A SISTER’S LOVE

A SISTER’S LOVE

There is no purer feeling kindled upon the altar of human affection, than a sister’s pure, uncontaminated love for her brother. It is unlike all other affection; so disconnected with selfish sensuality; so feminine in its development, so dignified, and yet withal, so fond, so devoted. Nothing can alter it, nothing can suppress it. The world may revolve, and its revolution effect changes in the fortunes, in the character, and in the disposition of her brother; yet if he wants, whose hand will so readily stretch out to supply him as a sister’s? And if his character is maligned, whose voice will so readily swell in his advocacy? Next to a mother’s unquenchable love, a sister’s is pre-eminent. It rests so exclusively on the tie of consanguinity for its sustenance; it is so wholly divested of passion, and springs from such a deep recess in the human bosom, that when a sister once fondly and deeply regards her brother, that affection is blended with her existence, and the lamp that nourishes it expires only with that existence. In all the annals of crime, it is considered anomalous to find the hand of a sister raised in anger against her brother, or her heart nurturing the seeds of hatred, envy, or revenge in regard to that brother. ~ The Ladies’ Repository, Volume 26

National Recollections the Foundation of National Character by Edward Everett

National Recollections the Foundation of National Character by Edward Everett (1794 – 1865) was an American politician, pastor, educator, diplomat, and orator from Massachusetts.

How is the spirit of a free people to be formed, and animated, and cheered, but out of the store-house of its historic recollections? Are we to be eternally ringing the changes upon Marathon and Thermopylae; and going back to read in obscure texts of Greek and Latin of the exemplars of patriotic virtue? I thank God that we can find them nearer home, in our own country, on our own soil; — that strains of the noblest sentiment that ever swelled in the breast of man, are breathing to us out of every page of our country’s history, in the native eloquence of our mother tongue;—that the colonial and provincial councils of America exhibit to us models of the spirit and character, which gave Greece and Rome their name and their praise among the nations. Here we ought to go for our instruction;—the lesson is plain, it is clear, it is applicable. When we go to ancient history, we are bewildered with the difference of manners and institutions. We are willing to pay our tribute of applause to the memory of Leonidas, who fell nobly for his country in the face of his foe. But when we trace him to his home, we are confounded at the reflection, that the same Spartan heroism, to which he sacrificed himself at Thermopylae, would have led him to tear his own child, if it had happened to be a sickly babe,-—the very object for which all that is kind and good in man rises up to plead,—from the bosom of its mother, and carry it out to be eaten by the wolves of Taygetus. We feel a glow of admiration at the heroism displayed at Marathon, by the ten thousand champions of invaded Greece; but we cannot forget that the tenth part of the number were slaves, unchained from the work-shops and door-posts of their masters, to go and fight the battles of freedom. I do not mean that these examples are to destroy the interest with which we read the history of ancient times; they possibly increase that interest by the very contrasts they exhibit. But they do warn us, if we need the warning, to seek our great practical lessons of patriotism at home; out of the exploits and sacrifices of which our own country is the theatre; out of the characters of our own fathers. Them we know,—the high-souled, natural, unaffected, the citizen heroes. We know what happy firesides they left for the cheerless camp. We know with what pacific habits they dared the perils of the field. There is no mystery, no romance, no madness, under the name of chivalry, about them. It is all resolute, manly resistance for conscience’ and liberty’s sake, not merely of an overwhelming power, but of all the force of long-rooted habits and native love of order and peace.

Above all, their blood calls to us from the soil which we tread; it beats in our veins; it cries to us not merely in the thrilling words of one of the first victims in this cause,— “My sons, scorn to be slaves!”—but it cries with a still more moving eloquence—” My sons, forget not your father’s.”

A Further Testament of the Love of our Lord Jesus Christ as shown in my life

To truly understand this, you should first read A testament of the love, of the Lord Jesus as this is basically a continuation of it.

UPDATE: For clarity and to cut down on confusion. This post is not about me, my life, or my love, it is simply about the goodness and love of the Lord, I am simply using events in my life to show this and share with you who read it, a testimony of His great love for us all.

The love of the Lord Jesus Christ is really amazing, incomprehensible, and real. As I partially told the journey that my brother, his now wife Kathy, I and my wife to be, Darci took to finally be together, I will now tell the latest little twist of Darci’s and my relationship along with a little history to make it understandable.

