CHAPTER I. 



FERN LAND. 



A MIDST all our English counties, Devonshire 

 stands unrivalled for the exquisite loveli- 

 ness of its scenery. Few of those who have 

 climbed its bold heights, crossed its rugged moor- 

 lands, and wandered through its shady woods and 

 its delightful green lanes, will be inclined to dis- 

 pute this assertion, however familiar they may be 

 with English landscapes. It is the marvellous 

 variety of its scenery which constitutes the peculiar 

 charm of this county the rugged boldness of its 

 many hills contrasting with the soft grace of its 

 valleys. Its majestic coast-lines tower grandly up 

 against the sky, both on its north and on its south 

 seaboard now frowning with barren but lofty 

 grandeur at the waves, now clothed from the highest 



