, that whilst millions were sent to her succour out of the public treasury, the most generous contributions flowed from all parts of Great Britain to the relief of a famishing people. But with the decline of the famine the industrial classes of Ireland turned their eyes to foreign lands, and as we have seen, (especially since the year 1846), an immense multitude has emigrated. Whilst a gradual and well regulated amount of emigration is beneficial as an outlet for a superabundant population, and as a means for invigorating and supporting the colonies with labour, it becomes a matter of serious consequence to the well being of the mother country, when we find that in one year no less than 335,965 persons have emigrated to foreign parts. It might well be asked where will this end ? If it goes on with unabated vigour it will not be long before the proverb is verified that “in the multitude of people is the king’s honour ; but in the want of people is the destruction of the prince,” The large proportion, however, of those who have left their native shores have emigrated, not to increase the strength 10 SUGGESTIONS ON THE or wealth of Great Britain by adding to her colonial popula- tion where labour is so much needed, but to transfer their allegiance to other states. The following tables will show the extent and direction emigration has taken since the year 1842 : — Emigration from England and Scotland. 1842. Total. 74,683 < Liverpool .... J All other Ports 13,108 in England . . Scotland 1843. 36,255 \ ' Liverpool .... | All other Ports ( 7,931 in England . . Scotland 1844. 50,257 ' ' Liverpool .... ! All other Ports ( 4,504 in England . . Scotland 1845. 65,524 ' ' Liverpool .... All other Ports ( 4,272 in England . . Scotland 1846. ( Liverpool .... 87,611 < All other Ports t in England . . 3,427 Scotland 1847. 153,898 < ' Liverpool .... All other Ports 8,616 L in England . . Scotland 1848. 176,883 < r Liverpool .... ! All other Ports 11,505 l in England . . Scotland 1849. 212,124 < f Liverpool .... ! All other Ports 17,127 t in England . . Scotland 1850. 214,612 < f Liverpool .... j All other Ports 15,154 L in England . . Scotland 1851. 254,970 < f Liverpool .... ! All other Ports 18,646 t in England . . Scotland United States. British America. Australian Colonies. All other Places. • 53,439 13,005 6,639 1,600 24,226 2,978 1,255 1,037 1,356 3,822 1,248 333 1,136 5,818 466 511 38,085 4,543 347 1,452 1,015 515 1,234 96 1,597 2,470 128 309 51,665 5,296 479 1,246 1,790 4,059 313 676 1,375 2,501 38 358 67,726 6,834 56 595 6,286 2,764 2,151 999 1,157 1,903 70 277 102,624 29,044 46 745 11,246 5,164 4,537 492 3,782 4,219 366 249 127,496 2,080 298 1,258 14,653 7,241 4,278 3,885 282 127 147,745 4,630 673 854 17,393 4,723 30,772 5,335 10,639 5,447 740 295 165,828 5,202 1,105 2,053 14,505 4,950 14,554 6,415 11,448 3,025 378 303 126,881 5,985 1,805 1,344 21,194 5,690 19,186 2,885 10,864 7,000 541 241 PRESENT CONDITION OF IRELAND. 11 Emigration from Irish Ports to The United British Australian All other States. North America. Colonies. Places. 1842 .... 6,199 33,410 937 7 1843 .... 1,617 10,898 509 2 1844 .... 2,993 12,396 520 16 1845 .... 3,708 19,947 31,738 — 50 1846 .... 7,070 — 5 1847 .... 24,502 71,253 — 1 1848 .... 38,843 20,852 — 6 1849 .... 43,673 26,568 — 6 1850 .... 31.297 38,418 19,784 — 2 1851 .... 23,930 — 2 198,330 270,776 1,966 97 Add estimated propor- tion of Irish emigrants embarking from the United Kingdom, from 1842 to 1851. Liverpool 473,807 42,637 17,565 6,090 All other Ports in Eng- land .... 10,032 5,459 7,396 1,774 Scotland 2,466 2,465 150 133 Aggregate Total . 1 584,635 321,337 27,077 8,104 Emigration is draining the country, not of the labourer alone who may he or may have been a charge upon the rate hooks, hut of the farmers of Ireland, a fact which will be evident from the great decrease which has taken place in the number of holdings. The total decrease of holdings between 1841 and 1850 was 98,218 (exclusive of holdings under one acre in extent), and between 1849 and 1850, 22,923. This decrease averages 3^ per cent, on the holdings of 1849, and as with the decrease of the population, was not confined to any particular provinces, hut extended throughout the whole of Ireland, thus in Leinster the decrease in the holdings of 1849 was 3 per cent., in Munster 5 per cent., in Ulster 2 \ per cent., and in Connaught 4 per cent. The following tables show the relative number of holdings in the years 1841, 1849, and 1850. The returns for 1841 being classified differently from those in the agricultural report for 1850 (from which we quote the information having reference to that year) it will be necessary to insert the tables separately. Number of Holdings Farms from 1 to 5 Acies. Farms from 5 to 15 Acres. Farms from 15 to 30 Acres. Above 30 Acres. Total. in 1841 *306,915 251,128 78,954 48,312 685,308 * In this return holdings under one acre arc not included. 12 SUGGESTIONS ON THE Number of Holdings Under 1 acre Above 1 and not exceeding 5 acres Above 5 do. 15 do. Above 15 do. 30 do. Above 30 acres 1849. 1850. Increase. Decrease, 31,989 35,326 3,337 98,179 91,618 ... 6,561 213,897 203,331 • . . 10,566 150,120 145,380 . • . 4,740 156,960 152,567 4,393 651,145 628,222 ! 3,337 1 26,260 v Total Decrease between 1849 and 1850 . . 