Chapter II: Part 2

_Tillage and Pasturage._--The fact that probably about 1,000,000 acres
formerly under potatoes went out of cultivation owing to the potato
disease in 1847 makes a comparison between the figures for crops in
that year with present figures somewhat fallacious. Starting, however,
with that year as the most important in Irish economic history in
modern times, we find that between 1847 and 1905 the total area under
crops--cereals, green crops, flax, meadow and clover--decreased by
582,348 acres. Up to 1861, as the area formerly under potatoes came
back gradually into cultivation, the acreage under crops increased;
but since that year, when the total crop area was 5,890,536 acres,
there has been a steady and gradual decline, the area in 1905 having
fallen to 4,656,227 acres. An analysis of the returns shows that the
decline has been most marked in the acreage under cereal crops,
especially wheat. In 1847 the number of acres under wheat was 743,871
and there has been a steady and practically continuous decrease ever
since, the wheat acreage in 1905 being only 37,860 acres. In that year
the wheat area, excluding less than 5000 acres in Connaught, was
pretty equally divided between the other three provinces. Oats has
always been the staple cereal crop in Ireland, but since 1847 its
cultivation has declined by over 50%. In that year 2,200,870 acres
were under oats and in 1905 only 1,066,806 acres. Nearly one-half of
the area under oats is to be found in Ulster; Leinster and Munster are
fairly equal; and Connaught has something over 100,000 acres under
this crop. The area under barley and rye has also declined during the
period under review by about one-half--from 345,070 acres in 1847 to
164,800 in 1905. The growing of these crops is confined almost
entirely to Leinster and Munster. Taking all the cereal crops
together, their cultivation during the last 60 years has gradually
declined (from 3,313,579 acres in 1847 to 1,271,190 in 1905) by over
50%. The area, however, under green crops--potatoes, turnips,
mangel-wurzel, beet, cabbage, &c., shows during the same period a much
less marked decline--only some 300,000 acres. There has been a very
considerable decrease since about 1861 in the acreage under potatoes.
This is probably due to two causes--the emigration of the poorer
classes who subsisted on that form of food, and the gradual
introduction of a more varied dietary. The total area under potatoes
in 1905 was 616,755 acres as compared with 1,133,504 acres in 1861.
Since about 1885 the acreage under turnips has remained fairly
stationary in the neighbourhood of 300,000 acres, while the
cultivation of mangel-wurzel has considerably increased. Outside the
recognized cereal and green crops, two others may be considered, flax
and meadow and clover. The cultivation of the former is practically
confined to Ulster and as compared with 20 or 30 years ago has fallen
off by considerably more than 50%, despite the proximity of the linen
industry. The number of acres under flax in 1905 was only 46,158. The
Department of Agriculture has made efforts to improve and foster its
cultivation, but without any marked results as regards increasing the
area sown. During the period under review the area under meadow and
clover has increased by more than 50%, rising from 1,138,946 acres in
1847 to 2,294,506 in 1905. It would thus appear that a large
proportion of the land which has ceased to bear cereal or green crops
is now laid down in meadow and clover. The balance has become
pasturage, and the total area under grass in Ireland has so largely
increased that it now embraces more than one-half of the entire
country. This increase of the pastoral lands, with the corresponding
decrease of the cropped lands, has been the marked feature of Irish
agricultural returns since 1847. It is attributable to three chief
reasons, the dearth of labour owing to emigration, the greater fall in
prices of produce as compared with live stock, and the natural
richness of the Irish pastures. The following table shows the growth
of pasturage and the shrinkage of the crop areas since 1860.

+------+------------+------------+------------+-----------+------------+
| | | Cultivated |Crops (other| Meadow | |
| Year.| Total Area.| Area (Crops|than Meadow | and | Grass. |
| | | and Grass).|and Clover).| Clover. | |
+------+------------+------------+------------+-----------+------------+
| 1860 | 20,284,893 | 15,453,773 | 4,375,621 | 1,594,518 | 9,483,634 |
| 1880 | 20,327,764 | 15,340,192 | 3,171,259 | 1,909,825 | 10,259,108 |
| 1900 | 20,333,344 | 15,222,104 | 2,493,017 | 2,165,715 | 10,563,372 |
| 1905 | 20,350,725 | 15,232,699 | 2,410,813 | 2,224,165 | 10,597,721 |
+------+------------+------------+------------+-----------+------------+

One more table may be given showing the proportional areas under the
various kinds of crops, grass, woods and plantations, fallow, bog,
waste, &c., over a series of years.

+------+------+------+-------+------+------------+------+-------+------+
| |Cereal|Green |Meadow | | Total | | | |
| Year.|Crops.|Crops.| and |Grass.|Agricultural|Woods.|Fallow.|Waste.|
| | | |Clover.| | Land. | | | |
+------+------+------+-------+------+------------+------+-------+------+
| 1851 | 15.2 | 6.7 | 6.1 | 43.0 | 71.0 | 1.5 | 1.0 | 25.7 |
| 1880 | 8.1 | 5.5 | 8.1 | 50.5 | 72.2 | 1.7 | 0.0 | 22.8 |
| 1905 | 6.3 | 5.3 | 11.3 | 52.1 | 75.0 | 1.5 | 0.0 | 23.5 |
+------+------+------+-------+------+------------+------+-------+------+

_Produce and Live Stock._--With the decrease of the area under cereal
and green crops and the increase of pasturage there has naturally been
a serious fall in the amount of agricultural produce and a
considerable rise in the number of live stock since the middle of the
19th century. Thus in 1851 the number of cattle was returned as
2,967,461 and in 1905 as 4,645,215, the increase during the
intervening period having been pretty gradual and general. Sheep in
1851 numbered 2,122,128 and in 1905 3,749,352, but the increase in
this case has not been so continuous, several of the intervening years
showing a considerably higher total than 1905, and for a good many
years past the number of sheep has tended to decline. The number of
pigs has also varied considerably from year to year, 1905 showing an
increase of about 150,000 as compared with 1851.

