IRELAND'S LOST CITIZENS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLIV, Issue 13452, 31 May 1907, Page 4

IRELAND'S LOST CITIZENS.

i No more pathetic statistics are issued under the authority of the British Government than those given in the yearly return of emigrants from Ireland. That for 1906, published recently, is no exception to the rule, showing as it does an increase of 4668 native emigrants compared with 1905. The return shows the sexes, ages, occupations, and civil or conjugal conditions of the emigrants, the ports at which they embarked, and their intended destinations. It is seen that during 1906 as many a-r 35,918, or 8.2 per 1000 of the. estimated population of Ire-

[ land in the middle of the year, lift Irish ports for other countries. Of these 574 were not of Irish birth. Although, as stated, the | figures are higher than those of the previous year, a modicum of comfort may be found in the fact that they are below the average,of the preceding five years by 2090. Of the purely Irish emigrants the greatest number were from the province of Ulster {12,331). I ' Munster conies nest with 10,054, Connauglit and Leinster following with 7380 and 5079, 1 respectively. Reckoned on the basis of pro- ' | portion to the population Connauglit easily j leads with 12.2 per 1000. What kind ofi U people, it may be a«ked, are these emi--1! grants? The return shows that the ma- " jority (10.851) of the males, who numbered i 1 19,643, were of the "general service class." . During the last 56 years no fewer than! , 4,063,933 natives of Ireland have left their j , country. The number is equivalent to 75.9 l per cent, of the average population. The; . following table shows the fluctuations at various periods: —

. The United States of America, of course, is j . the chief destination of Irish emigrants. I Last year 27.079 went thither, while only 4147 chose to remain under the. British flag by seeking asylum in our colonies. Of these j ' three-fourths to be precisechose ! Canada as their new home. 295 going to { South Africa, and 3'-io to Australia. The! ' saddest reflection of all, perhaps, is that 1 caused by a study of the age statistics of the i emigrants. Last year Ireland lost as cit-i-' ' zena -29,835 persons in the prime of life,- ! between the ages of 25 and 45. Of the 27,000 who went to America 25,273 were , steerage passengers and 9530 had their pus- . sages paid for in America, presumably by 10- , latives who had emigrated in earlier years.

J No. of No. of ; No. or No. of Years. Emigrants. • Tears. Emigrants, h 1852 ... 190.322 ... 1382 ... 89.136. 1S62 ... 70,117 1892 ... 59,623 ' 1372 ... 78.102 ... 1302 43,190 OVT _ TT..!i _ .1 Ci 4 .i . • ' f « 2. • . . e _ • . *