King's County,

King's County, an inland county of Ireland, in Leinster, is bounded on the W. by the Shannon, which separates it from Roscommon and Galway. It is 20 miles long from north to south by 58 wide. Area, 493,985 statute acres, or 772 sq. m. Of this 122,154 acres were under crops in 1889; and of this again nearly one-half was grass, whilst 24½ per cent. was corn and green crops (oats, barley, potatoes, and turnips). Twenty-three per cent. of the total area was covered with bogs, including a large part of the Bog of Allen. The population has steadily decreased—(1841) 146,857; (1861) 90,013; (1881) 72,852; (1891) 65,563, of whom 58,264 were Roman Catholics. The surface is flat, except for the Slieve Bloom Mountains (1733 feet) on the south boundary. The soil, a light loam of medium depth, resting on limestone gravel, is of average fertility. The Grand Canal traverses the northern portion of the county, and joins the Shannon. The river Barrow separates it from Queen's County on the south-east. King's County, constituted a shire in 1557, and named in honour of King Philip, returns two members. In the north-west is Clonmacois Abbey, founded in 548, one of the most interesting ecclesiastical ruins in Ireland. At Birr Castle Lord Rosse erected his great telescope. The chief towns are Tullamore (5098), Parsonstown or Birr (4955), and Portarlington (2357).