It is doubtful that 22-year-old James Rourke, a tailor by profession, ever knew that it was the tools of his trade that would, ultimately, lead to his death in 1897.

The young man became involved in a dispute with another man, Martin Bryan, on a public road at 11.15pm one evening.

According to official Royal Irish Constabulary reports of the incident, the murder weapon used was a pair of scissors.

This "penetrated the heart, and death was almost instantaneous", the written report notes.

"There appears to have been some dispute between deceased and Bryan as to which was the better tailor, and this is the only motive that has been assigned," the report notes.

Rourke's case is one amongst many others charted in as yet unpublished research by Prof Ian O'Donnell, director of the Institute of Criminology at UCD, which compares for the first time homicides recorded during the 1890s and 1990s.

The extensive research tells a lot about changes in society's attitudes to such deaths in the space of a century – and the grim reality of life and death in 19th-century Ireland.

Homicide rates throughout the 1890s were significantly higher than they were at the end of the last century – due in no small part to the prevalence of "recreational" or "impulsive" violence – while the elderly and infirm were far more likely to be the target, the research reveals.

By the turn of the last century, however, victims were generally younger, and deaths as a result of shootings and stabbings much more prevalent, than in the previous 100 years.

They were also highly concentrated around major urban areas, whereas violent deaths a century ago were far more rural and scattered affairs.

Significantly, the research finds that the sentences handed out for such crimes also toughened considerably in the intervening years.

However, one constant remains the same: the majority of those likely to kill – and to a lesser extent, their victims – are male.

The research builds on previous work undertaken by O'Donnell on the changing nature of lethal violence in Ireland.

This showed that during the Famine years in particular – and continuing throughout the 19th century – infanticide or "baby killing" was a significant problem which had largely disappeared by the 1990s.

By trawling through police reports of homicides throughout the 1890s – and their modern-day equivalent, the annual reports of An Garda Síochána – O'Donnell notes that by the 1990s, there was a level of planning and premeditation related to lethal violence which was not seen previously.

"Late 19th-century homicides in Ireland had several distinguishing characteristics. They took place in every county, were largely a male preserve, and regularly involved elderly victims," O'Donnell states.

"Heavy drinking was a factor in many lethal squabbles and workplace disputes sometimes resulted in impulsive, but savage, attacks. Weapon use was uncommon and the range of penalties imposed by the courts was wide."

His analysis of some 890 violent deaths recorded throughout the island of Ireland during the 1890s paints a picture of a society in which violence was not unusual.

"Reading through the 500 constabulary narratives that formed the basis of this study, one was repeatedly struck by the degree to which intoxicated men lashed out at their similarly situated peers with tragic consequences. Wanting to be the 'better man' was, on occasion, something to die for," O'Donnell notes.

"Domestic quarrels were intensified by alcohol, as were brawls on the street and harsh words in the workplace... social drinking followed by a difference of opinion and a boot to the head could have tragic consequences.

"Fights involved fists and feet and sometimes sticks and stones... If a weapon was used, and it was a tool of the trade that was understandably to hand during an altercation (such as a scissors or pitchfork), this was seen as qualitatively different to an assailant having recourse to a knife or gun," he states.

"The latter indicated a degree of planning and a deliberate attempt to stack the odds in the perpetrator's favour; thus moving the encounter out of the realms of a 'fair fight'."

By the closing decade of the 20th century, homicides had become concentrated in and around the major cities, according to O'Donnell.

"Victims were younger, shootings and stabbings were much more prevalent and sentences were significantly more severe," he says.

Similarly, the overall number of lethal brawls on the island of Ireland declined from 302 to just 55 in the 1990s, which O'Donnell says is not simply attributable to improved medical care for injuries sustained, although this is a significant factor.

By the end of the last century, he also notes a "clear shift" towards longer sentences for lethal altercations.

For example, in the 1890s, just over half of those convicted were sentenced to less than one year in custody. But by the 1990s, two-thirds of sentences were for more than five years.

In the 1890s, the chances of acquittal or a short sentence were also "much better for beating a man to death than for stabbing him," O'Donnell says.

"The response of the criminal justice system to those accused of murder or manslaughter has become significantly less merciful. While the death penalty has disappeared from the statute books, brief terms of imprisonment are no longer an option chosen by the courts," O'Donnell writes. "For those convicted of destroying a human life, the punishment is measured in terms of years of custody."

O'Donnell argues, as have others, that there are a number of factors at play in the general decline in homicides between the 1890s and the 1990s. These include a "civilising process" which led to a decline in spontaneous outbursts of violence, while the notion of a "fair fight" lost much of its cultural significance.

He also acknowledges that his research does not take into account the rise in "gangland" murders since the turn of the century.

But he suggests that recent homicide levels – there were 84 murder or manslaughter incidents recorded last year – are now in fact close to levels recorded over a century ago.

Thanks to O'Donnell's new research, we may have a fresh insight into many of the reasons for the high homicide rates of the 1890s. Crucially, however, understanding the reasons behind the current rise may take far longer.