THE ROYAL DUBLIN SOCIETY 321 



an address was presented to His Excellency by Lord 

 Ardilaun, president of the Society. 



At the exhibitions held in recent years, the 

 number of entries is usually about 1000, and the 

 amount offered in prizes is generally about ^300. 

 The exhibition no longer enjoys the monopoly of 

 former years; its success has induced others to promote 

 similar exhibitions, and in some cases exhibitors, finding 

 that the horse show offers a unique opportunity for 

 the sale of work, now take stalls each year on their 

 own account. As a means of promoting some im- 

 portant branches of applied art, and as a stimulus to 

 home industries, the exhibition continues to fulfil a 

 most useful function. 



Improvement in Tillage in Small Holdings: 

 Swinford District 



During the autumn of the year 1890, it became 

 evident that the failure of the potato crop would lead 

 to widespread distress throughout the poorer districts 

 in the west of Ireland. At the first meeting of the 

 Council in the session which commenced in November 

 1890, Mr. Thomas Pirn, junior, called attention to 

 the fact that the Royal Dublin Society was now 

 practically the Agricultural Society of Ireland, and 

 suggested the appointment of a committee of the 

 Council to act in conjunction with the committee of 

 agriculture, to consider what might be done " to 

 improve the nature and quality of the potato plant in 

 the west of Ireland in places where the root has 

 repeatedly failed." The proposal was agreed to, and 

 the sum of ^400 was voted to defray the expenses of 

 the first year's operations. A committee was appointed, 

 and its labours led to important results. It was soon 



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