22,933 It will be observed, that in the tables for 1841 the number of holdings under one acre, which are included in the tables for 1849 and 1850, were not taken into account for that year. In the opinion of those whom we have consulted on the subject, the number of such holdings were considerably more in 1841 than in 1850; but if we take them at the same number as ex- isted in 1850, the total decrease of all classes of holdings between 1841 and 1850 would be 133,544, instead of 98,218. But perhaps there is no fact which more strikingly shows the radical change in the relative position of the agricultural classes in Ireland, than the rapid and extraordinary loss sustained by small farmers in live stock. The relative value of stock on the small holdings at the stated periods appear to have been as follows : — VALUE OF STOCK. In 1841. In 1847. In 1849. In 1850. £ £ £ £ Holdings under 1 acre . . 1,705,975 460,735 478,950 433,382 Ditto 1 to 5 acres . . 3,065,522 803,184 652,967 612,011 Ditto 5 to 15 do. . . 5,706,990 4,101,628 3,737,801 5,342,625 Ditto 15 to 30 do. . . 3,683,864 5,186,442 5,379,011 5,342,625 Ditto above 30 do. . . 6,943,460 14,268,558 15,443,887 16,947,129 It is stated in the Agricultural Report for 1850 that “ The changes which took place in the relative numbers and wealth of the different classes of farmers between 1841 and 1846 cannot now be ascertained;” but the above tables shew that an immense alteration took place, the value of the stock on farms of the two classes under five acres being £4,771,504 in 1841, to £1,263,919 in 1847, and to £1,044,393 in 1850, whilst the stock in the larger farms has augmented in a propor- tion considerably greater. It is no part of our object to discuss the question whether the increase of large farms is or is not beneficial ; but although the value of stock which requires the employment of little labour to manage is increased on farms above thirty acres, that would appear to be the only improve- ment in any class of holdings. For if we turn to the state of the PRESENT CONDITION OF IRELAND. 13 crops at the same periods we find that the result fails altogether in showing any improvement. Even the cultivation of flax, to which so much attention and care has been directed, it would appear has decreased since the year 1841. In that year the amount of the crop was stated in the report of the Flax Im- provement Society at 25,000 tons ; and if we take the produce per acre at 42 stones* or 588 lbs. (as estimated by them) it would appear that the extent of land under flax in 1841 was 95,238 acres. Sir R. Kane, writing in 1845 on the authority of Mr. Crosth waite, places it at 100,000 acres, whilst by the Agricultural Report for 1850 the extent of land under flax cultivation in the years 1847, 1849, and 1850 is shown to have been as follows, viz : — 1847 58,312 acres. 1849 60,314 „ 1850 91,040 „ Thus although a gratifying increase has taken place since the the year 1847, yet as between 1841 and 1850 there is a decrease in the cultivation of the crop of 4,198 acres. Let us now turn to the general culture of the soil at the pre- sent time, as compared with that of the year 1841. The total area of Ireland is 20,808,271 acres, of which about 18,000,000 is available for cultivation. In the year 1841 the following division was made of the surface, viz : — Arable Land 13,464,300 acres. Uncultivated 6,295,735 „ Plantations 374,482 „ Towns 42,929 „ Water 630,825 „ 20,808,271 „ It is to be regretted that there are no means of ascertaining the quantity of the various agricultural produce in Ireland, in the year 1841, but it was at that period not only enough to provide for her 8,175,125 inhabitants but to enable her to export a very considerable quantity. Indeed since the year 1842, the imports of grain and flour alone into Great Britain from Ireland must have given a great stimulus to her agricultural industry, and a consequent advantage to the labouring classes. As early as the year 1802, Ireland imported into Great Britain 108,751 quarters of wheat and wheat flour, and of oats, barley, and other grain and meal 352,620 quarters. The extent of the importations gradually increased, with few exceptions, up to the year 1818, when the importation of oats and oatmeal suddenly increased from 611,117 quarters in 1817 to 1,069,385 quarters in 1818, and excepting the years 1819-20 and 1822 it had continued to * In the Agricultural Return for 1850 it is stated (page 7) that the estimated produce in 1847 was 48 stones per annnm, in 1848, 38st. 41bs. ; in 1849, 36st. 6lbs. ; and in 1850, 39st. 4lbs. 14 SUGGESTIONS ON THE increase, until in the year 1841 the quantity imported was no less than 2,539,380 quarters. The importation of wheat from Ireland to Great Britain was subject to considerable fluctuations, the lowest amount imported since the year 1818 was 105,179 quarters, the highest 844,211 quarters, and in the year 1841 it was 218,708 quarters. The quantity of barley was also subject to similar fluctuations within the same period, thus in 1818 the quantity was 25,385 quar- ters, the lowest importation since has been 19,274 quarters, the highest 217,855 quarters, and in 1841 the quantity was 75,268 quarters. Taking the average of ten years from 1831 to 1841, the result of the importation of corn, flour and malt was as follows, viz : — Total quantity, in quarters imported into Great Britain from Ireland from 1831 to 1841. Average number of quarters imported per annum. Malt 82,688 8.268 Beans . . . . . . 