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Tribute To A Dog
From a speech given by former Senator George Graham Vest
of Missouri. Delivered in 1870 when he was acting as a lawyer
in a suit against a man who had killed the dog of his client.
He won the case.
The one absolutely unselfish friend that man can have in this selfish
world, the one that never deserts him, the one that never proves
ungrateful or treacherous, is man's dog.
A man's dog stands by him in prosperity and in poverty. In health
and in sickness. He will sleep on the cold ground, where the wintry
winds blow and the snow drives fiercely, if only he may be near his
master's side.
He will kiss the hand that has no food to offer; he will lick the wounds
and sores that come in encounter with the roughness of the world. He
guards the sleep of his pauper master as if he were a prince.
When all other friends desert, he remains. When riches take wing and
reputation falls to pieces, he is as constant in his love as the sun in its
journey through the heavens.
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