Consumption of Potatoes in Ireland. 



361 



the more Northern districts, the weather broke up before the 

 harvest was all in, and some corn was still out early in 

 October. 



With regard to the supply of labour at harvest, a number 

 of employers report that they had a difficulty in getting a 

 sufficient supply of men, but it is generally stated that the 

 increased use of the self-binders, which was noticeable on 

 small as well as large farms, and the continuous spell of fine 

 weather, enabled farmers to do with fewer hands. 



Consumption of Potatoes in Ireland. 



In a recent report to the Commissioners of National 

 Education, Ireland, Mr. Thomas Carroll, the Agricultural 

 Superintendent, states that the value of the potato as an 

 agricultural crop in Ireland varies considerably in different 

 localities. In some districts the growing of potatoes is 

 almost entirely ' neglected, whilst in others they form the 

 great proportion of the cultivated crops of the farms. 



As the staple food of the rural population, the potato does 

 not occupy the position wdiich it held some years ago. The 

 cheapness of foreign flour has done much to reduce the value 

 of the potato in the diet of the Irish peasantry. "A bit 

 o' cake-bread and a drop of tay," will be the reply to an 

 inquiry as to the present diet of the poorest peasantry in the 

 country. Even the wholesome Indian meal is ousted from 

 its position by the satisfying bread and tea diet. 



Whilst the potato has decreased in importance as a 

 general article of diet, it is still in extensive use over a large 

 area of the country. The crop is easily cultivated ; it is 

 the most suitable crop for land inaccessible to thorough 

 systems of cultivation by agricultural implements ; and for 

 pig-feeding there is no other root crop that can take its 

 position. 