_The Department of Agriculture._--By an act of 1899 a Department of Agriculture and other industries and technical instruction was established in Ireland. To this department were transferred numerous powers and duties previously exercised by other authorities, including the Department of Science and Art. To assist the department the act also provided for the establishment of a council of agriculture, an agricultural board and a board of technical instruction, specifying the constitution of each of the three bodies. Certain moneys (exceeding L180,000 per annum) were placed by the act at the disposal of the department, provisions were made for their application, and it was enacted that local authorities might contribute funds. The powers and duties of the department are very wide, but under the present section its chief importance lies in its administrative work with regard to agriculture. In the annual reports of the department this work is usually treated under three heads: (1) agricultural instruction, (2) improvement of live stock, and (3) special investigations.

1. The ultimate aim of the department's policy in the matter of
agricultural instruction is, as defined by itself, to place within the
reach of a large number of young men and young women the means of
obtaining in their own country a good technical knowledge of all
subjects relating to agriculture, an object which prior to the
establishment of the department was for all practical purposes
unattainable. Before such a scheme could be put into operation two
things had to be done. In the first place, the department had to train
teachers of agricultural subjects; and secondly, it had to demonstrate
to farmers all over Ireland by a system of itinerant instruction some
of the advantages of such technical instruction, in order to induce
them to make some sacrifice to obtain a suitable education for their
sons and daughters. In order to accomplish the first of these two
preliminaries, the department established a Faculty of Agriculture at
the Royal College of Science in Dublin, and offered a considerable
number of scholarships the competition for which becomes increasingly
keen. They also reorganized the Albert Agricultural College at
Glasnevin for young men who have neither the time nor the means to
attend the highly specialized courses at the Royal College of Science;
and the Munster Institute at Cork is now devoted solely to the
instruction of girls in such subjects as butter-making,
poultry-keeping, calf-rearing, cooking, laundry-work, sewing and
gardening. In addition to these three permanent institutions, local
schools and classes have been established in different parts of the
country where systematic instruction in technical agriculture is given
to young men. In this and in other branches of its work the department
is assisted by agricultural committees appointed by the county
councils. The number of itinerant instructors is governed entirely by
the available supply of qualified men. The services of every available
student on completing his course at the Royal College of Science are
secured by some county council committee. The work of the itinerant
instructors is very varied. They hold classes and carry out field
demonstrations and experiments, the results of which are duly
published in the department's journal. The department has also
endeavoured to encourage the fruit-growing industry in Ireland by the
establishment of a horticultural school at Glasnevin, by efforts to
secure uniformity in the packing and grading of fruit, by the
establishment of experimental fruit-preserving factories, by the
planting of orchards on a large scale in a few districts, and by
pioneer lectures. As the result of all these efforts there has been an
enormous increase in the demand for fruit trees of all kinds.

2. The marked tendency which has been visible for so many years in
Ireland for pasturage to increase at the expense of tillage makes the
improvement of live-stock a matter of vital importance to all
concerned in agriculture. Elaborate schemes applicable to
horse-breeding, cattle-breeding and swine-breeding, have been drawn up
by the department on the advice of experts, but the working of the
schemes is for the most part left to the various county council
committees. The benefits arising from these schemes are being more and
more realized by farmers, and the department is able to report an
increase in the number of pure bred cattle and horses in Ireland.

3. The special investigations carried out by the department naturally
vary from year to year, but one of the duties of each instructor in
agriculture is to conduct a number of field experiments, mainly on the
influence of manures and seeds in the yield of crops. The results of
these experiments are issued in the form of leaflets and distributed
widely among farmers. One of the most interesting experiments, which
may have far-reaching economic effects, has been in the cultivation of
tobacco. So far it has been proved (1) that the tobacco plant can be
grown successfully in Ireland, and (2) that the crop when blended with
American leaf can be manufactured into a mixture suitable for smoking.
But whether Irish tobacco can be made a profitable crop depends upon a
good many other considerations.

_Agricultural Co-operation._--In 1894 the efforts of a number of Irishmen drawn from all political parties were successfully directed towards the formation of the Irish Agricultural Organization Society, which has for its object the organizing of groups of farmers on co-operative principles and the provision of instruction in proper technical methods. The society had at first many difficulties to confront, but after the first two or three years of its existence its progress became more rapid, and co-operation became beyond all question one of the most hopeful features in Irish agriculture.

Perhaps the chief success of the society was seen in the establishment
of creameries, which at the end of 1905 numbered 275--123 in Ulster,
102 in Munster, 20 in Leinster and 30 in Connaught. The members
numbered over 42,000 and the trade turnover for the year was
L1,245,000. Agricultural societies have been established for the
purchase of seed, implements, &c., on co-operative lines and of these
there are 150, with a membership of some 14,000. The society was also
successful in establishing a large number of credit societies, from
which farmers can borrow at a low rate of interest. There are also
societies for poultry-rearing, rural industries, bee-keeping,
bacon-curing, &c., in connexion with the central organization. The
system is rounded off by a number of trade federations for the sale
and purchase of various commodities. The Department of Agriculture
encourages the work of the Organization Society by an annual grant.

_Land Laws._--The relations of landlord and tenant in Ireland have been a frequent subject of legislation (see _History_ below). Under the act of 1881, down to the 31st of March 1906, the rents of 360,135 holdings, representing nearly 11,000,000 acres, had been fixed for the first statutory term of 15 years either by the land commissioners or by agreements between landlords and tenants, the aggregate reduction being over 20% as compared with the old rents. The rents of 120,515 holdings, representing over 3,500,000 acres, had been further fixed for the second statutory term, the aggregate reduction being over 19% as compared with the first term rents. Although the acts of 1870 and 1881 provided facilities for the purchase of holdings by the tenants, it was only after the passing of the Ashbourne Act in 1885 that the transfer of ownership to the occupying tenants began on an extended scale. Under this act between 1885 and 1902, when further proceedings were suspended, the number of loans issued was 25,367 (4221 in Leinster; 5204 in Munster; 12,954 in Ulster, and 2988 in Connaught) and the amount was L9,992,536. Between August 1891 and April 1906, the number of loans issued under the acts of 1891 and 1896 was 40,395 (7838 in Leinster; 7512 in Munster; 14,955 in Ulster, and 10,090 in Connaught) and the amount was L11,573,952. Under the Wyndham Act of 1903 the process was greatly extended.