198,692 19.869 Peas 29,080 2,908 Hye 7,324 732 Oats and Oatmeal .... 22,694,127 2,269,412 Barley, including "bear and bigg . 1,546,205 154,620 Wheat and Wheat Flour 5,860,567 586,050 30,418,683 3,041,868 And, in addition to those exportations to Great Britain, Ireland also exported to foreign countries, of all descriptions of grain and flour, an average during the ten years of 4,495 quarters. And if we carry on the inquiry it will be found that in 1845 the importation of wheat and wheat flour into Great Britain from Ireland had increased from 218,708 quarters in 1841 to 779,113 quarters in 1845; barley from 75,568 quarters in 1841 to 93,094 quarters in 1845. And for the year 1845 the entire importation from Ireland to Great Britain of the above named produce amounted to no less than 3,251,901 quarters, shewing a most satisfactory increase. Let us, however, see the relative extent of importation for 1851 as compared with 1845. Quarters of Grain imported into Great Britain from Ireland, in the Years — Wheat and Wheat Flour . 1845. . . . 779,113 1851. . . 95,116 Barley and Barley Meal . . . . 93,095 . . 44,479 Oats and Oatmeal . . . . . . 2,353,985 . . 1,141,976 Bye and Bye Meal . . . ... 165 . . — Peas and Pea Meal . . . . . 1,644 . . 3,781 Beans and Bean Meal . . . . . 12,745 . . 25,002 Indian Corn and Meal . . . — . . 7,543 Bere or Bigg .... . . . — . . 360 Malt . . . 11,154 . . 6,431 3,251,901 1,324,688 Total decrease since the year 1845, of . . . 1,927,213 PRESENT CONDITION OF IRELAND. 15 We find no data for giving the quantity of live stock or potatoes exported from Ireland at the period to which we refer, but it is well known that it was no inconsiderable quantity. By the Agricultural Report of 1850 it would appear that the following was the state of the cultivation of the soil at that period, viz.: — Acres. To Wheat, Oats, and other dry crops 3,149,556 „ Potatoes, Turnips, and other green crops . . 1,317,572 ,, Flax 91,040 „ Meadow and Clover 1,200,124 Total 5,758,292 Shewing, as compared with 1841, a falling-off in the extent of the land in cultivation of no less than 7,706,008 acres ; and that the quantity of land uncultivated in 1850 was 14,001,743 acres, against 6,295,735 acres in 1841. The tabular statement of the extent of the several crops is so instructive of the general condition of Ireland, that we cannot do better than insert it. CROPS. 1849. 1850. Increase. Decrease. Wheat .... Oats Barley .... Bere Eye Beans and Peas . . . Acres. 687,646 2,061,185 290,690 60,819 20,168 53,916 Acres. 604,867 2,142,596 263,350 57,811 18,342 62,590 Acres. 81,411 8,674 Acres. 82,779 27,340 3,008 1,826 3,174,424 3,149,556 90,085 114,953 Potatoes .... Turnips . . . . Mangel Wurzel. Carrots and Parsnips . . Cahhage .... Vetches Other Green Crops . 718,608 360,069 18,758 8,780 25,083 18,266 18,075 875,357 347,331 20,390 7,288 22,790 23,497 20,919 155,749 1*632 5,231 2,844 12,738 1,492 2,293 1,167,629 1,317,572 166,456 16,523 Flax Meadow and Clover . 60,314 1,141,371 91,040 1,200,124 30,726 58,753 5, 543,748 5,758,292 346,020 131,476 In the rates of produce a material reduction is observable in wheat, oats and potatoes, whilst barley exhibits a slight improve- ment. The average produce per acre of all Ireland in the years 1847 to 1850 was as follows, viz. : — 16 SUGGESTIONS ON THE Year. Wheat. Brls. 20 stones. Oats. Brls. 14 stones. Barley. Brls. 16 stones. Potatoes. Brls. 20 stones. Turnips. Tons. 1847 . . . 6 6 8 4 8 7 57 7 15 5 1848 . . . 4 5 7 6 8 4 31 0 14 3 1849 . . . 5 3 7 6 8 4 44 7 16 1 1850 . . . 4 4 7 7 8 9 36 6 15 7 The estimated quantity of produce of the year 1850 is thus stated, — Potatoes (31,567,917 brls. of 20 stones, reduced to tons) Turnips .... Mangel Wurzel Carrots and Parsnips Cabbage .... Vetches . Hay ... . Tons. Wheat . Quarters. 3,945,989 . 1,550,196 5,439,005 Oats . 10,341,973 364,036 Barley . . 1,299,835 86,622 Bere 308,291 317,802 hye 88,307 63,568 2,453,259 Beans and Peas 198,959 And if we take the estimated produce of the dry crops, viz., wheat, oats, barley, here, and rye, since the year 1847 (the earliest date at which the returns can be relied on), we find that in 1847 it was 16,164,478 quarters; in 1848, 14,499,521 quarters; in 1849, 13,779,291 quarters; and in 1850 it had fallen to 13,588,422 quarters. The produce of wheat alone had diminished since 1847, when it was 2,926,733 quarters, by no less than 1,375,537 quarters. The above statistics conclusively shew, that Ireland has suffered immensely (indeed almost beyond belief, unless it were so verified) in her population, and in her chief industrial pur- suit, but they do more than teach us the sad lesson of the past. To every inquiring mind they suggest the most anxious con- siderations for the future ; they would seem to point to Ireland ceasing altogether to be a wheat-growing country (for at the present rate of decrease of the growth of wheat and barley, that event will take place in less than five years) — to the en- couragement of that system of farming which creates the least demand for labour, and to the entire absorption of the smaller holdings. Whilst if the present rate of emigration continues, the next ten years will do as much to depopulate the country, as the combined untoward events which have happened between the years 1841 and 1851. There are many points of great interest which we must pass over, among them, the position of the manufacturing, commercial, and mining industry of Ireland ; these are, how- ever, entirely of secondary importance. The great staple industry of the country is agriculture, and in treating that subject, we fairly state the condition of Ireland at large. In the year 1841, 66.1 per cent, of the population was engaged in PRESENT CONDITION OF IRELAND. 