Darci and I have yet to marry (we’ve been together once again for over a year now), You should really read the link above at this point if you have not done so. We haven’t gotten married because I was still married to someone else. I have been trying to get a divorce for a little over 7 years. My exe (finally), skipped out and I was unable to locate where she was, so that I could serve her with divorce papers, I hired three different lawyers thru the years to get it done, however none of them were able. My exe and I adopted my son Danny, he was actually her sisters son. When my exe took off the second time, cleaning out my bank account and taking all that she did not take the first time. I asked him then, whether he wanted to go with her, with me, or spend half his time with her, and half with me. He chose to stay with me, he also made me promise, if I could not get a divorce where he did not have to visit my exe. I would then wait until he was eighteen, or at least until he was old enough to legally choose himself, before I got the divorce. I therefore, for the last number of years had given up trying to get the divorce, until he turned 16 when I thought, surely the judge would not make him see her, if  he did not choose to. Once again, I was unable to locate her, that is, until after Darci and I got together (Thanksgiving 2011), then here last summer one of her (my exe) nieces contacted Danny, (my son) on Facebook and we were able to get an address for her.

Now, the Lord has worked it out to where the absolute earliest date Darci and I can get married is; this year on my birthday. It would have been in July, however, I got so sick last month, the night before I was supposed to go to court for the judge to hopefully sign off on my divorce decree, I ended up in the hospital. I therefore had to have the judge reschedule the hearing to sign off on my divorce decree, I wasn’t sure she (the Judge) was going to because of everything I had gone through before. To make a long story short, I told you all of this to show you how the Lord has worked it out (as only He could) I finally got the divorce decree signed this morning. In Okla. you have to wait 6 months from the day the Judge signs the decree to then be able to marry. Six months from that is Aug, 19th, my birthday. As I told Darci, my brother,  and my son, it just shows how thoughtful, caring, and humorous that the Lord is. He truly is amazing, I can never get over how much he obviously loves me, especially with the way I have been towards him at times. If I had all of the rest of time, I could never fully express my gratitude, thankfulness, and humility I have for him (or should have, I know I fall short) over all the things he has done in my life and others, to show his great love and affection for us all. Truly, who else could have worked it all out so perfectly, and to have him to basically tell me “happy birthday” and gift me with the person I have wanted most in my life outside of him and his father!?! I am truly dumbfounded and am at a total loss for words. It truly overwhelms me so that my thoughts leave me and all I can think of, is how truly wonderful and good he truly is!  I am speechless, forgive me….

Let me just add, I hope with these blog posts on my life to show in some small way to each of you who read this. The great love of the Lord Jesus Christ and God his father has for each of you, not that I have for you, because honestly I do not even love Him as I should. For truly, if he loves me so much, he surely loves each of you just as much. I hope to help you see that love in your own lives if I possibly can, if you do not see it already.

See also The Relationship Between a Man and Woman

The Wisdom and Love of God as Shown by His Creation by Noah Webster

 

Divine Heredity

There is no thing you cannot overcome,
Say not thy evil instinct is inherited;
Or that some trait inborn, makes thy whole life forlorn,
And calls for punishment that is not merited.
Back of thy parents and grand parents, lies
The great Eternal Will; that too, is thine Inheritance—strong, beautiful, divine;
Sure lever of success for one who tries.
Pry up thy fault with this great lever—will;
However deeply bedded in propensity;
However firmly set, I tell thee firmer yet
Is that great power that comes from truth’s immensity.
There is no noble height thou canst not climb;
All triumphs may be thine in time’s futurity.
If, whatsoe’er thy fault, thou dost not faint or halt,
But lean upon the staff of God’s security.
Earth has no claim the soul cannot contest.
Know thyself part of the supernal Source,
And naught can stand before thy spirit’s force;
The soul’s divine inheritance is best.

by Ella Wheeler Wilcox

The Davis Family of Maryland, Virginia, and Wales

Davis’s of Maryland Coat of Arms from Side Lights of Maryland History 1904

Arms — Sable, three nag's heads, heads erased argent
Crest — A wolf salient argent

My modernized version of the Coat of Arms

The Welsh Davises derive their descent, according to the best authorities, from the Prince of Powis, the opponent of Ethelfrid, King of Northumberland, at the battles of Chester and Bangor, about the commencement of the seventh century. Nineteenth in descent from Prince Brachwel of Powis was Meilir Gryg, direct ancestor of David, son of John ap David of Llivior, who, according to the Welsh custom, assumed the modern surname of Davies in the year 1637 when signing a deed of family settlement.

