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THE HISTORY
OF THE
GREAT IRISH FAMINE
OF 1847,
WITH NOTICES OF EARLIER IRISH FAMINES.
BY THE
REV. JOHN O'ROURKE, P.P., M.R.I.A.
THIRD EDITION.
Dublin:
JAMES DUFFY AND CO., LTD.,
15 WELLINGTON QUAY.
1902.
TO MY FELLOW COUNTRYMEN THIS NARRATIVE
OF ONE OF THE MOST TERRIBLE EPISODES
IN THE CHEQUERED HISTORY
OF OUR NATIVE LAND,
IS RESPECTFULLY AND AFFECTIONATELY
DEDICATED.
PREFACE.
The Author of this volume has, for a considerable time, been of opinion,
that the leading facts of the Great Irish Famine of 1847 ought to be put
together without unnecessary delay. Several reasons occurred to him why
such a work should be done: the magnitude of the Famine itself; the
peculiarity of its immediate cause; its influence on the destiny of the
Irish Race. That there should be no unnecessary delay in performing the
task was sufficiently proved, he thought, by the fact, that testimony of
the most valuable kind, namely, contemporary testimony, was silently but
rapidly passing away with the generation that had witnessed the Scourge.
Having made up his mind to undertake such a work, the Author's first
preparation for it was, to send query sheets to such persons as were
supposed to be in possession of information on the subject. And he has
here to express his gratitude and thanks to his numerous correspondents,
for the kindness and promptness with which his queries were answered.
He cannot recall even one case in which this was not done. But there is
a dark side to the picture too. In looking over the query sheets now, it
is sad to find how many of those whose signatures they bear have already
passed from amongst us.
Other materials of great importance lay scattered over the Public
Journals of the period; were buried and stowed away in Parliamentary
Blue Books, and Parliamentary debates;--were to be sought for in
pamphlets, in periodicals, and more especially in the Reports of the
various Societies and Associations, which were appointed for dispensing
the alms given with such free hand, to aid in saving the lives of the
famishing people. Those Records will be found quoted and referred to in
the course of the work.
Amongst them, it is but just to acknowledge, how much the Author owes to
the Report of the Census Commissioners for 1851; to the "Transactions"
of the Society of Friends; and to the _Irish Crisis_, by Sir Charles
E. Trevelyan, Bart.; which originally appeared as an article in the
_Edinburgh Review_ for January, 1848, but was reprinted in a small
volume of two hundred pages. Although far from agreeing with many of Sir
Charles's conclusions (he was Secretary to the Treasury during the
Famine), still the Author cheerfully acknowledges, that the statistical
information in the _Irish Crisis_ is very valuable to a student of
the history of the Famine period.
It was to be expected, that the alarm about the Potato Blight and the
Famine would be first raised through the public Press. This was done by
letters from various localities, and by Special Reporters and
Commissioners, who travelled through the country to examine the state of
the people, as well as that of the potato crop. There was a Commissioner
from the London _Times_ in Ireland at this period. His letters
written to that Journal were afterwards collected, and they made an
octavo volume of nearly eight hundred pages.
The English people, and many in Ireland, long adhered to the opinion,
that there was much exaggeration in the Irish Newspapers regarding both
the Blight and the Famine; but subsequent investigation showed, that
there was very little, if any, exaggeration; nay, that the real facts
were often understated. As to the Famine, several of the gentlemen sent
by the Charitable Societies to make Reports, wrote back, that there was
no exaggeration whatever, and, for a very sufficient reason, namely,
that, in their opinion, it was impossible to exaggerate the dreadful
condition in which they found the people.
Another mode of acquiring information adopted by the Author was, to
visit those parts of the country in which the Famine had raged with the
greatest severity. On such occasions he not only had the advantage of
examining the localities, but of conversing with persons whose knowledge
of that awful Calamity made them valuable and interesting guides.
As to the rest, it is left to the kindness of the Reader.
ST. MARY'S, MAYNOOTH,
_1st December, 1874._
CONTENTS.
CHAPTER I.
The Potato--Its introduction into Europe--Sir Walter Raleigh--The
Potato of Virginia--The Battata, or sweet Potato--Sir John
Hawkins--Sir Francis Drake--Raleigh's numerous exploring
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