The morning star and Catholic messenger., 1877-02-25
IAPORTA TON OF AMERICAN AfEA T INTO
ENGL4ND md IRELAND.
THE PROBABLE EFFECT OF THE MOVEMENT
ON IRELAND's WELFARE.
Dublin Nation, Feb. 81

! Several cargoes of prime fresh beef ant
| mutton have lately arrived at English port
from Canada and the United States snC
have been eagerly bought up at price
from cne penny to three pence a pouu,
| lower than those previously paid for home
grown meat. The consequence has been ,
tall in tie price Of the latter, followed by ;
| good deal of speculation as to the perman
enco OF this fall and it's probable effects or
the economic Interests OF Ireland. There
seems h gh probability that the imtorta
| tion Will increase. We hear of the Cunar6
| Company altering the construction of their
magnificent Gamers SO provide the cool
! chamb bers necessary for the safe transit ot
the meat and no doubt other companies
will be prompt enough to compete tor a
share in the trade. The Freeman'S Journal
| c,'Cu ates that fall of twenty or twenty =
five per cent. may be expected heucefcrth,
on The high prices which Irish graziers,
saiesmen, and butchers have been receiv-
ing dnring the last decade. This would
amount, sa!s our contemporary, to a loss of
three millions sterling per apnum to Ireland
"A loss which the Freeman apprehends
| will be disastrous to our agricultural COM
munity, and which would be certainly ser
ious enough 70 inspire misgivings into the
most determined prosperity -mongers, Off :
cial or amateur. We do not, however, for
our part, share in our contemporary ap
prehensions. The high prices of cattle
have brought but little im mprovement to the
bulk of the Irish population, and their re-
duction will be 90 grievance except to very
limited class. The principal effect of the
fall will be that land which has been for the
last ten or twenty years going out of tillage
into pasture will now revert to tilIage. Less
cattle will be exported, but we Goubt if less
cattle will be raised of what is raised more
will he con sumed at home, and the reduced
prices paid for them will be renumerative to
the small farmers by WHOM they will be
brought to market. The great fortunes
now amassed by capitalist graziers will be
less numerous; the enormous rents of the
rich grass lands Of Meati, Rosccmmon, and
ether midland counties will be reduced
There will he less money spent by abseptees
and sQuaudered at home on English and
foreign luxurles. But comfort will be more
equally d'tfused, and check will be put in
all probability to the decline of the labor
ing population. From one great danger
which has been forced of late years on the
attention OF the observant politicians in |
Ireland, we may hope we will be delivered. |
A cattle plague will not ne absolutely ruin |
GUS TO the country. The tendency of Irish |
landowners, ever since the great famine, |
has been 70 put all our eggs INTO one bas-
ket TO make every form of national indus |
try agricultural. and to reduce all our
agriculture to the rearing and fattening of |
STOCK. This was to repeat over again the |
made by an elder generation in the |
cultivation of the potato. When |
the potato crop failed, the whole economic
system of Ireland broke dowa, and millions
we're reduced to the brink of starvation.
Had the Russian cattle plague effected n
secure Judgement in Ireland ut any time
during the last fifteen years, the diaaster
WOuld have proved of eoual mapnitude.
The danger was manifest enough to thoae
who cared to see it, but the temptation to
'ealize high profits was too strong for the
,ounsels OF prudence. The cry was stIil more
md more beasts, and lees and lees labor Ire
and was steadily becoming a Grass farm for
h~ E1slan martB of industry. Every A.
-inu5 10 found or de1elnp any brincn OF
nHa"t"cturce in Ireland was asranclrti and
carvtd hy the fixtd iGoa that ti.,.Dn!y MO
'thls empt"yr vnt for c4r, IA i, LELAND waa
o invest 1t III tie production of hu}tocl,s.
F'nitttl n?t.'"T Of h,cas &pd h,rGs" was !
ord C4rli,I"'s >n;ioni-,.l Tor the .xrigpa
i"n "f ihe I?'sr rare from their native s,il.
nd -" accumulation of goat fortunes il,
me- t'rfnnate ana not over patlio.,c c1s,-- r
f irishmon.
UDw radicf'Iy hostile the .,bp.rm,l