17 agriculture, 24.0 per cent, in trade and manufactures, and 9.9 per cent, in other pursuits. The linen manufacture of the whole country is generally considered as being co-extensive with that of the town of Dundee ; we are unable to say whether the pro- duction is on the decrease, hut there has been a remarkable falling off in the exports, thus The declared value of linen manu- 1847. 1850. factures exported from Ireland, » was 56,135 13,903 Ditto, linen yarn 21,498 550 And as regards mining, the population employed in mining throughout Ireland does not equal in number the miners employed in the district of Tavistock alone. We close this point with one further illustration. Of itself it may not be sufficient to found an argument as to the state of the country; but when we find the deposits in the savings banks withdrawn, not by the labouring classes only, but by the small farmer and trader also, to an extent such as the following tables shew, it is a corroborative evidence of the state of the country at large. Thus the deposits in the savings banks in Ireland in the stated years, were as follows, viz. : — Number of Total Amount invested by Banks. individual Depositors. 1841 76 £2,243,426 1851 52 1,359,199 Reduction in ten years 24 £884,227 We pass now from the condition of Ireland to the considera- tion of her resources, and to what has been done for her by the Legislature, as matters worthy of attention, prior to the enun- ciation of the measure we shall venture to propose. In the words of a departed statesman, whose history will be recorded by the chronicler among the ablest of his times, and whose memory will be ever cherished by his cotemporaries, not less for his honesty of purpose, than for his brilliant genius — the late lamented Lord George Bentinck — “ England has had her bad days as well as Ireland — we have known the time when the counties of England have been ravaged by the fires of the incendiary ; we have seen the time, in England, when the sovereign dared not go into his own city of London. So little while ago as in the year 1842, England, though not supporting as (in 1847) now, she and Ireland together are constrained to support 2,000,000 beings in idleness in the latter country, did support, by the parish rates, 1,427,000 persons.” Those words, which were urged by him in introducing his remedial measure for Ireland, are of the same practical im- portance now, as when they were uttered, and it is as true now as then “ that when we come to estimate the condition of B 18 SUGGESTIONS ON THE Ireland, and compare it with that of England in no very distant times, there is not so great a difference between the present state of Ireland and that of England in the years 1841 and 1842, that we need despair of finding the means to overcome our difficulties.” What is there to prevent Ireland from becoming prosperous, and adding to, and reciprocating in, the general welfare of the United Kingdom ? Can it be said that her resources are inadequate, that she has no internal channels of wealth, or that industrial pursuits in Ireland are incapable of meeting with the like success as in Great Britain ? On the contrary, there are few, if any advantages which England possesses over Ireland in national resources. In addition to the majestic Shannon and its tributaries, Ireland possesses a river communication of great importance, her coasts command splendid harbours of safe and easy access. The mountain tracts rising from the coast, rarely extend more than twenty miles inland ; and the interior of the country, with trifling exceptions, is composed of flat, or gently swelling ground, covered by a rich and fruitful soil.* In the great limestone district (which occupies two-thirds of the country), the soil is rich, and capable of producing any kind of agricultural crop ; but in these fertile plains, less exertion has been displayed than in the other parts of the country where the soil is of inferior quality ; but where, owing to the industry of the people, the quantity and quality of the crop per acre is superior to that produced on the rich calcareous loams. These loams produce, spontaneously, abundance of grass of good quality, and in the extensive plains of the counties of Meath and Westmeath, nothing is looked to but grazing and fattening cattle upon the natural produce of the soil, unaided, for the most part, by green crop husbandry; whilst the slate and granite districts under cultivation produce excellent corn and green crops. Then, if we turn to the geology of Ireland, we find that it is similar to that of