MR. O'BRIENasked 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 659 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. TREVELYANThe 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 Reading "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.