OCR Text |
Show 7 By ELMO SCOTT WATSON "i':se are d"S days, "that 1- period in the months of t' July and August when Si- :j rius, the dog star, rises j and sets with the sun, and ' ' it is the time when, unless fj, the weather is unusually ' capricious, man can ex " J pect the warmest Weather during the whole year. Hut for the dog lover every day in (he year Is a "dog day," marked b the warmth of his affection for the animal which Is traditionally known as "man's best friend." That man recognizes this fact Is shown by the I numerous instances in which he has j paid signal honor to certain Individ- j mils of this race of what is often so Inappropriately referred to as "dumb animals." There Is the case of Sergeant Major Jiggs, the mascot of the United States marine corps, who died on January 9 of this year and was burled with full military honors by his friends, who are proud to call themselves "devil dogs." There is the case of Stubby, the internationally in-ternationally famous mascot of tbe A. E. F., veteran of four major engagements, en-gagements, wearer of one wound stripe, and recipient of numerous medals med-als and decorations, who also died recently re-cently but who has been mounted and given a place of honor in the American Ameri-can Red Cross museum at Washington There is Rufus, the Newfoundland hero, who accompanied Lou Wescott Reck, the "Samaritan of Death Valley," Val-ley," on all of his errands of mercy into that earthly inferno to rescue prospectors perishing from thirst and who is honored with his master, since their deaths, with a monument in the city of Los Angeles. Who has forgotten Calto, the Alaskan Alas-kan husky, who won fame in his clash to Nome two years ago as the leader of a dog team bearing the diphtheria serum to the plague-stricken city? According Ac-cording to press dispatches, Balto is to have a permanent home in the Cleveland zoo for the rest of his life Instead of leading the wandering life of a vaudeville trouper or a sideshow exhibit. But monuments are not the only enduring en-during memorials to the dog's fidelity to man. Another memorial, and perhaps per-haps the most famous of all is the eulogy once pronounced by Senator George G. Vest of Missouri, which, de- - r- - n' P K ft v. 't ;- A W' r A ' V ' . Q - ' -r"- f ;j n.. H.... 'l5jRG&frrrjTGS'- killing- of Drum. The body of Drum was hid and later found, and, as no explanation vas made, the lesral row began. The Hornsbys were from Tennessee Ten-nessee and North Carolina, and the Burdens from Kentucky and Virg-Inla. Both stdes were stubborn. Burden sued Hornsby November 9, 1SG9, before be-fore Justice of the Peace Georpre Norman. Nor-man. The jury hun. The case waa ! tried again, and again the jury hunr. At another hearing in January, 1S70, Burden obtained a verdict of ?25 against Hornsby in a jury trial. Hornsby appealed to the Court of Common Pleas, where the jury gave a verdict In his favor. On May 2, 1S70, a motion for a new trial was pranted. The original claim by Burden for damages dam-ages was $50, and in the new trial In the Circuit court, Burden was given a jury verdict for $50, as was first demanded, de-manded, and Drum, the old hound won. It was in this later litigation that the big legal guns appeared. Uncle Lon Hornsby employed Crittenden & Cockrell and Uncle Charley retained Phillips & Vest and Klliott & Blodgett. This was Col. Thomas T. Crittenden, later governor of Missouri, and Colonel Cockrell, later United States senator from Missouri. Blodgett became general gen-eral solicitor of the North Missouri railroad, afterward of the Wabash system. Elliott was also an eminent lawyer. Phillips and Vest were distinguished distin-guished In their profession and later prominent In the public service. John F. Phillips became United States Judge at Kansas City, and George O. Vest, United States senator from Missouri. Such was the array of learned counsel when the caso was tried before a Jury September 23, 1870. Judge Foster P. Wright was the presiding judge. Blodgett Blod-gett opened for Drum, followed by Crittenden and then Cockrell In opposition, oppo-sition, all three making brilliant speeches. Oratory ran high. Then Vest spoke and won the case for the hound, for by this time the Interest centered more in Drum than either Uncle Charley, the plaintiff, or Undo Lon, the defendant. Vest's speech has become a classlo on the dog in American literature. In the case of old Drum who was accidentally acci-dentally shot with an overcharge of beans, when he was disturbing the pans of milk at the old homo place of iny grandfather, Brtnkley HoiTtsby. Uncle Uon appealed to the Supreme court of Missouri. So much for the facts In the myth story so often told, as to the parties Involved, the story of the poor, friendless friend-less man whose hound was ruthlessly