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potato was based on cattle that were produced in vast
numbers. Beef, milk, butter, and buttermilk were the
staples of their diet. The potato was introduced in
the late 1500's and the new crop thrived in the damp
Irish climate. The importance of the potato grew in
the 1600's and 1700's. In the late 1700's population
began to explode, especially among the peasant class.
Population of the lower class became more and more
dependent on the potato. The Irish subsided on the
potato called the "lumper". The "lumper" was the
lowest member of the potato family. Some peasants
before the famine grew plots of oats and most fattened
a pig, but the pig and oats went to pay for the small
plots of land they rented to grow their potatoes on.
Ireland was heavily dependent on agriculture (Foster,
1988). After the famine and a departure of many Irish
there was a smaller population and this allowed the
remaining Irish more room and landholdings of families
could increase.
In March of 1847, prices rose almost too high to
purchase. The hardest hit were landless laborers who
rented small plots of land to feed themselves and
their families. When their own crops failed, they had
to buy food with money they did not have and prices
continued to rise. The poor did not readily accept
their fate, food riots broke out and secret societies
increased their activity. There was much crime and
disobedience to the laws. They were dealt with by
repression and violence if |