CHAPTER XI. 

 THE DEVON. 



The Devon breed of cattle has been refened to by several writers 

 as the oldest of all our breeds of domesticated cattle, inasmuch as 

 the ancient Egyptians possessed most valued herds of red cattle as 

 recorded in the " Al Koran" with regard to the orphan boy and the 

 red heifer, but probably more particularly on account of the uniform 

 size, and especially the color, which seems to be better defined and 

 more permanently fixed than the color of other breeds. The ques- 

 tion of size, although of some importance, does not appear on close 

 investigation to be quite so important, in connection with the ques- 

 tion of origin, as many writers suppose it to be. Take, for example, 

 the dog ; how marvellously wide are the variations in size that have 

 been obtained from that species of animal alone. Color, too, is sub- 

 ject to all sorts of variations. But it would appear that the Devon 

 breeders and fanciers have for all time held the color to be one of 

 the most important characteristics. As with the Hereford, so with 

 the Devon breed of cattle, many important writers seem to favour 

 the impression, long formed, that the " Salese" breed of cattle, which 

 have existed in France for centuries, are identical in color, size, and 

 shape of body and horn with the North Devon Further, there is no 

 evidence to disprove the theory put forth by French writers, " that 

 the early Celts carried their famous breed of cattle with them into 

 England." 



The Rev. Richard Polwhele, in his " History of Devonshire/' says : 

 "Whether the breed of cattle famous in the North of Devon are 

 indigenous or not it is not easy to determine. There are, however, 

 some circumstances in the description of them which lead us to think 

 that they are indigenous." The reverend writer has, however, unfor- 

 tunately, withheld from us " the circumstances in the description of 

 them" which caused him to arrive at the proof of the antiquity of their 

 English origin. 



Mr. James Sinclair, in his " History of the Devon Breed," says : 

 " On more than one occasion the breed has been on the eve of ex- 

 tinction through the ravages of disease. Foremost among the names 

 of rreeders vho took part in the restoration of the Devon we must, in 

 bare justice, place the name of Francis Quartly. 



" The Quartly family went into North Devon from Sorrersetshi- 

 about 1666. In the year 1705 James Quartly, whose name appears in 

 the baptismal register of the Parish Church of Exton in the year 

 1668, entered into the leasehold possession of the estate of Great 

 Champson, in Molland, which from that year has been occupied- by 

 his descendants. The annals of the family do not show whence he 

 obtained his live stock for the Molland Estate whether he took that 

 which was on the land in the hand of his immediate predecessors, 

 bought stock in the neighbourhood, or brought animals which he had 

 either bred or purchased in Somersetshire. Neither he nor his son 

 Henry, who succeeded him, lived to a great age, for the death of the 

 latter is recorded as having occurred in 1725. This Henry Quartly left 

 a son James, who was born in 1720, and died in 1793. James Quartly 

 1-ad three sons Henry, William, and Francis great grandsons of 

 James Quartly, who was first of the family at Molland. The names of 

 the second Jame.-: Qua-tly and his three sons, Henry. William, and 

 Francis, were all as closely connected with the rise of the fame of the 

 Devon breed that we cannot dissociate them. Yet the foremost place 

 in the history of the Devonshire breed of cattle in England must be 

 conceded to the name of Francis Quartly; and from Francis Quartly 



1 60. 



