COUNTY, is situated midway between the Irish Sea and the Atlantic Ocean, from the shores of which its eastern and western extremities are each distant about 14 miles. Its boundaries towards the north are the mountains of Ballynagereah and Slieve Russel, and the waters of Lough Erne; the mountains of Leitrim mark its western extremity, while Bruce hill rises abruptly on the south. Its greatest length, from cast to west, is about 51 English miles; and its greatest breadth, from north to south, 28 miles. Its area contains 758 square miles, or about 499,957 English acres. It is divided into seven baronies; Castleraghan, Clonmahon, Clonkee, Upper Loughtee, Lower Loughtee, Tullygarvy, Tullyhanco, and Tullyhan; and contains 30 parishes, of which 26, with 24 churches, are in the diocese of Kilmore, three in the diocese of Ardagh, and one in that of Meath. The principal places in it are Cavan, Kilmore, the see of a Bishop, Killyshandra, Belturbet, and Virginia; but they are all very small.

Cavan is almost entirely covered with hills; and in the north, the surface, soil, and climate, are equally bleak and uncomfortable. In some places, however, the appearance of the country is more favourable, especially in the vicinity of Farnham. Bogs and lakes are very numerous; so that, according to Mr Young, they, together with the hills, occupy at least half the county. The greatest part of the waters, which issue from the lakes of West Meath, flow through Cavan, till they discharge themselves into Lough Erne, and in their passage, in some places, they expand into small lakes, and in others, retain the appearance and character of rivers. The shores of many of these lakes are very beautiful. The form and outline of Lough Ramor, near Virginia, are good, but the banks are flat; towards the upper end of it, there is some little wood. It contains pike and trout. Near Bruce hill is the great lake of Gawnagh, out of which the Erne flows. Between Baillyborough and King's Court, on the summit of a mountain, is a famous pool, called Lough-an-Leighghas, or the healing lake. To its waters many healing virtues are ascribed; but its natural peculiarities are more undoubted. It is never observed above a stated level; it has no visible outlet, nor any apparent source from which it derives its waters; and it never has been found to vary in temperature. Its extent is not above one square rood; on the surface the water is clear, but deeper it is muddy; and its medicinal qualities are said to reside in this mud. Perhaps the finest lakes in the county, with respect to picturesque beauties, are those near Farnham, which communicate with each other by a river.

The principal river is the Erne; the source of it has been already noticed; it flows through the barony of Tullyhanco, where it forms the extensive Lough Oughter, containing many islands, among which is Cloghter, where Bishop Bede was confined by the rebels, in 1641. From this lough the Erne flows with an increased stream to Belturbet, and discharges itself into Lough Erne.

There is not much variety of soil in this county; soil, in the north it consists principally of a cold, wet clay. Near Farnham, it is a good loam, lying on slaty gravel, limestone, or blue whinstone; from Cavan to Belturbet, it is dry, rocky, and rough; from Kellyshandra to Knockwinn, dry gravel; and from Cavan to Virginia, heathy. In many parts, especially about Kilmore, there is plenty of limestone, but it is little used for agricultural purposes; near Killyshandra, there are beds of marl, which is laid on the heathy moors with success. There is said to be coal in Slieve Russel, but if there is, it is not worked, as the county is supplied with it from Newry. A great deal of turf is also burnt for fuel. According to the Natural History of Ireland (Dublin, 1726), iron ore was formerly dug "in this county, in a place called Doubally, in a dry mountain." At present, it is not known. There are several mineral waters in Cavan, particularly at Swadlingbar, Derryylester, Derrindaff, and Owen Brien, but they have not been accurately analysed.

The largest estates in this county are two of 30,000 Agriculture, and 26,000 acres: besides these there are none of very great extent. Nearly the whole of the land, or about three fifths, according to Mr Young, is under tillage, but the agriculture in every respect is very bad. The size of the farms is from 50 to 100 acres, but these are generally divided into farms of from two to twenty acres, which are relet to the manufacturers or "cottars," who pay a high rent for them, by means of their other employments. Their principal object is to raise a sufficient quantity of oats and potatoes to feed their families, and of flax to give employment to the women and children. Most of the land is dug with the spade and trenched as in Armagh; where the plough is used, they put three or four horses to it; and when Mr Young visited the county, he found that all over it, the horses were yoked to the plough and harrows by the tail; that practice, however, is now disused. Almost the only grain sown is oats, which are reckoned to be in the proportion of seventy to one, to all other grain; there is scarcely any wheat. In 1809, there were 4300 acres of flax, from which 6500 bushels of seed were saved. Though the very tops of the hills are tilled, yet it does not appear that this county produces more grain than is necessary for its own consumption; nor has the bounty on the inland carriage of corn to Dublin increased the very trifling quantity brought to that market. From the coldness and mois- ture of the climate, all the corn of Cavan is obliged to be kiln-dried.

The stock-farms generally consist of about 100 or 150 acres; the farmers buy young cattle and sell them again without fattening; a few, however, fat bullocks or sheep, but the latter are very poor. There are very few dairy farms, though from these, as they are in the richest parts of the county, a good deal of butter is sent. Many pigs are kept by the cottars; and near all the cabins are to be seen goats tethered to the tops of the banks, or "ditches," as they are here called, which divide the fields.

Cavan was formerly celebrated for its extensive woods, and trees of an immense size; but, at present, it is in general bare of timber, except near Kilmore, Farnham, and a few other places. Mr Wakefield remarks, that the ash is confined to parts of this county, and to Tyrone and Fermanagh.

The linen manufacture is the staple; chiefly a thin linen seven-eighths wide. The weaving of it, however, is not so general as the spinning of the flax, which is the principal employment of the women and children in all parts of the county. Killyshandra and Cootill are the principal markets for linen; in the latter, great quantities of brown linen are sold. There are several bleaching greens in the county. It is probable, however, that the cotton manufacture will root out that of linen, as, from the greater demand for cotton goods, it has already induced the manufacturers of Cavan to turn much of their attention to it. The food of the inhabitants is very plain and frugal, being little else besides oatmeal, potatoes, and milk; the two first are the only provisions for sale in any of the markets. The labourers are paid partly in money and partly in goods, and the weavers till enough for their own food.

The county cess or tax is not collected per acre, but by a division called a "carver." A town land is divided into so many carvers, each of which, though of a totally different extent, pays the same sum.

According to Dr Beaufort, in the year 1792, there were 16,314 houses; 81,570 inhabitants; 18.4 Irish acres to a house; 3471 inhabitants to a square Irish mile; 12,928 houses of one hearth; 571 of two; 122 of three; 65 of four; 34 of five; 36 of six; 15 of seven; 13 of eight; 7 of nine; 7 of ten; 19 more than ten, and under forty-four; none returned above forty-four: 559 new, and 2763 belonging to paupers. The total 18,139. A census, taken in 1797, states the number of houses at 18,056, which, reckoning as Dr Beaufort does, five persons to a house, would give a population of 90,280. According to Mr Wakefield, this county contains at least 6000 freeholders, one half of whom, he says, neglect to enrol their names. But there were registered up to February 1815, 134 fifty pound freeholders, 177 twenty pound, and 5720 forty shillings; in all, 6031. Of these, according to the same author, 1000 are under the Earl of Farnham, and his relation Colonel Barry. The proportion of Catholics to Protestants is as five to one; but there is only one Catholic who possesses landed property to a considerable extent. The Protestants are mostly dissenters.

See Coote's Statistical Account of Cavan.—Dr Beaufort's Memoir of a Map of Ireland.—Wakefield's Account of Ireland.—Young's Tour in Ireland.