England, although the relative geographical position of the various rocks is essentially different. In many parts where the limestone strata are arranged in nearly hori- zontal lodes, abundance of stone of very large dimensions can be procured, suitable for every variety of architectural design, and beautiful marbles of various tints, are abundant in different places. In some of the schistose districts, valuable lodes of fine grained roofing slate have been discovered. In respect to metallic mines, rich veins of copper and lead exist, and have been partially worked in many parts of the primary slate dis- tricts of the counties of Donegal and Galway, and in the granite and slate districts of the counties of Down, Armagh, Monaghan, Wicklow, Wexford, Waterford, Cork, and Kerry; also in * See Railway Commissioners’ Report, 1838, p. 29. PRESENT CONDITION OF IRELAND. 19 different parts of the great central limestone district. Some of the copper mines are highly productive, but the lead mines have not been so prosperous. There is an abundance of coal occurring in seven distinct localities, which have been called the Leinster, the Slieve Arda or Tipperary, and the Munster, situated to the south of Dublin, and the Monaghan, the Connaught, the Tyrone, and the Antrim, to the north of it. The coal consists of two distinct species, namely, the anthracite and bituminous. The Leinster coal dis- trict contains eight beds. Some collieries have been worked for upwards of a century, and the upper beds, which are the purest, are now nearly exhausted ; but those of the lower beds, which are very extensive, have never been worked, excepting near the out-crop, where they occur near the suface, and, consequently, this district still contains an abundant supply of coal and culm. The Tipperary coal district , which is only divided from the Leinster by a narrow intervening neck of limestone, is in its general character, similar to the former, but it possesses only three beds. The Munster coal district ; — this tract, the most extensive development of the coal strata in the British empire, occupies considerable portions of the counties of Clare, Limerick, Cork, and Kerry. In all these counties, coal mines have been worked. It appears that there are six distinct layers of coal, but the detailed examination of the district has not yet been carried to a sufficient extent to enable the entire arrangement of the strata being traced. The Monaghan coal district. In this district, although many trials have been made, no coal worth working has been met with ; but one bed of fourteen inches, one of one foot, and several of inferior thickness, have been discovered. The Connaught coal district occupies large parts of the counties of Roscommon, Sligo, Leitrim, and a portion of Cavan. The greatest length of the district is sixteen miles, which is also its greatest breadth. The beds of coal found in this district are three in number; they have never been worked to any extent, although the principal bed is rarely less than three feet in thickness, and it is stated that its quality for domestic purposes is excellent, and if used for smelting iron, it is among the best in the empire. The Tyrone coal district. This district, though very small, contains a greater number of valuable beds of coal than any other in Ireland. At present, nine workable beds are known, which vary from three to nine feet in thickness. Some of the beds are of excellent quality ; this coal has also been extensively worked within the last few years. The Antrim coal district. — The collieries in this district have been wrought at a very remote period, and possibly they may be among the most ancient of the British empire. To the west of Fair Head, this district appears to contain but one workable bed of coal, which is four feet six inches in thickness. There is some difficulty in raising the coal in this district, partly B 2 20 SUGGESTIONS ON THE from the dip of the old workings, and partly from the want of a safe harbour for shipping. In respect to the bituminous coal mines generally of the northern counties, it may be said, that they are inferior, both in productiveness and purity of coal to those of Great Britain, but that the anthracitous, or non-flaming coal districts, situated to the south of Dublin are sufficiently extensive, and contain abundance of that peculiar coal, which is most valuable in all cases where a strong and steady heat is required. Nor is Ireland deprived of that mineral which has proved of such immense wealth to Great Britain — we mean iron ore. The manufacture of iron is of ancient date in that kingdom. Sir R. Kane states in the work to which reference has already been made, page 120: — “Some centuries ago Ireland presented a picture of manufacturing industry, such as we now find perhaps in the interior of Russia. Covered with forests, and possessing iron ore of the highest purity in abundance, Ireland was sprinkled over with small iron works, in which the wood charcoal was employed, and thus iron manufactured of excellent quality ; such as we now import from Sweden and Russia for all the finer purposes of cutlery and mechanism.” Dr. Boate, writing two centuries ago, gives some most interesting particulars on the subject, from which we find that, at that period, iron