The following tables give summarized particulars, for the period from
the 1st of November 1903 to the 31st of March 1906, of (1) estates for
which purchase agreements were lodged in cases of sale direct from
landlords to tenants; (2) estates for the purchase of which the Land
Commission entered into agreements under sects. 6 and 8 of the act;
(3) estates in which the offers of the Land Commission to purchase
under sect. 7 were accepted by the land judge; and (4) estates for the
purchase of which, under sections 72 and 79, originating requests were
transmitted by the Congested Districts Board to the Land Commission:--

+-------------------+--------+---------+----------------------------------------+
| | | | Purchase Money. |
| | No. of | No. of +------------+------------+--------------+
| Classification. |Estates.| Purchas-| | Amount of | Amount of |
| | | ers. | Price. | Advances | Proposed |
| | | | |applied for.|Cash Payments.|
+-------------------+--------+---------+------------+------------+--------------+
| Direct Sales | 3446 |86,898 |L32,811,564 |L32,692,066 | L119,498 |
| Sections 6 and 8 | 54 | 3,567^1 | 1,231,014 | 1,226,832 | 4,182 |
| Section 7 | 29 | 1,174^1 | 383,388 | 381,722 | 1,666 |
| Sections 72 and 79| 67 | 5,606^1 | 975,211 | 975,211 | .. |
+-------------------+--------+---------+------------+------------+--------------+
| Total | 3596 |97,245 |L35,401,177 |L35,275,831 | L125,346 |
+-------------------+--------+---------+------------+------------+--------------+

+-------------------+--------+---------+----------------------------------------+
| | | | Purchase Money. |
| | No. of | No. of +------------+------------+--------------+
| Classification. |Estates.| Purchas-| | Amount of | Amount of |
| | | ers. | Price. | Advances |Cash Payments.|
| | | | | made. | |
+-------------------+--------+---------+------------+------------+--------------+
| Direct Sales | 925 | 16,732 | L8,317,063 | L8,226,736 | L90,327 |
| Sections 6 and 8 | 40 | 3,047 | 1,048,459 | 1,047,007 | 1,452 |
| Section 7 | 29 | 1,174 | 383,388 | 381,722 | 1,666 |
| Sections 72 and 79| 12 | 763 | 199,581 | 199,581 | .. |
+-------------------+--------+---------+------------+------------+--------------+
| Total | 1006 | 21,716 | L9,948,491 | L9,855,046 | L93,445 |
+-------------------+--------+---------+------------+------------+--------------+
^1 Estimated number of purchasers on resale.

It will be seen from these two tables that though the amount of
advances applied for during the period dealt with amounted to over
L35,000,000 the actual advances made were less than L10,000,000. It
will be seen further that the act operated almost entirely by means of
direct sales by landlords to tenants. Of the total amount advanced up
to March 31, 1906, almost one-half was in respect of estates in the
province of Leinster, the balance being divided pretty equally between
estates in the other three provinces.

_Fisheries._--The deep-sea and coast fisheries of Ireland form a valuable national asset, which still admits of much development and improvement despite the fact that a considerable number of acts of parliament have been passed to promote and foster the fishing industry. In 1882 the Commissioners of Public Works were given further powers to lend money to fishermen on the recommendation of the inspectors of fisheries; and under an act of 1883 the Land Commission was authorized to pay from time to time such sums, not exceeding in all L250,000, as the Commissioners of Public Works might require, for the creation of a Sea Fishery Fund, such fund to be expended--a sum of about L240,000 has been expended--on the construction and improvement of piers and harbours. Specific acts have also been passed for the establishment and development of oyster, pollan and mussel fisheries. Under the Land Purchase Act 1891, a portion of the Sea Fisheries Fund was reserved for administration by the inspectors of fisheries in non-congested districts. Under this head over L36,000 had been advanced on loan up to December 31, 1905, the greater portion of which had been repaid. In 1900 the powers and duties of the inspectors of fisheries were vested in the Department of Agriculture and Technical Instruction. Under the Marine Works Act 1902, which was intended to benefit and develop industries where the people were suffering from congestion, about L34,000 was expended upon the construction and improvement of fishery harbours in such districts.

For administrative purposes Ireland is divided into 31 deep-sea and
coast fisheries and during 1905, 6190 vessels were engaged in these
districts, giving employment to a total of 24,288 hands. Excluding
salmon, nearly one million hundredweights of fish were taken, and
including shell-fish the total money received by the fishermen
exceeded L414,000. In the same year 13,436 hands were engaged in the
25 salmon fishing districts into which the country is divided. In
addition to the organized industry which exists in these salmon
districts, there is a good deal of ordinary rod and line fishing in
the higher reaches of the larger rivers and good trout fishing is
obtainable in many districts.

_Mining._--The mineral produce of Ireland is very limited, and its mines and quarries in 1905 gave employment to only about 6000 persons. Coal-fields are found in all the provinces, but in 1905 the total output was less than 100,000 tons and its value at the mines was given as L43,000. Iron ore is worked in Co. Antrim, over 113,000 tons having been produced in 1905. Alum clay or bauxite, from which aluminium is manufactured, is found in the same county. Clays of various kinds, mainly fire and brick clay, are obtained in several places and there are quarries of marble (notably in Connemara), slate, granite, limestone and sandstone, the output of which is considerable. Silver is obtained in small quantities from lead ore in Co. Donegal, and hopes have been entertained of the re-discovery of gold in Co. Wicklow, where regular workings were established about 1796 but were destroyed during the Rebellion.

