“ Industries.—Tipperary ranks among the best agricultural districts of Ireland. The subsoil in the lower grounds is limestone, which is overlaid by a rich calcareous loam, capable of yielding the finest crops. The centre of the county is occupied by the Golden Vale, the most fertile district in Ireland, which stretches from Cashel to the town of Limerick. On the higher districts the soil is light and thin, partaking much of the character of the clay slate and sands on which it rests. ”

“ From the rich level country the Rock of Cashel rises boldly. Tipperary has only one considerable river, the Suir, which has its source in the Devil's Bit Mountains, and flows southward and eastward by Templemore, Thurles, Caher, and Clonmel. The Nore, which also rises in the Devil's Bit Mountains, soon passes into Queen's County, and the Shannon forms part of the western border. The Mitchelstown stalactite caverns, discovered accidentally in 1833, attract a large number of visitors. They are in the extreme south-west of the county ”

“ Detached portions of the Bog of Allen encroach on the north-east of the county. The proportion of tillage to pasture is roughly as 1 to 21⁄2, and the area under the standard crops of oats and potatoes decreases. The area under barley, however, is well maintained, as distillation causes a steady demand for this grain. Turnips are also an important and steady crop. The numbers of cattle, sheep, pigs, goats and poultry also increase generally; and butter-making occupies considerable attention. A few persons are employed in mining, but the occupation of the inhabitants is chiefly agricultural. ”