was an article of export from Ireland to London. To give our readers some idea of the importance attached to the manufacture of iron in those days we quote the following paragraph from our author. Dr. Boate says, — “ The Earl of Cork, whose iron works being seated in Munster, afforded him very good opportunity of sending his iron out of the land by shipping, did in this particular surpass all others, so as he gained great treasures thereby ; and know- ing persons, who have had a particular insight into his affairs, do assure me, that he hath profited above one hundred thousands clear gain by his said iron works. At that day there were three sorts of ore known in Ireland, which are described by Dr. Boate as “ bog mine, rock mine, and the third with several names, white mine, pin mine, and shell mine. The first sort is found in low boggie places, out of which it is raised with very little charge, as lying not deep at all, commonly on the superfices of the earth, and about a foot in thickness. The oar is very rich in metal, and that very good and tough, nevertheless in the melting it must be mingled with some of the mine or oar of some other sorts ; for else it is too harsh, and keeping the furnace too hot, it melteth too suddenly, and stoppeth the mouth of the furnace, or, to use the workmen’s own expression, choaketh the furnace. “ The second sort, that which is taken out of rocks, being a hard and meer stony substance, of a dark and rustie colour, doth not lye scattered in several places, but is a piece of the PRESENT CONDITION OF IRELAND. 21 very rock, of the which it is hewen ; which rock being covered with earth, is within equally everywhere of the same substance, so as the whole rock, and every parcel thereof, is oar of iron. This mine, as well as the former, is raised with little trouble, for the iron-rock being full of joints, is with pick-axes easily divided and broken into pieces of what bigness one will. “ The third sort of iron mine is digged out of the mountains in several parts of the kingdom ; in Ulster, in the county of Fermanagh, upon Lough Earn; in the county of Cavan, in a place called Doubally, in a dry mountain; in the county of Nether Tyrone, by the side of the rivulet Lishan, not far from Lough Neagh ; at the foot of the mountains Slew-galeri ; in Leinster, in King’s County, hard by Mountmelliek ; and in Queen’s County, two miles from Mountrath ; in Connaught, in Tomond, or the county of Clare, six miles from Limerick ; in the county of Roscommon, by the side of Lough Allen ; and in the county of Leitrim, on the east side of the said Lough, where the mountains are so full of this metal, that thereof it hath got in Irish the name of Slew Nerin , that is, mountains of iron ; and in the province of Munster also in sundry places. This sort is of a whitish or grey colour. The stuff is digged out of the ground in lumps of the bigness of a man’s head. Within every one of these lumps, when the mine is very rich and of the best sort, lieth a small kernel which hath the name of honeycomb given to it. The iron coming of this oar is not brittle like that of the rock mine, but tough, and in many places as good as any Spanish iron.” “ It would be difficult,” says Sir R. Kane, “ at the present day, independent of chemical analysis, to furnish a better description of the bog iron, which is found in patches in almost every part of this island, and of the iron-stone, of which the very rich quality of Lough Allen, and that of the Leinster dis- trict, was even then recognised.” About ten years ago the iron mines of Arigna, on the borders of Lough Allen, were extensively worked by an English com- pany, under the superintendence of an English manager ; Mr. Twiggs, in his report to the directors of the Arigna company in 1830, thus speaks of the district : — “ The iron-stone mines have been examined, and the result found extremely favourable. A greater variety of iron-stones I never met with, from which, by a proper admixture and proper management, I have no hesitation in saying, that pig-iron of best marks and fit for foundry-work of every kind, may be obtained. The iron mines begin in Rover, and continue for two miles and a half. I measured several of the beds to more than two feet thick, in some places laid bare in the ravines, and in the bed of the Arigna river we can get any quantity at the shortest notice. There is enough to last two furnaces for 250 years.” At the present time we believe there is no iron furnace in 22 SUGGESTIONS ON THE Ireland, notwithstanding the abundance of rich iron stone ex- isting in the country, which is procurable at a small cost. Our limits prevent us further pursuing this interesting subject, but we recommend our readers to peruse Sir R. Kane’s work on Ireland, and especially Chapter IV., as bearing especially on the iron ores of the country. It is a popular error to suppose that the natural resources of Ireland are restricted ; she is by nature rich, and blessed by every means which might, if rightly exercised, produce plenty and prosperity. And yet her population, as a mass, are the poorest on the face of the civilized globe. We look in vain for a parallel, whether we turn to Spain, which gloated by riches became lethargic and dispirited, or to the icebound shores of