_Woollen Manufacture._--At an early period the woollen manufactures of Ireland had won a high reputation and were exported in considerable quantities to foreign countries. Bonifazio Uberti (d. c. 1367) refers in a posthumous poem called _Dita mundi_ to the "noble serge" which Ireland sent to Italy, and fine mantles of Irish frieze are mentioned in a list of goods exported from England to Pope Urban VI. In later times, the establishment of a colony from the German Palatinate at Carrick-on-Suir in the reign of James I. served to stimulate the manufacture, but in the succeeding reign the lord-deputy Strafford adopted the policy of fostering the linen trade at the expense of the woollen in order to prevent the latter from competing with English products. An act of the reign of Charles II. prohibited the export of raw wool to foreign countries from Ireland as well as England, while at the same time Ireland was practically excluded by heavy duties from the English markets, and as the Navigation Act of 1663 did not apply to her the colonial market was also closed against Irish exports. The foreign market, however, was still open, and after the prohibition of the export of Irish cattle to England the Irish farmers turned their attention to the breeding of sheep, with such good effect that the woollen manufacture increased with great rapidity. Moreover the improved quality of the wool showed itself in the improvement of the finished article, to the great alarm of the English manufacturer. So much trade jealousy was aroused that both Houses of Parliament petitioned William III. to interfere. In accordance with his wishes the Irish parliament in 1698 placed heavy additional duties on all woollen clothing (except friezes) exported from Ireland, and in 1699 the English Parliament passed an act prohibiting the export from Ireland of all woollen goods to any country except England, to any port of England except six, and from any town in Ireland except six. The cumulative effect of these acts was practically to annihilate the woollen manufacture in Ireland and to reduce whole districts and towns, in which thousands of persons were directly or indirectly supported by the industry, to the last verge of poverty. According to Newenham's tables the annual average of new drapery exported from Ireland for the three years ending March 1702 was only 20 pieces, while the export of woollen yarn, worsted yarn and wool, which to England was free, amounted to 349,410 stones. In his essay on the Trade of Ireland, published in 1729, Arthur Dobbs estimated the medium exports of wool, worsted and woollen yarn at 227,049 stones, and he valued the export of manufactured woollen goods at only L2353. On the other hand, the imports steadily rose. Between 1779 and 1782 the various acts which had hampered the Irish woollen trade were either repealed or modified, but after a brief period of deceptive prosperity followed by failure and distress, the expansion of the trade was limited to the partial supply of the home market. According to evidence laid before the House of Commons in 1822 one-third of the woollen cloth used in Ireland was imported from England. A return presented to Parliament in 1837 stated that the number of woollen or worsted factories in Ireland was 46, employing 1321 hands. In 1879 the number of factories was 76 and the number of hands 2022. Since then the industry has shown some tendency to increase, though the number of persons employed is still comparatively very small, some 3500 hands.

_Linen Manufacture._--Flax was cultivated at a very early period in Ireland and was both spun into thread and manufactured into cloth. In the time of Henry VIII. the manufacture constituted one of the principal branches of Irish trade, but it did not prove a very serious rival to the woollen industry until the policy of England was directed to the discouragement of the latter. Strafford, lord-deputy in the reign of Charles I., did much to foster the linen industry. He invested a large sum of his own money in it, imported great quantities of flax seed from Holland and induced skilled workmen from France and the Netherlands to settle in Ireland. A similar policy was pursued with even more energy by his successor in office, the duke of Ormonde, at whose instigation an Irish act was passed in 1665 to encourage the growth of flax and the manufacture of linen. He also established factories and brought over families from Brabant and France to work in them. The English parliament in their desire to encourage the linen industry at the expense of the woollen, followed Ormonde's lead by passing an act inviting foreign workmen to settle in Ireland, and admitting all articles made of flax or hemp into England free of duty. In 1710, in accordance with an arrangement made between the two kingdoms, a board of trustees was appointed to whom a considerable sum was granted annually for the promotion of the linen manufacture; but the jealousy of English merchants interposed to check the industry whenever it threatened to assume proportions which might interfere with their own trade, and by an act of George II. a tax was imposed on Irish sail-cloth imported into England, which for the time practically ruined the hempen manufacture. Between 1700 and 1777 the board of trustees expended nearly L850,000 on the promotion of the linen trade, and in addition parliamentary bounties were paid on a considerable scale. In 1727 Arthur Dobbs estimated the value of the whole manufacture at L1,000,000. In 1830 the Linen Board ceased to exist, the trade having been for some time in a very depressed condition owing to the importation of machine-made yarns from Scotland and England. A year or two later, however, machinery was introduced on a large scale on the river Bann. The experiment proved highly successful, and from this period may be dated the rise of the linen trade of Ulster, the only great industrial manufacture of which Ireland can boast. Belfast is the centre and market of the trade, but mills and factories are to be found dotted all over the eastern counties of Ulster.

In 1850 the number of spindles was 396,338 and of power looms 58; in
1905 the corresponding figures were 826,528 and 34,498. In 1850 the
number of persons employed in flax mills and factories was 21,121; in
1901 the number in flax, hemp and jute textile factories was 64,802.

_Cotton Manufacture._--This was introduced into Ireland in 1777 and under the protection of import duties and bounties increased so rapidly that in 1800 it gave employment to several thousand persons, chiefly in the neighbourhood of Belfast. The trade continued to grow for several years despite the removal of the duties; and the value of cotton goods exported from Ireland to Great Britain rose from L708 in 1814 to L347,606 in 1823. In 1822 the number of hands employed in the industry was stated to be over 17,000. The introduction of machinery, however, which led to the rise of the great cotton industry of Lancashire, had very prejudicial effects, and by 1839 the number of persons employed had fallen to 4622. The trade has dwindled ever since and is now quite insignificant.

