STATE OF IRELAND-IRISH EMIGRATION-
STATISTICS.
Mr. O'BRIEN asked the Chief Secretary to
the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, Whether he
has observed in the Emigration Statistics, just
furnished to the House, that the number of emigrants
who left Ireland in 1883 was 108,916, or 21 per
thousand of the population, being an increase of 19,000
on the number of emigrants in 1882, and of 30,000 as
compared with 1881, and that the total number of
emigrants who left Irish ports since 1832 is 2,913,000;
whether he has observed, from the Statistical Abstract
for the United Kingdom, that the cultivated area of
Ireland has decreased by 562,328 acres since 1875, while
the number of cattle in the country has decreased, within
the same period, by 125,153, and of sheep by 1,176,665;
whether, in view of the declaration in the Speech from the
Throne that "Ireland continues to exhibit signs of
substantial improvement," any explanation can be offered
of these figures; and, whether Her Majesty's Government
intend to propose any further plan for subsidizing
emigration from Ireland ?
Mr. TREVELYAN: The hon. Member takes his figures from
Papers which have been laid before this House, and I
have no reason to doubt the general accuracy of his
quotations. But there are matters of detail which must
be considered. With regard to the decrease in the "cultivated
area" in 1882, as compared with 1875, it is pointed out
in the Agricultural Statistics for 1877 that it is believed
that, owing to an alteration in the form of the Return,
mountain land, uncultivated but having some live stock,
which in 1876 and former years was in many instances
included under the heading "grass," was in 1877 and
subsequent years entered as "barren mountain." It is very
true that cattle and sheep decreased between 1875 and 1882;
but in both cases 1883 showed a considerable increase as
compared with 1882. In the case of cattle, the increase
may be partially due to the difficulties of exportation,
owing to cattle disease. I explained in debate the points
in which the Government considered the allusions in the
Queen's Speech to the state of Ireland to be justified. I
have no announcement to make about the intentions of the
Government with regard to the state of Ireland as regards
emigration.
