220 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



■ 

 I would state that, wben a boy, my father kept Shorthorn 



grades and natives, and that upon coming into possession of 



the farm, I looked about for something better adapted to our 



mountain farm, and the production of butter. I soon made 



up my mind that, all things considered, the Devons were the 



breed for our locality ; that is, for a mountain farm, where 



the raisinof of stock for butter-cows and working-oxen was 



extensively followed, as well as the production of young cattle 



for grass-fed beef. Considering the three points of milk, 



icork and beef, the Devons seemed to take the first place for 



the average New England t^irm. 



Allow me to refer to a brief history of the Devon race in 



this country and in Europe. 



HISTORY. 



That the Devons are an ancient race of cattle, there can be 

 no doubt. They bear all the characteristic marks of resem- 

 blance to the ancient races of the south of Eno;land and 

 Wales ; even the color, red, is traced in the Devon, Sussex, 

 and Hereford. There is no race in England that can claim 

 such undisputed antiquity. 



The distinction between a "breed" and "race," Goodale 

 defines as follows : " By breeds are understood such varieties 

 as were originally produced by a cross or mixture, and subse- 

 quently established by selecting for breeding purposes only 

 the best specimens, and rejecting all others. In process of 

 time deviations become less frequent, and greater uniformity 

 is secured, and this is in proportion to the time which elapses 

 and the skill employed in selecting. Races are varieties 

 moulded to their peculiar type by natural causes, Avith no 

 interference of man, and no intermixture of other varieties; 

 that have continued substantially the same, for a period 

 beyond which the memory and knowledge of man does not 

 reach." Such are the North Devon cattle. 



There seems to have been three distinct races of these 

 ancient cattle : the Long Horns, the Middle Horns, and 

 Hornless or Polled Cattle. The Middle Horns represented 

 the cattle of the region of Devonshire. Those races of cattle 

 were bred by the ancient Celtic inhabitants, and constituted 

 their chief subsistence. Youatt says : "The native inhabitants 