_Silk Manufacture._--About the end of the 17th century French Huguenots settled in Dublin and started the manufacture of Irish poplin, a mixture of silk and wool. In 1823 between 3000 and 4000 persons were employed. But with the abolition of the protective duties in 1826 a decline set in; and though Irish poplin is still celebrated, the industry now gives employment to a mere handful of people in Dublin.

_Distilling and Brewing._--Whisky has been extensively distilled in Ireland for several centuries. An excise duty was first imposed in 1661, the rate charged being 4d. a gallon. The imposition of a duty gave rise to a large amount of illicit distillation, a practice which still prevails to some extent, though efficient police methods have largely reduced it. During recent years the amount of whisky produced has shown a tendency to decrease. In 1900 the number of gallons charged with duty was 9,589,571, in 1903 8,215,355, and in 1906 7,337,928. There are breweries in most of the larger Irish towns, and Dublin is celebrated for the porter produced by the firm of Arthur Guinness & Son, the largest establishment of the kind in the world. The number of barrels of beer--the inclusive term used by the Inland Revenue Department--charged with duty in 1906 was 3,275,309, showing an increase of over 200,000 as compared with 1900.

The following table shows the net annual amount of excise duties
received in Ireland in a series of years:--

+--------------+-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------+
| Articles. | 1900. | 1902. | 1904. | 1906. |
+--------------+-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------+
| Beer | L983,841 |L1,200,711 |L1,262,186 |L1,227,528 |
| Licences | 209,577 | 213,092 | 213,964 | 214,247 |
| Spirits | 4,952,061 | 4,292,286 | 4,311,763 | 3,952,509 |
| Other sources| 502 | 436 | 508 | 798 |
+--------------+-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------+
| Total |L6,145,981 |L5,706,525 |L5,788,421 |L5,395,082 |
+--------------+-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------+

_Other Industries._--Shipbuilding is practically confined to Belfast, where the firm of Harland and Wolff, the builders of the great "White Star" liners, have one of the largest yards in the world, giving employment to several thousand hands. There are extensive engineering works in the same city which supply the machinery and other requirements of the linen industry. Paper is manufactured on a considerable scale in various places, and Balbriggan is celebrated for its hosiery.

_Commerce and Shipping._--From allusions in ancient writers it would appear that in early times Ireland had a considerable commercial intercourse with various parts of Europe. When the merchants of Dublin fled from their city at the time of the Anglo-Norman invasion it was given by Henry II. to merchants from Bristol, to whom free trade with other portions of the kingdom was granted as well as other advantages. In the Staple Act of Edward III., Dublin, Waterford, Cork and Drogheda are mentioned as among the towns where staple goods could be purchased by foreign merchants. During the 15th century the trade of these and other towns increased rapidly. With the 17th century began the restrictions on Irish trade. In 1637 duties were imposed on the chief commodities to foreign nations not in league with England. Ireland was left out of the Navigation Act of 1663 and in the same year was prohibited from exporting cattle to England in any month previous to July. Sir William Petty estimated the value of Irish exports in 1672 at L500,000 per annum, and owing principally to the prosperity of the woollen industry these had risen in value in 1698 to L996,000, the imports in the same year amounting to L576,000. A rapid fall in exports followed upon the prohibition of the export of woollen manufactures to foreign countries, but in about 20 years' time a recovery took place, due in part to the increase of the linen trade. Statistics of exports and imports were compiled for various years by writers like Newenham, Arthur Young and Cesar Moreau, but these are vitiated by being given in Irish currency which was altered from time to time, and by the fact that the method of rating at the custom-house also varied. Taking the figures, however, for what they are worth, it appears that between 1701 and 1710 the average annual exports from Ireland to all parts of the world were valued at L553,000 (to Great Britain, L242,000) and the average annual imports at L513,000 (from Great Britain, L242,000). Between 1751 and 1760 the annual values had risen for exports to L2,002,000 (to Great Britain, L1,068,000) and for imports to L1,594,000 (from Great Britain, L734,000). Between 1794 and 1803 the figures had further risen to L4,310,000 (to Great Britain, L3,667,000) and L4,572,000 (from Great Britain L3,404,000). It is clear, therefore, that during the 18th century the increase of commerce was considerable.

In 1825 the shipping duties on the cross-Channel trade were abolished and since that date no official figures are available as to a large part of Irish trade with Great Britain. The export of cattle and other animals, however, is the most important part of this trade and details of this appear in the following table:--

+------+---------+---------+---------+-----------+
| Year.| Cattle. | Sheep. | Swine. | Total. |
+------+---------+---------+---------+-----------+
| 1891 | 630,802 | 893,175 | 505,584 | 2,029,561 |
| 1900 | 745,519 | 862,263 | 715,202 | 2,322,984 |
| 1905 | 749,131 | 700,626 | 363,973 | 1,813,730 |
+------+---------+---------+---------+-----------+

The value of the animals exported in 1905 was estimated (at certain
standard rates) at about L14,000,000.

Since 1870 the Board of Trade has ceased to give returns of the
foreign and colonial trade for each of the separate kingdoms of
England, Scotland and Ireland. Returns are given, however, for the
principal ports of each kingdom. Between 1886 and 1905 these imports
at the Irish ports rose from L6,802,000 in value to L12,394,000 and
the exports from L825,000 to L1,887,000.