Sweden, where, notwithstanding the poverty of the soil, the in- dustry and energy of the people surround them with happiness and contentment. We now proceed to inquire what has been done by the im- perial government to assist Ireland. In addition to immediate relief afforded her at the period when famine was raging throughout the length and breadth of the land, pecuniary assist- ance has been from time to time rendered by Great Britain in executing public works, and in promoting the drainage and im- provement of land, by grants and loans out of the public treasury. The Commissioners of Public Works in Ireland were ap- pointed by virtue of the 1 & 2 Will. IV, cap. 33, and since that period the distribution of grants and loans have been made through them; that statute authorized the appropriation of £.500,000 for (( the extension and promoting of works of public “ utility, by extending to such works, upon a permanent system, “ the aid of public credit, to be afforded upon sufficient security “ taken for the repayment of the money raised thereunder, to- “ gether with interest thereon.” And, with the view of im- proving lands in Ireland, the Commissioners were authorized (sec. 32) to make advances for draining land when the improve- ment or reclamation would increase the value of the land ten per cent. The securities on which loans were authorised to be issued were on real securities, or on mortgage of the tolls or rates of the works, on government securities, on India bonds, or where the obligor had previously expended or secured a sum not less than one-half the estimated cost of the works, on his personal security alone; and by the 6 & 7 Will. IV, c. 108, sec. 6, the Commissioners were authorised to take deposits or transfers of shares, stock, or debentures in and of public companies, in lieu of such real security or securities, or as collateral thereto ; so that the utmost facility was given by the statute for borrow- ing money, for the improvement of lands and execution of public works. It was however found that, in addition to loans it was expedient that grants should be made in aid of the latter pur- PRESENT CONDITION OF IRELAND. 23 pose, and in the 6 & 7 of that reign, authority was given to apply moneys, partly by loan and partly by grant. Prior to the first mentioned act loans were made from time to time, as for instance, by the 57 Geo. Ill, c. 33, which authorised the issue of £1,500,000 “for carrying out public works and fisheries and employment of the poor in Great Britain,” of which the sum of £250,000 was appropriated to Ireland; but it will be unnecessary to go back to the period antecedent to the ap- pointment of the Commission under the first mentioned Act. By the Nineteenth Report of the Commissioners of Public Works (Ireland), 1851, the following statement is given of the amount of all Loans and Grants made for Public Works, and of the amounts repaid to 5th January, 1851. Authorised. 1 & 2 Wm. IV, c. 33. Original Appro- £ priation 500,000 Re-issued pursuant to the above Act 244,650 6 & 7 Wm. IV, c. 108. Additional Sum 100,000 1 Viet., c. 21. Of £50,000 authorised, there was appropriated to Grants £4,000 to Loans 46,000 6 & 7 Viet., c. 44. £15,000 per quarter, commencing 10th October, 1843, when Exchequer Bill Issues cease 210,000 9 & 10 Viet., c. 108. In aid of Relief Works, 9 Viet., c. 1 145,000 10 & 11 Viet., c. 106. For Arterial Drainage 370,000 12 Viet, c 23. For Arterial Drainage... 200,000 13 & 14 Viet., c. 31. For Arterial Drain- age, and public Works 800,000 9 & 10 Viet., c. 85. £15,000 per quarter for five years, from 5 th August, 1847, to 5th January, 1852 ... 300,000 Re-issues of repayments for comple- tion of Relief Works and Arterial Drainage 131,381 2 & 3 Viet., c. 21. For Improvement of the Shannon Navigation (Loan portion) 9 & 10 Viet., c. 107. Sums charged upon the Consolidation Fund for the em- ployment of the labouring poor ... 4,848,235 Of which there has been certified to be repaid, viz. — By Counties, pursuant to 10 & 1 1 Viet., c. 87 2,244,585 By Landed Proprietors, pursuant to 10 Viet., c. 10 200,159 10 Viet., c. 32. For Improvement of Landed Property 1,500,000 12 Viet., c. 23. For ditto ... 300,000 13 & 14 Viet., c. 31. For ditto ... 200,000 Leaving to be issued, viz. — For Ordinary Loans for River Drainage Land Improvement ... s. d. 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 O 0 0 0 O 0 0 0 0 6 10 2 6 2 4 3 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 £ s. d. 890,650 0 0 2,156,381 6 10 294,090 0 0 2,444,744 5 5 2,000,000 0 0 7,785,865 12 3 885,416 8 1 940,889 9 2 15 6 . . 813,973 3 4 . 226,349 19 11 £1,270,964 18 9 Issued. £ s. d. 890,650 0 0 *1,270,964 18 9 294,090 0 0 2,444,744 5 5 1,059,110 10 10 5,959,559 15 0 1,826,305 17 3 7,785,865 12 3 *For Ordinary Loans Arterial Works Relief Works . 24 SUGGESTIONS ON THE The repayments on account of the above Loans are as follow : — Transfer on account of 1 & 2 Wm IY, c. 33, &c., including £7,000 repaid by the Ecclesiastical Commissioners direct to the Exchequer Transfer on account of 6 & 7 Yict. c. 44, &c., for ordinary Loans and Arte- rial Drainage For Relief Works, for 9 Viet. c. 1 Transfer on account of 2 & 3 Yict. c. 61, for Shannon Navigation, viz.: — Counties ... £247,656 2 6 Individuals ... 