ABSTRACT
The Irish seem no different than others struck by sudden prosperity, and opportunity tripped Ireland's population roller-coaster again, around 1960. The emerald isle gained popularity as a vacation spot when the economies of other European countries revived from World War II. Earlier than Ireland, other parts of Europe including France, Great Britain, and Scandinavia also experienced population growth. The point of vanishingly small net returns from agricultural labor was reached in most parts of Europe somewhere between 1750 and 1850. Babies throughout Great Britain and Europe were placed in foster care. Boarding arrangements often amounted to abandonment and murder. Orphanages had sprung up by this time as public-spirited innovations to reduce infant mortality resulting from outright abandonment. Throughout Europe, the average age of marriage rose. Fear of poverty, and the joint religious and secular demand for individual economic responsibility, revived tradition.