Read more> The Davis Family of Maryland, Virginia, and Wales

See also: More about Captain James Davis / Davies

A testament of the love, of the Lord Jesus

Dedicated to the Great Lord, Darci, the only girl I ever really loved, my brother Rich, and his bride, Kathy. Please bear with me, it’s long,  it’s worth the read however, I hope.

I don’t really know how to start this one off. There are so many things in my heart I wish to express, hopefully I can do it justice.

Let me start by giving a little background, Kathy, Rich and I grew up in the same church, it is also where I first met Darci, I was 10, she was 9. I remember the first time I saw her, as clear as if it were yesterday, it was truly love at first sight. I couldn’t take my eyes off her, nor could she take hers off me. We were boyfriend-girlfriend off and on through our early-mid teens. Kathy and Rich were childhood sweethearts through their teen years, Darci, I, Rich and Kathy used to double date before I was able to drive, or at least legally.

Darci and I parted when I was about 14, Kathy and Rich when they got somewhat older. Darci married at 15, then I married at 17. I got divorced at 19, when we were in our early 20’s we got together again. We were together for a time, went our ways again. Didn’t talk again until we were in our late 20’s. She doesn’t even remember talking to me then, however the Lord had been talking to me about her for at least a year or two when she called me. I didn’t know then though, that He was talking to me about her. I was dating and breaking up with a girl, I was dating at that time. A girl by the way, who I was dating for the simple reason, she reminded me of Darci.

I won’t tell you what all I was going through at the time, it was hell, cause I couldn’t figure out what was going on, I have always analyzed everything in my life. I must add, not long before this I had even questioned the existence of Jesus. To tell a little of what I experienced, it was like I was having one conversation with one person or a superior being i.e. God, through everyone I talked to. Let me try to explain to the best of my ability, I have always had a good memory and played back in my mind every conversation I have ever had with people, in the days after the conversation(s) took place, therefore I remembered them. For a number of weeks, before I figured out the Lord was talking to me, each person, (family, friends, acquaintances) I encountered and talked to, it was like an ongoing conversation with one person. On top of that, what they said when I encountered them, it was like they were even responding to what I was thinking or had been thinking at the time. It seemed to me, at least until I understood what was going on, they all knew what was going on and I was the only one in the dark. I kept asking them, “what’s going on?” My family thought I was going insane, I must say at times it felt like it. When I realized the Lord was talking to me it hit me like a ton of bricks. I knew He was trying to get through to me on some things. However, I didn’t understand some or a lot of what He was saying at the time.

To tell you how I finally understood it was the Lord Jesus talking to me. It got to the point where I was so totally exhausted, mentally, physically, and spiritually that I could hardly even lift up my head. When I got to that point, one day my brother and I were going to help our dad on a job he was doing. We lived in California at the time, we were driving on the freeway, I was a wreck and the first time I forced myself to lift up my head, we just so happened to be going under an overpass that someone had painted graffiti on, I had seen a lot of graffiti as it is all over Southern California. However, this was not your normal gang related graffiti or someones art, this was simply where someone had painted, “Jesus Jesus Jesus Jesus” over an over, they had made two rows of His name on the side of overpass. This was all I saw when I looked up. When I saw it, the greatest and most overwhelming love washed over me, it was like nothing I had ever felt, even though I had grown up in a very religious family and loved the Lord with all my heart as a child. See, I didn’t really figure out anything, He had to show me. I was so amazed He took the time with me, when that happened and it finally dawned on me “what was going on!“.

Now back to Darci and I, I had known (to some extent at least) since our teens that she & I were meant to be together, however I could not say the right words to make her see this. I can be blunt and matter of fact, I think, knowing her now, that she thought I was arrogant or something. I just tell it like I see it, the truth, no apologies, no beating around the bush. I think I knew when we first saw each other that she was the one, I was just too young to understand it. I asked my dad when I was very young how I would know when I found the “one“, I still remember that like yesterday too, he said “You’ll just know“. I can’t even begin to put in words how I loved, and wanted more than I had ever wanted anything, just to love and be loved by her. All that being said, I did not even then understand what all it meant, because I thought I could be happy with other women, not any woman, I have always had to have a love for anyone I was with, and since I always gave 110% (at least to begin with, just being honest) in any relationship. I always thought even though there is one perfect mate for everyone, I thought I could be happy with others who I had love for. After a number of relationships and two marriages, I figured out (after studying myself and my life) I would never be truly happy with anyone else. The Lord had to incapacitate me for a number of years and leave me house bound for me to take the time to really think about what I wanted in life, to study the life I had led, and the chronological events of my life, to truly understand this.

