It is not generally known that genuine royal blood courses in Colonel
Cody's veins. He is a lineal descendant of Milesius, king of Spain, that
famous monarch whose three sons, Heber, Heremon, and Ir, founded the
first dynasty in Ireland, about the beginning of the Christian era. The
Cody family comes through the line of Heremon. The original name was
Tireach, which signifies "The Rocks." Muiredach Tireach, one of the
first of this line, and son of Fiacha Straivetine, was crowned king of
Ireland, Anno Domini 320. Another of the line became king of Connaught,
Anno Domini 701. The possessions of the Sept were located in the present
counties of Clare, Galway, and Mayo. The names Connaught-Gallway, after
centuries, gradually contracted to Connallway, Connellway, Connelly,
Conly, Cory, Coddy, Coidy, and Cody, and is clearly shown by ancient
indentures still traceable among existing records. On the maternal side,
Colonel Cody can, without difficulty, follow his lineage to the best
blood of England. Several of the Cody family emigrated to America in
1747, settling in Maryland, Pennsylvania, and Virginia. The name is
frequently mentioned in Revolutionary history. Colonel Cody is a member
of the Cody family of Revolutionary fame. Like the other Spanish-Irish
families, the Codys have their proof of ancestry in the form of a crest,
the one which Colonel Cody is entitled to use being printed herewith.
The lion signifies Spanish origin. It is the same figure that forms a
part of the royal coat-of-arms of Spain to this day--Castile and
Leon. The arm and cross denote that the descent is through the line of
Heremon, whose posterity were among the first to follow the cross, as a
symbol of their adherence to the Christian faith.




PREFACE.