The Irish standard., 1886-09-18
A TRIP THROUGH IRELAND,
From Bantry Bay to Belfast, and iron
Dublin West to Galway
Luoidly Described.
IMPRESSIONS OF A TOURIST,
State Of Ireland The Crops The Rent
The Local Government-Th Riots
in Belfast Home Rule.

!
I in Belfast Rule.
! Mi. D. A. O'Sullivan, OF Toronto
Ont, returned a few days ago after
spending some time in ireland, and {
reporter Of the Toronto Globe waited
on him to get his impressions Of mat
| ters and things in that country.
'SDid you travel much through Ire
land?''
| II went through the island in every
! direction, from Bantry Bay to Belfast,
and from Dublin westward to Galway
and did considerable travelling in a
jaunting carr
"How did ireland appear to you?''
II confess that regarding Ireland as
an agricultural country I was disap-
pointed. Parts OF it are no doubt equal
to what can be seen in England or Bel
GUM, or towards the western Rhine
provinces. From Bandon north to the
center of Ireland, Athlone, there is a
beautiful section Of farming land,
though unfortunately it is not devoted
to crops, but used for grazing purposes,
and for less deserving uses-idle parks
and unused pleasure grounds. The
present season has been very wet and
very late, aud while we in Ontario had
finished harvesting they hadn't begun.
/ saw comparatively little wheat, and
everything seemed to be on small
scale from a farmers point of view.
You would not see many reaping ma
chimes, and from necessity you wouldn't
see many large fields. There is too
much fine scenery to expect fine farm
ing.'' ....M.
''Did you see anything of boycotting
or evictions?'
IT saw results Of eyictions-where a
landlord was uperintendlng the caring
Of {. crop--the houses were closed up
and no signs OF life-a dozen Of men or
SO were working in the fields, while the
landlord was moving about and giving
directions here anG there to the men.
was pointed out Che spot near Dantry
where q landlord was shot at and the
driver killed instead. I noticed a :.
REMARKABLE ABSENCE OF YOUNG MEN
linen from eighteen or so to thirty
years OF age--in country places. The
women are great feature in Ireland,
and there seems to be an immense num-
Ter Of old people and children, This
is healthy country said my driver
on the way to Blarney, look at all the
old people We have; its only now and
again that any one dies in Ireland;
Nevertheless, the population is decreas-
ing to an alarming extent
"What can you say generally Of the
present state of Ireland2"
1.-The present state Of Ireland is not
s. very cheerful subject to consider. Mr..
Lecky, you remember, speaks Of ma
tions making no progress, but simply
time. / don't know, but even
that is suspended just now in Ireland.
The unsettled state Of the government /
what it is to be, is a great factor in |
trade. Commercial men say
they are doing nothing. Then the sea-
son is late and wet, and the outlook
there is unfayorable. The Archbishop
Of Dublin put the case exactly the 9th
er day when he said that the question
in Ireland was not now a pulitical Or a |
religious one, but was simply CONNER
cial. The existence of the people-the
of thepeople--is now of the
first consideration. The Times gives
list of those unable to pay any rent 1t
is very large one Counties like Mayo
have such land and such holdings that !
rent is out of the question. If the rent
is to come in order after the subsistence
Of the tenant and the government tax,
then, in many thousand instances, it
can't possibly come at all. Taxes are a |
burden in Ireland that the citizens of
even Toronto are not accustomed to-"
'.What other difficulties are there in
the Irish problem, as you think?''
Between the land laws, the county |!
Z
government, and the want of sympathy ]
between the ruling parties and those
ruled, there are
THREE INsUPERABLE DIFFICULTIES
to prosperity in ireland. Anyone Of
these would be serious, but their COM
bination is ruin. No one can go through
ireland for a week, and without ever
hearing word Of misrule or bad gov-lE
ernment, can come to any other conclu-
sion than that the present state Of af-
fairs is something for which the govern
men is terribly to blame. There are
few industries in the south and west
40 tall chimneys. The land lords have
The none whatever there is; and the
5enants, those who have not money,
cannot build up factories and mills
with no capital. don't see that it, can
% otherwise until the land is given up