the patches of
glacial drift form the only agricultural land. The fine-grained
sandstone of Mount Charles near Donegal is a well-known building
stone, and the granites of the north-west have attracted much
attention.

_Industries._--The modes of agriculture present little that is peculiar
to the county, and the spade still supplies the place of the plough
where the rocky nature of the surface prevents the application of the
latter implement. The soil of the greater portion of the county, i.e.
the granite, quartz and mica slate districts, is thin and cold, while
that on the carboniferous limestone is warm and friable. Owing to the
boggy nature of the soil, agriculture has not made much progress,
although in certain districts (Gweedore, for instance) much land has
been brought under cultivation through the enterprise of the
proprietors. Roughly speaking, however, about 45% of the land is waste,
35% pasture and 15% tillage. Wheat and barley are quite an
inconsiderable crop, and in this as well as in other respects Donegal is
much behind the rest of Ulster in the extent of its crops. It bears,
however, a more favourable comparison as regards its live stock, as
cattle, sheep and poultry are extensively kept.

In Donegal, as in other counties of Ulster, the linen manufacture
affords employment to a number of inhabitants, especially at Raphoe,
while the manufacture of excellent homespun, woollen stockings and
worked muslin is carried on pretty extensively. The trade in these
manufactures and in the domestic produce of the county finds its
principal outlets through the port of Londonderry and the inland town of
Strabane, Co. Tyrone. The deep-sea fisheries are important, and are
centred at Killybegs, Gweedore and Rathmullen. The salmon fishery is
also prosecuted to a considerable extent, the principal seats of the
trade being at Ballyshannon and Letterkenny.

The railway system includes the County Donegal railway from Londonderry
south-west to Donegal town and Killybegs, with branches to Glenties, a
village near the west coast, and to Ballyshannon; and the Londonderry
and Lough Swilly, serving Letterkenny, and continuing to Burtonport with
a branch north to Buncrana, a watering-place on Lough Swilly, and
Cardonagh in the Innishowen peninsula. From Letterkenny the line
continues to Dunfanaghy on the north coast, thence to Gweedore and
Burtonport.

_Population and Administration._--The population (185,635 in 1891;
17