372 



GREAT BRITAIN AND IRELAND. 



the imports of sheep have increased 150 per 

 cent, while the price has risen 15 per cent ; the 

 imports of fresh meat 220 per cent, with a rise 

 of 13 per cent in price ; of butter, 75 per cent, 

 with a rise of 16 per cent; of cheese, 185 per 

 cent, with a rise of 8 per cent. The only vari- 

 ety of animal food which has declined in price 

 is salted provisions, which fell off 7 per cent, 

 while the imports increased 250 per cent. The 

 imports of barley have increased 90 per cent, 

 with a rise of 10 per cent in price ; oats, 122 

 per cent, with a rise in price of 14 per cent ; 

 while wheat has fallen 4 per cent in price, with 

 75 per cent increase in the imports. English 

 wool too has fallen 10 per cent in price, owing 

 to increased importations and a change of 

 fashion. The quantity of potatoes imported 

 has increased 750 per cent, and the price has 

 risen 10 per cent. Wheat and wool seem to 

 be the only leading products which have been 

 depressed in price by foreign competition. 

 "Wheat has fallen but 4 per cent, although the 

 imports of 1880 amounted to 3,500,000 tons, or 

 two thirds of the total supply of the population. 

 Barley and oats are grown in perfection in the 

 British Islands; and these cereals have risen 

 considerably in price, and would have risen 

 still more but for the imports of Indian corn, 

 which competes with them as an article of 

 food for men and animals, and serves as a sub- 

 stitute material also in the brewing of beer. 

 The imports of corn have increased 228 per 

 cent, reaching now 2,000,000 tons a year. In 

 the last ten years 828,000 acres of grain-land 

 and 228,000 acres of land devoted to green 

 crops have been withdrawn from tillage and 

 turned into permanent pasture, involving the 

 stoppage of 8,000,000 a year in the annual 

 returns. The pasturage has been increased by 

 more than double this area, or an extent of 

 reclaimed wild land exceeding that taken from 

 the arable acreage ; still the live-stock has de- 

 creased from the highest point, in 1874, by 

 346,000 cattle and 6,856,000 sheep, represent- 

 ing a loss of over 18,000,000. The "fluke " 

 disease in sheep and the embarrassments of 

 farmers, obliged to sell a portion of their stock 

 to meet their engagements, owing to the suc- 

 cession of cold and moist seasons, account for 

 this diminution in the census of animals. 



The number of criminals received in the 

 prisons in the year ending in July, 1881, was 

 149,074, against 160,729 in 1880. The average 

 number of inmates in the prisons was 18,027, 

 against 19,835 during the previous year. The 

 total population of the prisons on March 31st 

 was 15,352 males and 3,627 females. Of the 

 males, 32 were under twelve years of age, 338 

 between twelve and sixteen, 3,181 between 

 sixteen and twenty-one, making 3,551 under 

 twenty-one, while there were 5,854 between 

 twenty-one and thirty. The proportion of 

 criminals between sixteen and thirty was there- 

 fore 58-9 per cent, while in the total population 

 of the country the proportion of males between 

 those ages is, only 41*4 per cent. The number 



of criminals between thirty and forty was about 

 equal to those above forty, and only half as 

 many as those between twenty-one and thirty. 

 The statistics of the graver crimes show a re- 

 markable decrease in recent times. Compari- 

 son with the statistics of years previous to 1864 

 is not possible, as the shortest term of penal 

 servitude was changed by statute in that year 

 from three to five years. Since 1864 the 

 average number of sentences to penal servi- 

 tude for periods of five years and the nuinln-r 

 for the year 1880 were as follows: 1865-'69, 

 2,148; 1870-'74, 1,810; 1875-'79, 1,795; 1880, 

 1,654. Relatively to the number of the popu- 

 lation the diminution since 1865 has been 27 

 per cent. The commitments for trial averaged 

 19,453 from 1861 to 1865, 18,900 from 1866 to 

 1870, 15,174 from 1871 to 1875, and about the 

 same number from 1876 to 1880. Crimes of 

 violence are decreasing, notwithstanding a gen- 

 eral impression to the contrary ; crimes of 

 shooting and stabbing with intent to maim 

 were 123 in 1880, the average for the preced- 

 ing five years having been 154. Robbery with 

 violence decreased also ; larceny decreased con- 

 siderably ; and assaults with intent to commit 

 bodily harm from the average of 902 to 740. 

 In juvenile crime since the institution of re- 

 formatories and industrial schools a remarka- 

 ble decrease has taken place. The number of 

 juvenile commitments was 14,000 in 1854; in 

 1879 they had fallen to 6,800, and in 1880 they 

 were only 5,500. There are 64 reformatory 

 schools and 136 industrial schools, besides 11 

 training-ships and the recently introduced in- 

 dustrial day-schools and truant-schools. The 

 boys who leave the reform-schools are kept 

 track of, and statements of their subsequent 

 career made every three years. A small per- 

 centage relapse into criminal practices. Of 

 the total number, 81 per cent were report- 

 ed as doing well in 1879, and in 1880 92 per 

 cent. 



Since the institution of the present public- 

 school system of England, by the act of 1870, 

 the progress o/ popular education, though slow, 

 lias been continuous. The number of schools 

 inspected in 1870 was 8,281 ; in 1880 they had 

 increased to 17,743 ; and the accommodation 

 in the schools, which was then not sufficient 

 for 2,000,000 children, has been so enlarged 

 that 4,250,000 can now. be instructed. The 

 average attendance increased from 1,152,389 

 in 1870, to 2,750,916 in 1880, about 150 per 

 cent. The number of scholars registered in 

 1881 was 3,895,000, an increase in twelve 

 months of 185,000; tne average attendance 

 was 2,751,000, an increase of 156,000. The 

 number of children examined was 1,904,000, 

 81 per cent of those examined in the three 

 rudimentary studies reaching the standard of 

 proficiency. An increasing proportion apply 

 themselves to the special studies in which 

 those are instructed who have acquired the 

 rudimentary branches. In these the Govern- 

 ment grant is made dependent on the general 