The following table shows the value of the total imports and exports
of merchandise in the foreign and colonial trade at the ports of
Dublin, Belfast and Limerick in each of the years 1901-1905:--

+-----------+----------+----------+----------+----------+----------+
| Ports. | 1901. | 1902. | 1903. | 1904. | 1905. |
+-----------+----------+----------+----------+----------+----------+
| Dublin-- | L | L | L | L | L |
| Imports |2,666,000 |2,856,000 |3,138,000 |2,771,000 |2,664,000 |
| Exports | 54,000 | 63,000 | 122,000 | 79,000 | 78,000 |
| Belfast-- | | | | | |
| Imports |6,626,000 |6,999,000 |7,773,000 |7,033,000 |6,671,000 |
| Exports |1,442,000 |1,344,000 |1,122,000 |1,332,000 |1,780,000 |
| Cork-- | | | | | |
| Imports |1,062,000 |1,114,000 |1,193,000 |1,156,000 |1,010,000 |
| Exports | 15,000 | 17,000 | 6,000 | 8,000 | 5,000 |
| Limerick--| | | | | |
| Imports | 826,000 | 913,000 | 855,000 | 935,000 | 854,000 |
| Exports | 2,000 | 400 | 3,000 | 600 | 3,000 |
+-----------+----------+----------+----------+----------+----------+

The Department of Agriculture published in 1906 a report on the
imports and exports at Irish ports for the year 1904. In this report,
the compiling of which presented great difficulties in the absence of
official returns, are included (1) the direct trade between Ireland
and all countries outside of Great Britain, (2) the indirect trade of
Ireland with those same countries via Great Britain, and (3) the local
trade between Ireland and Great Britain. The value of imports in 1904
is put at L55,148,206, and of exports at L46,606,432. But it is
pointed out in the report that while the returns as regards farm
produce, food stuffs, and raw materials may be considered
approximately complete, the information as to manufactured
goods--especially of the more valuable grades--is rough and
inadequate. It was estimated that the aggregate value of the actual
import and export trade in 1904 probably exceeded a total of
L105,000,000. The following table gives some details:--

+-----------------------------------------+-----------+------------+
| | Imports. | Exports. |
+-----------------------------------------+-----------+------------+
| I. Farm Produce, Food and Drink Stuffs--| | |
| (a) Live-stock, meat, bacon, fish and | | |
| dairy produce |L3,028,170 |L23,445,122 |
| (b) Crops, fruit, meal, flour, &c. |11,859,201 | 1,721,753 |
| (c) Spirits, porter, ale, &c. | 919,161 | 4,222,194 |
| (d) Tea, coffee, tobacco, spices, &c. | 4,230,478 | 1,121,267 |
| II. Raw Materials-- | | |
| (a) Coal | 2,663,523 | .. |
| (b) Wood | 1,880,095 | 235,479 |
| (c) Mineral | 1,012,822 | 282,081 |
| (d) Animal and vegetable products | 4,529,002 | 3,067,398 |
| III. Goods, partly manufactured or of | | |
| simple manufacture | 7,996,143 | 2,576,993 |
| IV. Manufactured goods. |17,059,611 | 9,934,145 |
+-----------------------------------------+-----------+------------+

From the figures given in the report it would appear that there was in
1904 an excess of imports amounting to over L8,500,000. But owing to
the imperfect state of existing information, it is impossible to say
with any certainty what is the real state of the balance of visible
trade between Ireland and other countries.

Shipping returns also throw some light upon the commercial condition
of Ireland. Old figures are not of much value, but it may be stated
that Arthur Dobbs gives the number of ships engaged in the Irish trade
in 1721 as 3334 with a tonnage of 158,414. According to the statistics
of Cesar Moreau the number of ships belonging to Irish ports in 1788
was 1016 with a tonnage of over 60,000, and in 1826 they had
increased, according to the trade and navigation returns, to 1391 with
a tonnage of over 90,000. In 1905 the vessels registered at Irish
ports numbered 934 with a tonnage of over 259,000. In the same year
the vessels entering and clearing in the colonial and foreign trade
numbered 1199 with a tonnage of over 1,086,000, and the vessels
entering and clearing in the trade between Great Britain and Ireland
numbered 41,983 with a tonnage of over 9,776,000.

_Government, &c._--The executive government of Ireland is vested in a lord-lieutenant, assisted by a privy council and by a chief secretary, who is always a member of the House of Commons and generally of the cabinet. There are a large number of administrative departments and boards, some, like the Board of Trade, discharging the same duties as the similar department in England; others, like the Congested Districts Board, dealing with matters of purely Irish concern.

_Parliamentary Representation._--The Redistribution of Seats Act 1885 entirely altered the parliamentary representation of Ireland. Twenty-two small boroughs were disenfranchised. The towns of Galway, Limerick and Waterford lost one member each, while Dublin and Belfast were respectively divided into four divisions, each returning one member. As a result of these changes 85 members now represent the counties, 16 the boroughs, and 2 Dublin University--a total of 103. The total number of electors (exclusive of Dublin University) in 1906 was 686,661; 113,595 for the boroughs and 573,066 for the counties. Ireland is represented in the House of Lords by 28 temporal peers elected for life from among the Irish peers.

_Local Government._--Irish local government was entirely remodelled by the Local Government (Ireland) Act 1898, which conferred on Ireland the same system and measure of self-government enjoyed by Great Britain. The administrative and fiscal duties previously exercised by the grand jury in each county were transferred to a county council, new administrative counties being formed for the purposes of the act, in some cases by the alteration of existing boundaries. To the county councils were also assigned the power of assessing and levying the poor rate in rural districts, the management of lunatic asylums, and the administration of certain acts such as the Explosives Act, the Technical Education Act and the Diseases of Animals Act. Subordinate district councils, urban and rural, were also established as in England and Scotland to manage the various local areas within each county. The provisions made for the administration of the Poor Law by the act under consideration are very complicated, but roughly it may be said that it was handed over to these new subordinate local bodies. Six towns--Dublin, Belfast, Cork, Limerick, Londonderry and Waterford--were constituted county boroughs governed by separate county councils; and five boroughs--Kilkenny, Sligo, Clonmel, Drogheda and Wexford--retained their former corporations. The act provides facilities for the conversion into urban districts of (1) towns having town commissioners who are not sanitary authorities and (2) non-municipal towns with populations of over 1500 and entitled to petition for town commissioners.