9,053 2 5 Transfers on account of 10 & 11 Yict. c. 87, for the employment of the Labouring Poor, viz. : — Counties ... £259,232 14 3 Proprietors ... 27,146 12 2 Transfers on account of 10 Yict. c. 32, for improvement of Landed Property . Principal. Interest. Total. £ s. d. £ s. d. £ s. d. 650,036 11 1 227,212 14 4 877,247 5 5 29,706 3 1 66,184 8 5 165,390 11 6 58,568 15 3 16,605 1 2 75,173 17 5 223,657 6 5 33,051 18 6 256,709 4 11 1,031,968 16 10 343,054 2 5 1,375,022 19 2 Repaid on the principle of an Annuity. 286,378 16 2 Ditto ditto 91,263 17 7 l,752,6i 5 13 0 Thus it would appear that the total amount of Loans (irrespective of interest) has been 5,959,559 15 0 and that the re-payments, (irrespective of interest and sums paid on the principle of an Annuity) have been . . . 1,031,968 16 10 Leaving now due on Loan . £4,927,590 18 2 The total sanctions for Grants have been as follows : — 1 & 2 Wm. IV, c. 33. For Public Works ... 1 Viet. c. 27. Ditto 1 & 2 Viet. c. 88. Appropriated to Grant ... 6 & 7 Yict. c. 44. For Public Works 9 Yict. c. 1. For aid of Relief Works 9 & 10 Yict. c. 108. Ditto 2 & 3 Viet. c. 61. In aid of River Shannon Improvements ... 9 Viet. c. 3. For Piers and Harbours 10 & 11 Yict. c. 75. Ditto 5 & 6 Viet. c. 89, &c. For Navigation in con- nection with Drainage Act For employment of Labouring Poor, 9 & 10 Viet. c. 107. Moiety Expenditure against Counties made Grant by 10 & 11 Viet, c. 87 £ s. d. 50,000 0 0 50,000 0 0 4,000 0 0 21,000 0 0 50,000 0 0 175,000 0 0 50,000 0 0 40,000 0 0 £ s. d. 125.000 0 0 225.000 0 0 290,717 0 3 90,000 0 0 141,073 0 0 2,231,077 4 1 £4,102,867 4 1 PRESENT CONDITION OF IRELAND. 25 The above loans are, we believe, exclusive of advances made to certain railway companies to which we shall hereafter refer. How far what has been done has disappointed the expectations which were entertained from it will be best shown by the pre- sent condition of Ireland. How far that disappointment has been caused by measures which have seriously affected the agricultural interest, not in Ireland only but throughout Great Britain, is not a matter on which we can enter in these pages, lest we should be drawn into the discussion of a vexed political question ; still it is not possible fairly to treat the main subject without reference to those measures, and whatever differences of opinion there may be as to the extent of their operation, every- one must admit that they should be taken into consideration. But we leave our readers to draw their own conclusions. That this large expenditure has been of a service, at all com- mensurate with the extent of the expenditure, is what few will be found to assert. The public works, upon which a consider- able amount has been spent, appear to be universally condemned as a reckless and unprofitable outlay; they have been described by high authority as 66 works which will answer no other pur- pose than that of obstructing the public conveyances,” and as “ public follies.” It is gratifying, however, to find that the operations under the Land Improvement Act, are reported on as satisfactory; although it would appear by the returns (quoted at page 16) shewing that the average produce of the soil per acre has actually decreased since the year 1847, in wheat and potatoes about one-third per acre, and oats about one-eight per acre, that the improvement which has taken place has yet had no general effect. The Commissioners of Public W orks report cc That during the year 1850, the Landed Property Improvement Act has con- tinued to work in the same satisfactory manner as during the three preceding years, that the spirit of agricultural improve- ment, which revived in some measure through the operations of the Act, has continued unabated throughout the country, the proprietors, as well as many tenant farmers, being convinced by experience that deep and thorough draining, followed by subsoiling, effects such an increase in the productive qualities of the soil as to enable it, when moderately excited by manure, to produce returns sufficient to repay the entire expenditure, in some cases in one, in others in two years.” This statement is supported by the reports of the inspectors and by letters which are adduced: and the commissioners further cheer us by adding “ that a feeling of hope has succeeded to apathy, and a spirit of industry prevails from the highest to the lowest.” We hope that the advantages realized by those who have benefited by the operations of the Act will be rapidly spread throughout the country, and that we shall find the effect in future years universal. 26 SUGGESTIONS ON THE It would be going too far to hope that by means of the im- provement of the land alone, Ireland will be regenerated ; we admit the great advantage which might naturally be expected from it, but bearing in mind that the average produce of the soil per acre, as shown by the agricultural report for 1850, has decreased to a considerable extent since the year 1847, the con- viction presses itself upon the mind, that other steps must be speedily taken, and the question arises, what is to be done for the future? To continue works which have been described as useless would be futile, and yet the labouring poor must be employed, or maintained by the poor rates, or, as the common term is,