Page:Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition, v. 9.djvu/100

 90 FERMANAGH FERMANAGH, an inland county in the province of Ulster, Ireland, extending from 54 7 to 54 40 1ST. lat., and from 7 1 to 8 5 W. long., is bounded on the N.W. by Donegal, on the N.E. by Tyrone, on the E. by Mona- ghan, and on the S.W. by Cavan and Leitrim. Its greatest length N.W. and S.E. is 45 miles; its greatest breadth N.E. and S.W. is 29 miles. The area extends to 457,369 statute acres, or 714J- square miles, of which 106,530 acres are under tillage, 243,251 in pasture, 5909 in plantations, 55,248 in waste, bog, mountain, &c., and 46,431 under water. The county is divided into eight baronies : viz., Clanawley, Claukelly, Coole, Knockninny, Lurg, Magheraboy, Magherastephana, and Tirkennedy; and these are subdivided into 23 parishes, and 2183 towulands. The chief town in Fermanagh is Enniskillen, popula tion (1871) 5836. The only other towns of any importance are Lisnaskea (857), Irvinestown, formerly Lowtherstown (787), Maguire s Bridge (685), Tempo (460), Newtown- butler (418), Brookborough (390), Rosslea (371), Ederney (332), Belleek (327), Derrygonnelly (302), Kesh (296), in all of which fairs are held and post-offices established. The Irish North- Western division of the Great Northern Railway passes through the most populous portion of the county, one branch connecting Enniskillen with Clones, another connecting Enniskillen with Londonderry, via Omagh, and a third connecting Enniskillen with Bundoran. Physical Features. Fermanagh is situated mostly in the basin of the Erne, which divides the county into two nearly equal sections. It presents a hilly, and in many parts a somewhat sterile appearance, though in the main, and especially in the neighbourhood of Lough Erne, it is picturesque and attractive. The climate though moist is healthy, and the people generally are tall and robust. The chief mountains are Cuilcagh (partly in Leitrim and Cavan) 2188 feet high, Belmore 1312 feet, Glenkeel 1223, North Shean 1135, Tappahan 1110, Carnmore 1034. Tossett or Toppid and Turaw mountains command extensive prospects, and form striking features in the scenery of the county. But the most distinguishing feature of Fermanagh consists in the great extent of its surface being occupied by the Upper and Lower Loughs Erne, which stretch for 45 miles from S.E. to N.W. These lakes are formed by the expan sion of the river Erne, which enters the county from Cavan at Wattle Bridge, and spreads out its waters in the Upper Lough, broken by innumerable islets. Contracting itself again, the river flows in a meandering course to the town of Enniskillen, where it expands itself once more in the Lower Lough, which extends in a N.W. direction for about 20 miles, till the river again issues from it a mile above Belleek. Of the two loughs the lower and larger one is most famed for its picturesque scenery. Both are dotted with many islands, the number of which has been stated as high as 199. The largest islands are Boa (or &quot; Cow &quot;), Ennismacsaint, Devenish, Eagle, Innisnakill Gully, Cor, Ferney, Herring, Innismore, and Bellisle. It is navigable throughout, during the winter season, a small steamer plying between Enniskillen and Belleek. The other lakes next in size are Loughs Melvin and Macnean on the border of Leitrim, and draining into the Drowes river. The chief river is the Erne, which, rising in Cavan, passes through Belturbet, Lough Erne, and Belleek on its way to the Atlantic, into which it descends at Bally- shannon. At Belleek it forms a considerable waterfall, well known to sportsmen for its good salmon-fishing. There are several mineral springs in tho county, some of them chalybeate, others sulphureous. At Belcoo, near Ennis killen, there is a famous well called Daragh Phadric, held in repute by the peasantry for its cure of paralytic and other diseases ; and four miles N.W. of the same town, at a place called &quot; the Daughton,&quot; are natural caves of con- E .. P. ^ 4 Other sis Oats. a Flax. G s^ s Green Total. X o H pS

^ -3 g Crops. 1874 54,506 24,437 16,811 2526 3330 629 183 27 1U36 104,345 1877 53,691 _25,512 17,285 4183 3844 333 252 92 2131 107,323 siderable size. The geological formation of the county may be described as consisting mainly of secondary lime stone and yellow sandstone. In the former organic remains are plentiful, some fine specimens of encrinites being easily obtainable. A brown marble excavated at Florence Court is beautifully veined, and susceptible of a splendid polish. Grey marble has been found in the parish of Killasher. Iron and coal have also been traced in various places, but only in small quantities. The best iron ore mine is afc Belleek. Industries Agriculture, &c. With the exception of the pottery works at Belleek, Fermanagh cannot boast of any distinguishing manufactures. It is chiefly an agricultural county. Of the arable land about the one-half is devoted to pasturage. Oats and potatoes are the crops mast extensively cultivated. The next in order are flax, turnips, wheat, barley, rye, beans, and pease. The following tablo shows the number of acres under the different crops during the years 1874 and 1877: The live stock (horses, cows, sheep, &o.) in tho county was valued in the census of 1871 at 839,899, but this estimate was on the basis of the values fixed by the census commissioners of 1841, and is therefore much below the actual present worth, which is probably 1,500,000. From statistics prepared specially for Thorn s Almanac for 1877, it is estimated at 1,354,379. The number of live stock in Fermanagh given in the registrar-general s annual re turns during the years 1874 and 1877 is as follows : e S&quot;P ~&quot;& r is f s II o|| &quot; 1 o

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a *- S3 1874 6781 419C 25,556 14,965 15,813 43,548 99,882 13,718 17,304 3818 313,228 1877 7373 4189 23,918 14,708 14,243 43,891 96,760 11,696 26,640 4634 353,452 The county in 1873 was divided among 707 proprietors, of whom 130 owned less than one acre each, or 19 per cent, -the proportion for all Ulster being 48 per cent. The average extent of each holding was 586 acres, that of Ulster being 239 acres. The total annual rental of the landamounted to 234,634, or lls. 5^d. per acre that of Ulster 15s. 8|-d. More than half the whole county was in possession of ten proprietors, namely, Marquis of Ely, Ely Lodge, 34,879 acres; Earl of Erne, Crom Castle, 31,389; Earl of Enniskillen, Florence Court, 29,635; Sir V. H. Brooke, Bart., Col ebrook Park, 27,994; Mervyn Archdall, Castle Archdall, 27,410; John Madden, Roselea Manor, 14,074; J. G. Irvine, Killadeas, 11,388; J. G. Porter s representatives, 11,015; Church Temporalities Commis sioners, 10,357; and Hugh de Fellenberg Montgomery, 7996. Education, &c. According to the census of 1871, tho number of persons in the county over five years of age who could read and write was 41,226 ; 18,349 could read but could not write, and 22,758 could neither read nor write. There were 10 persons who spoke Irish only, and 349 who spoke both Irish and English. There were two superior schools, having a total of 94 pupils in attendance, all Protestants. On the 31st December 1876 there were on the rolls of the national schools 16,640 pupils, of whom 9720 were Roman Catholics, 6321 Protestant Episcopalians, 278 Presbyterians, and 321 of other persuasions. At the