_Justice._--The Supreme Court of Judicature is constituted as follows: the court of appeal, which consists of the lord chancellor, the lord chief justice, and the master of the rolls and the chief baron of the exchequer as _ex-officio_ members, and two lords justices of appeal; and the high court of justice which includes (1) the chancery division, composed of the lord chancellor, the master of the rolls and two justices, (2) the king's bench division composed of the lord chief justice, the chief baron of the exchequer and eight justices, and (3) the land commissions with two judicial commissioners. At the first vacancy the title and rank of chief baron of the exchequer will be abolished and the office reduced to a puisne judgeship. By the County Officers and Courts (Ireland) Act 1877, it was provided that the chairmen of quarter sessions should be called "county court judges and chairmen of quarter sessions" and that their number should be reduced to twenty-one, which was to include the recorders of Dublin, Belfast, Cork, Londonderry and Galway. At the same time the jurisdiction of the county courts was largely extended. There are 66 resident (stipendiary) magistrates, and four police magistrates in Dublin.

_Police._--The Royal Irish Constabulary were established in 1822 and consisted at first of 5000 men under an inspector-general for each of the four provinces. In 1836 the entire force was amalgamated under one inspector-general. The force, at present consists of about 10,000 men of all ranks, and costs over L1,300,000 a year. Dublin has a separate metropolitan police force.

_Crime._--The following table shows the number of persons committed for trial, convicted and acquitted in Ireland in 1886, 1891, 1900 and 1905:--

+------+----------+----------+----------+
| Year.|Committed.|Convicted.|Acquitted.|
+------+----------+----------+----------+
| 1886 | 3,028 | 1,619 | 1286 |
| 1891 | 2,112 | 1,255 | 669 |
| 1900 | 1,682 | 1,087 | 331 |
| 1905 | 2,060 | 1,367 | 417 |
+------+----------+----------+----------+

Of the 1367 convicted in 1905, 375 were charged with offences against
the person, 205 with offences against property with violence, 545 with
offences against property without violence, 52 with malicious injury
to property, 44 with forgery and offences against the currency, and
146 with other offences. In 1904, 81,775 cases of drunkenness were
brought before Irish magistrates as compared with 227,403 in England
and 43,580 in Scotland.

_Poor Law._--The following table gives the numbers in receipt of indoor and outdoor relief (exclusive of persons in institutions for the blind, deaf and dumb, and for idiots and imbeciles) in, the years 1902-1905, together with the total expenditure for relief of the poor:--

+------+-----------------------------+--------------+
| | Aggregate number relieved | |
| Year.| during the year. | Total Annual |
| +---------+---------+---------+ Expenditure. |
| | Indoor. | Outdoor.| Total. | |
+------+---------+---------+---------+--------------+
| 1902 | 363,483 | 105,501 | 468,984 | L1,026,691 |
| 1903 | 363,091 | 99,150 | 452,241 | 986,301 |
| 1904 | 390,047 | 98,607 | 488,654 | 1,033,168 |
| 1905 | 434,117 | 124,697 | 558,814 | 1,066,733 |
+------+---------+---------+---------+--------------+

The average daily number in receipt of relief of all kinds (except
outdoor relief) during the same years was as follows: 1902, 41,163;
1903, 43,600; 1904, 43,721; 1905, 43,911. The percentage of indoor
paupers to the estimated population in 1905 was 1.00.

_Congested Districts Board._--This body was constituted by the Purchase of Land Act 1891, and is composed of the chief secretary, a member of the Land Commission and five other members. A considerable sum of money was placed at its disposal for carrying out the objects for which it was created. It was provided that where more than 20% of the population of a county lived in electoral divisions of which the total rateable value, when divided by the number of the population, gave a sum of less than L1, 10s. for each individual, these divisions should, for the purposes of the act, form a separate county, called a congested districts county, and should be subject to the operations of the board. In order to improve the condition of affairs in congested districts, the board was empowered (1) to amalgamate small holdings either by directly aiding migration or emigration of occupiers, or by recommending the Land Commission to facilitate amalgamation, and (2) generally to aid and develop out of its resources agriculture, forestry, the breeding of live-stock, weaving, spinning, fishing and any other suitable industries. Further provisions regulating the operations of funds of the board were enacted in 1893, 1896, 1899 and 1903; and by its constituting act the Department of Agriculture was empowered to exercise, at the request of the board, any of its powers and duties in congested districts.

_Religion._--The great majority of the Irish people belong to the Roman Catholic Church. In 1891 the Roman Catholics numbered 3,547,307 or 75% of the total population, and in 1901 they numbered 3,308,661 or 74%. The adherents of the Church of Ireland come next in number (581,089 in 1901 or 13% of the population), then the Presbyterians (443,276 in 1901 or 10% of the population), the only other denomination with a considerable number of members being the Methodists (62,006 in 1901). As the result of emigration, which drains the Roman Catholic portion of the population more than any other, the Roman Catholics show a larger proportional decline in numbers than the Protestants; for example, between 1891 and 1901 the Roman Catholics decreased by over 6%, the Church of Ireland by a little over 3%, the Presbyterians by less than 1%, while the Methodists actually increased by some 11%. The only counties in which the Protestant religion predominates are Antrim, Down, Armagh and Londonderry.

The Roman Catholic Church is governed in Ireland by 4 archbishops,
whose sees are in Armagh, Dublin, Cashel and Tuam, and 23 bishops, all
nominated by the pope. The episcopal emoluments arise from the mensal
parishes, the incumbency of which is retained by the bishops, from
licences and from an annual contribution, varying in amount, paid by
the clergy of the diocese. The clergy are supported by fees and the
voluntary contributions of their flocks. At the census of 1901 there
were 1084 parishes, and the clergy numbered 3711. In addition to the
secular clergy there are several communities of regular priests
scattered over the country, ministering in their own churches but
without parochial jurisdiction. There are also numerous monasteries
and convents, a large number of which are devoted to educational
purposes. The great majority of the secular clergy are educated at
Maynooth College (see below).

