you can't really separate the malnutrition and the disease...Irish, despite the no food but potato and no drink but water were remarkably healthy and strong, tis said. Starving people can not attend to the most basic sanitation for example. A disease that someone would shrug off in good health would kill a famished person.

And the whole census thing must be looked at. Lots and lots were undocumented in their own country. They came out of the woodwork under some circumstances. Do you think the outlaws in the Galtee ?? mountains were censized?