killed, and the remarkable statement that the plaintiff demanded $200 for the death of Drum and the jury awarded him 500. livered before a jury In that state famous for its hound dogs, has been reprinted in newspapers and repeated as a popular bit of American oratory more times, since It was uttered fifty years ago, than any other speech of its kind. Famous as is this eulogy, there has gathered around it a cloud of myth and tradition which has obscured the facts of tbe case and the circumstances circum-stances under which It was ottered. The true story of the lawsuit over the killing of Old Drum, the houn' dog, made famous by Vest's eulogy, was recently made public by Will C. Fer-rill, Fer-rill, editor of tbe Rocky Mountain Herald Her-ald at Denver, Colo., who was a nephew of the two litigants In the case and who Is therefore In a position posi-tion to know the facts. Mr. Ferrill's story follows : This hound case seems to be developing develop-ing In the East Into as much of a myth as those exaggerated tales of Jesse James. The litigants in this case were two uncles of mine. There have been many versions of the narrative, but the Inside family story Is that the killing of Old Drum really was an accident, ac-cident, the result of an overcharge of beans In a shotgun which was "planted" "plant-ed" to crive him a rood scare. If proper prop-er explanations had been offered, the whole affair might have been settled amicably, but the explanations were neglected and as a result two families were .involved In a bitter court feud and the hound case became famous. The squabble came Into public notice when l.eonidas Hornsby, my mother's brother, was accused by Charles Burden, Bur-den, who had married my mother's sister, sis-ter, of having killed Hornsby's favorite hunting dog, Drum. Both families were well-to-do, or the case never would have been tried again and again and carried to the Supreme Su-preme court of Missouri In lengthy and expensive litigation. Drum n-a a as popular at the Hornsby place In Johnston county, Missouri, as at the farm of his master, Charles Burden, Bur-den, who lived nearby. Drum would pro over to the Hornsbys and during those visits was often used by Uncle Lon and others for hunting. Game was then abundant In that part of Missouri, Mis-souri, which had been much desolated by the Civil war. Some animal, wild or tame, was disturbing dis-turbing the pans of milk at the Horns-tiys; Horns-tiys; finally it was discovered that Drum was the guilty one. Uncle Lon, as I have heard the story, told or suggested sug-gested to one of the younger members of the family, that he load a shotgun with beans and pepper old Drum with a shot. It so happened that the shotgun shot-gun was overloaded, or the range too close, and Instead of giving Drum a good "peppering." the hounrt was killed. There was no Intention at all, recording to this story, to kill Drum! Tills story about a poor man losing his favorite hound through the wicked act of another Is Eastern myth. 'the mistake was that Uncle Charley was not Informed of the accidental Senator Vest s Tribute I The best friend a man has In j the world may turn against him i and become his enemy. His son ? or daughter that he has reared with loving care may prove ungrateful. un-grateful. Those who are nearest and dearest to us, those whom we trust with our happiness and our good name may become traitors to their faith. The money that a man has he may lose. It flies away from him, ' perhaps when he needs it most. A man's reputation may be sacrificed sac-rificed in a moment of ill-considered action. The people who are prone to fall on their knees to do us honor when success is with us may be the first to throw the stone of malice when failure settles Its cloud upon our heads. !. 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, treacher-ous, Is his dog. A man's dog stands by him in prosperity and In poverty, In health and in sickness. sick-ness. He will sleep on the cold ground, where the wintry winds blow and the snow drives fiercely, fierce-ly, 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 wings and reputation f al Is to pieces, he is as constant In his love as the sun in Its Journey Jour-ney through the heavens. If fortune drives the master forth an outcast In the world, friendless and homeless, the faithful dog asks no higher priv-liege priv-liege than that of accompanying him, to guard him against danger, dan-ger, to fight against his enemies. And when the last scene of all comes and death takes his master mas-ter to its embrace and his body la laid away In the cold ground, no matter If all other friends pursue their way; there by the grave side will the noble dog be found, his head between his paws, his eyes sad, but open in alert watchfulness, faithful and true even in death. |