Ireland : Industrial and Agricultural. (A. Thom and Co., Dublin.)—This
is the " Handbook for the Irish Pavilion" at the Glasgow Exhibition now proceeding, a very handsome, well- got-up, and, we need hardly say, interesting volume. It appears under the editorship of Mr. W. P. Coyne, and is the outcome of a decision by the Department of Agriculture and Technical Instruction for Ireland to advertise, so to speak, the resources of Ireland at the Glasgow Exhibition. It contains papers on the topography and geology of Ireland, soil, climate, flora and fauna, railways, canals, banks, agricultural associations, and various agencies for technical and artistic instruction. We may specially mention an account of the " Irish horse-breeding industry," illus- trated with a number of highly interesting photographs. Con- spicuous among these are the representations of the Connemara ponies (these appear to have a considerable strain of the Arab in them). The particulars given about cattle and sheep are also worth note. And here may be mentioned a very significant set of figures. In 1851 the population per 1,000 acres was 315, with 143 cattle, 102 sheep, and 52 swine. In 1891 the population was 226, cattle 214, sheep 227, and swine 66. Is there any rational being, not blinded by prejudice or party passion, who would contend that 315 people with 297 profitable beasts were better off than 226 with 607 The lace industry and the fisheries are also described. There is a paper relating the proceedings of the "Congested Districts Board" which is well worth attention. We have "family budgets," all of them not a little strange,—all the expenditures are in excess of income. In (1) out of an expenditure of Lid 15s.
ls. 4d. goes for tea, and .23 for tobacco. Calculating tea at Is. 9d. and tobacco at 4s., we have the surprising results of about 20 ounces of tea and 4 ounces of tobacco weekly. Out of
£30 9s. ld. tea stands for £3 17s., and tobacco for £2 7s. 8d.; out
of £10 19s. tea is absent, and tobacco stands for RA es. ; in the ALLIANCE ASSURANCE COMPANY; "poorest possible circumstances" both are absent. (It must be Head Office : BARTHOLOMEW LANE, LONDON, E.c. remembered that income and expenditure are increased in each case by home produce consumed.) The estimates varied from £20 to £12 in (1), £10 to £5.10s. in (2), £17 to £12 in (3), and in 4 amount nt to £6. We cannot anal se or e itomise the
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narrative of the operations of the Board; but we may say that it is well worth attention.
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