12 SEVENTY-SEVENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF THE [1908-1909.
Necessitous School Districts.—As
part of the settlement which resulted in the new scale of grants, Your Lordships agreed that within the scheduled Congested Districts grants exceeding the normal two-thirds of the estimated cost might be made in cases where, in the opinion of the Commissioners of National Education, the poverty of the district was such that a local contribution of one-third of the estimated cost could not be raised; and it was further agreed that similar grants might be made in necessitous districts outside those scheduled as congested, provided that this Board, the Local Government Board, and the Commissioners of National Education, were able in conference to fix a criterion of necessity.
A conference took place accordingly, but its members were unable to find any criterion which they could recommend, and they advised instead that the decision should be left in each case to the Com¬ missioners of National Education subject to a money limit on the total amount to be spent on these excess grants in each year.
This proposal Your Lordships approved.
The position of the Manager is changed, and his responsibility necessarily diminished when he has not to raise a substantial part of the cost of the work, and Your Lordships have accordingly decided that this Board are -fco undertake the work themselves when the grant exceeds the normal two-thirds of the estimate.
Ancient and National Monuments.
In last year's report three important structures were illustrated and described in some detail, viz.:
Grey Abbey, County Down, the Ruins on the Rock of Cashel, and the Grianan of Aileach, repairs at each of which had been carried out during the year covered by the report.
This practice of giving a full description of selected monuments has we believe met with general approval; it conveys to the public an idea of the nature of the structures operated on, and, in addition, the descriptions and illustrations have been very acceptable to Archaaologists as well as to ordinary visitors to the buildings.
It was, however, a drawback that the buildings described had no historical or local unity of interest, and in fact no connection with one another, except the accidental one, that they all received some repairs within the financial year.
This year it was decided to pursue a different plan and to give some account of the buildings in 'the Board's charge within a selected area.
The area chosen was the County Cork, and in this report we describe six out of the eight Ancient and National Monuments in that County which are, or have been, in the Board's charge.
The County of Cork, which is the largest in Ireland, has remains of a great number of antiquities both of the Christian and Pre-christian periods.
There were originally seven round towers of which Cloyne and Kinneigh are still standing.
Of religious foundations there were nine Augustinian Houses; 7£L0f Benedictine Order; two Carmelites; six, or probably seven, Cistercian Abbeys; three Dominican Houses; and eight Franciscan.
There were six pre-ceptories, and seven early churches known as "Abbeys."
Of the minor churches of a parochial character there was probably one in each of the 349 parishes or divisions of parishes in the county.
The remains of 14 ancient crosses are known.
About 50 Ogham inscribed stones have been recorded and 74 Cromlechs The list of castles numbers 314.
The earthworks and Forts have not been fully enumerated, but there appear to be upwards of 6,000.
The monuments in the Board's charge are as follows:—
(a.)
The ruins of Church of St.
Finbar on an island in the Parish of
Inchigeelagh or Eveleary.
(b.)
Ruins of St.
Kieran's Church and stone with inscribed cross, etc.",
in
the Parish of Clear Island.
(c.)
Sherkin Island " Abbey " in the Parish of Rath on Sherkin Island
near Baltimore.
(d.)
^^Ctoohes, Cashel, St.
Molaga's Bed, etc.,
in the Parish of (e.)
T^Ruin^of " Church and Abbey " in the Town and Parish of