The Protestants of Ireland belong mainly to the Church of Ireland
(episcopalian) and the Presbyterian Church. (For the former see
IRELAND, CHURCH OF).

The Presbyterian Church, whose adherents are found principally in
Ulster and are the descendants of Scotch settlers, was originally
formed in the middle of the 17th century, and in 1840 a reunion took
place of the two divisions into which the Church had formerly
separated. The governing body is the General Assembly, consisting of
ministers and laymen. In 1906 there were 569 congregations, arranged
under 36 presbyteries, with 647 ministers. The ministers are supported
by a sustentation fund formed of voluntary contributions, the rents of
seats and pews, and the proceeds of the commutation of the Regium
Donum made by the commissioners under the Irish Church Act 1869. Two
colleges are connected with the denomination, the General Assembly's
College, Belfast, and the Magee College, Londonderry. In 1881 the
faculty of the Belfast College and the theological professors of the
Magee College were incorporated and constituted as a faculty with the
power of granting degrees in divinity.

The Methodist Church in Ireland was formed in 1878 by the Union of
the Wesleyan with the Primitive Wesleyan Methodists. The number of
ministers is over 250.

_Education._--The following table shows that the proportion per cent
of the total population of five years old and upwards able to read and
write has been steadily rising since 1861:--

+-----------------------+-----------------------------+
| | Proportion per cent. |
| +-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+
| |1861.|1871.|1881.|1891.|1901.|
+-----------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+
| Read and write | 41 | 49 | 59 | 71 | 79 |
| Read only | 20 | 17 | 16 | 11 | 7 |
| Neither read nor write| 39 | 33 | 25 | 18 | 14 |
+-----------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+

Further details on the same subject, according to provinces and
religious denominations in 1901, are subjoined:--

+---------------------------+---------+--------+-------+----------+
| |Leinster.|Munster.|Ulster.|Connaught.|
+---------------------------+---------+--------+-------+----------+
| Roman Catholics-- | | | | |
| Read and write | 80 | 80 | 70 | 72 |
| Read only | 7 | 5 | 11 | 7 |
| Neither read nor write | 13 | 15 | 19 | 21 |
| Protestant Episcopalians--| | | | |
| Read and write | 95 | 95 | 81 | 93 |
| Read only | 1 | 2 | 9 | 3 |
| Neither read nor write | 4 | 3 | 10 | 4 |
| Presbyterians-- | | | | |
| Read and write | 97 | 96 | 88 | 95 |
| Read only | 1 | 2 | 7 | 3 |
| Neither read nor write | 2 | 2 | 5 | 2 |
| Methodists-- | | | | |
| Read and write | 97 | 97 | 90 | 96 |
| Read only | 1 | 1 | 5 | 2 |
| Neither read nor write | 2 | 2 | 5 | 2 |
| Others-- | | | | |
| Read and write | 91 | 91 | 90 | 94 |
| Read only | 2 | 2 | 6 | 1 |
| Neither read nor write | 7 | 7 | 4 | 5 |
| Total-- | | | | |
| Read and write | 83 | 81 | 79 | 72 |
| Read only | 6 | 5 | 9 | 7 |
| Neither read nor write | 11 | 14 | 12 | 21 |
+---------------------------+---------+--------+-------+----------+

_Language._--The number of persons who speak Irish only continues to
decrease. In 1881 they numbered 64,167; in 1891, 38,192; and in 1901,
20,953. If to those who spoke Irish only are added the persons who
could speak both Irish and English, the total number who could speak
Irish in 1901 was 641,142 or about 14% of the population. The purely
Irish-speaking population is to be found principally in the province
of Connaught, where in 1901 they numbered over 12,000. The efforts of
the Gaelic League, founded to encourage the study of Gaelic literature
and the Irish language, produced results seen in the census returns
for 1901, which showed that the pupils learning Irish had very largely
increased as compared with 1891.

Universities and colleges.

The university of Dublin (q.v.), which is for practical purposes identical with Trinity College, Dublin, was incorporated in 1591. The government is in the hands of a board consisting of the provost and the senior fellows, assisted by a council in the election of professors and in the regulation of studies. The council is composed of the provost (and, in his absence, the vice-provost) and elected members. There is also a senate, composed of the chancellor or vice-chancellor and all doctors and masters who have kept their names on the books of Trinity College. Religious tests were abolished in 1873, and the university is now open to all; but, as a matter of fact, the vast majority of the students, even since the abolition of tests, have always belonged to the Church of Ireland, and the divinity school is purely Protestant.

In pursuance of the University Education (Ireland) Act 1879, the Queen's University in Ireland was superseded in 1882 by the Royal University of Ireland, it being provided that the graduates and students of the former should have similar rank in the new university. The government of the Royal University was vested in a senate consisting of a chancellor and senators, with power to grant all such degrees as could be conferred by any university in the United Kingdom, except in theology. Female students had exactly the same rights as male students. The university was simply an examining body, no residence in any college nor attendance at lectures being obligatory. All appointments to the senate and to fellowships were made on the principle that one half of those appointed should be Roman Catholics and the other half Protestants; and in such subjects as history and philosophy there were two courses of study prescribed, one for Roman Catholics and the other for Protestants. In 1905 the number who matriculated was 947, of whom 218 were females, and the number of students who passed the academic examinations was 2190. The university buildings are in Dublin and the fellows were mostly professors in the various colleges whose students were undergraduates.

The three Queen's Colleges, at Belfast, Cork and Galway, were founded in 1849 and until 1882 formed the Queen's University. Their curriculum comprised all the usual courses of instruction, except theology. They were open to all denominations, but, as might be expected, the Belfast college (dissolved under the Irish Universities Act 1908; see below) was almost entirely Protestant. Its situation in a great industrial centre also made it the most important and flourishing of the three, its students numbering over 400. It possessed an excellent medical school, which was largely increased owing to private benefactions.