Old Drum

Charles Burden's favourite hound, Old Drum, was shot by neighbour, Leonidas Hornsby, who had sworn to shoot the first dog that came onto his land. That dog was Old Drum.

Charles Burden immediately sued Hornsby for damages, and the trial in 1870, became one of the strangest in America. Burdens lawyer was Senator George Graham Vest. The Supreme Court of Missouri ruled for Burden and awarded him $50 in damages for the loss of his favourite hunting dog.

The final speach by Senator Vest to the jury won the day. "Gentlemen of the Jury: The best friend a man has in this world may turn against him and become his enemy. His son or daughter that he has reared with loving care may prove to be ungrateful.

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 a man has, he may lose. A man's reputation may be sacrificed in a moment of ill-considered action. . . .[But] The one absolutely unselfish friend that a man can have in this selfish world, the one that never deserts him and the one that never proves ungrateful or treacherous is his dog."

This eulogy originated the old saying "A man's best friend is his dog".