FREE STATE CENSUS

Evening Star, Issue 20140, 3 April 1929, Page 6

FREE STATE CENSUS

BIG DECLINE IN PROTESTANT POPULATION DUBLIN, March 20. Volume Ilf. of the Free State Census of Population, 1926, is issued tor publication and entitled ‘ Religions and Birthplaces,’ and contains some highly interesting information. The total population of the Free State fell from 3,140,000 in 1911 to 2,972,000 in 1926. The numbers born in Northern Ireland remained _ steady. Those horn outside Ireland increased from 62,000 in 1861 to 100,000 in 1911, but fell to 67,000 in 1926. Some 75 per cent, of this hitter decrease is due to tho departure of the British Forces ami their dependents. There has been a decrease in tho membership of every religion. Tho Roman Catholic population has fallen by 2.2 per cent., while the Protestants have lost nearly 33 per cent, of their members. The Jews have declined bv 3.1 per cent. Naturally tho departure of the British forces has increased tho Protestant decline, hut when allowance lias been made tor that fact the drop in Protestant numbers remains abnormally high. Of the total population of the Free Stale 92 per cent, are Roman Catholics. Only in one town, the little seaside resort of Greystoncs, County Wicklow, is there a Protestant majority of 57.4 per cent. The other extreme is found in the village of Newcastle, County Limerick, where the Protestant percentage is only 0.5. Of tho small farmers, the vast majority are Roman Catholics, but in the live counties of Carlow, Longford, Wicklow, Cavan, and Monaghan more than 50 per cent, of tho holders of 200 acres and over are Protestants. In nine of the remaining counties Protestants own more than one-third of the holdings of like size.

In the professions 61 per cent, of the barristers, 78 per cent, of the doctors, 83 per cent, of the journalists, and 54 per cent, of the chartered accountants arc Roman Catholics.