I never tried to go after her when we parted ways, because I knew it wouldn’t do me any good, until she understood what I had known for so long. I must say I had all but given up hope, that would ever happen, more on that in a bit. Every girl I was ever with, she was the yardstick, by which they were all measured, she was the standard that they were all put up against. I was never with any girl/woman that could make me forget her, nor, that could keep me from thinking of her. They of course never knew this, nor did she, until I told her here while back.

Back to her and I in a bit, let’s talk about my brother and Kathy. I love my brother more than life, I knew for years by watching him with girls other than Kathy that he had always been, was still in love with Kathy, even though he let her marry someone else without saying a word. I knew this by the girls he had relationships with the longest, cause they reminded me of Kathy, not the looks really, more the demeanor and personalities. He never dated anyone long unless they reminded me of her.

As I alluded to earlier, I tend to analyze things, “a lot” this is how I figure things out, although it drives some of those I am closest to nuts at times. LOL! I have to say, this is how God made me. I can remember conversations, situations, etc. verbatim. I will go over things in my mind long, long after they take place, when I am trying to figure out what’s going on. And, I’m always trying to figure out something that’s going on. LOL! I was told when I was 17 by a cop, I would make a great detective. There is also a bit of discernment involved, I think some of the people on twitter have seen this with me.

I talked to Kathy about 2 years ago, I said to her then “You know, Rich has always been stuck on you”. I don’t know how long after this, that they started talking on the phone to each other, maybe they already had been. I don’t think they were talking much if any though, they did however start talking, that led to dating, dating has led to marriage. They are getting married on the 23rd of June, which happens to be my mom & dads anniversary. I must say, I never knew how romantic my brother could be. I laugh at how he is with her, not because I think it is funny, but because I love them both so much and am overjoyed for them. To understand, why I say what I do, about how romantic he is with her, you’ll have to read the blog post I did, when I first found out they were dating. The Rise and Fall of my Big Brother I can’t tell you how many times he told me he’d never get married, he hadn’t ever met a girl who was worth it. I knew better….I have never seen him more tender than he is now with her, it truly touches my heart and makes me smile.

Now my bro just reached the half century mark, Kathy’s almost there, Darci and I are in our late 40’s. I don’t know if I truly understand all of the variables involved, in what took us all so long. Kathy, I think would have married Rich when they were together in their teens, had he straightened up, been responsible, etc. I don’t know, it might only have taken him asking her. He didn’t, whatever the case, so she moved on. I know I have waited a long time to see him happy, and I have never seen him more happy, than he is now. Maybe he just needed time to truly appreciate her, maybe he just needed to understand how much he needed her. I tend to think it is more the latter. Darci, well, I would have came to her no matter where, nor what time, or who I was with, all she ever had to do was ask. I know that I failed to make her understand how much I loved her. (I don’t however know what more I could have said, obviously there is more I could have done) I feel that it also had to do with me being so wild, and not so responsible myself at some levels. My bro and I are country boys, that could have something to do with why we were so wild for so long. However, I believe that it also has to do with the fact, that neither of us had what we wanted, and/or needed most in life. I always believed Darci loved me, I therefore could never understand why she didn’t see what I did. I never troubled her over it though, I knew she had to see it for herself.

I must add at this point that all of us have had our share of bad relationships and heartache. Now, Darci and I are back together, Kathy and my bro are back together. I don’t think any of us have ever been happier. Maybe we all just needed to understand how much we needed each other, time to truly appreciate what we have. I told them all the other day when a medical matter came up for Kathy, I had texted my bro, told him that I loved him, and was thinking of him. I then called our mother, she told me about Kathy. My bro texted me back about Kathy, asked me to pray. I told him “I already was, mom had just told me. I guess that is why I was thinking of you, love you” I went on to say “the Lord would not finally put us all, where we were always meant to be, to then take away what we needed all along. Perhaps we all need to consider Him more. I know I do……”

I then said “God is good, and Jesus loves us more than we could ever dream or imagine. We are truly blessed, can you imagine after all these years, He cared enough for each of us so very much (not just us as a whole, but each of us individually) to put us each, in the situation to bring us together, after all these years of failing to do it ourselves? He is truly AWESOME, I can’t thank Him enough, nor could I ever, not just for what He has done for Darci and I, but also for you bro, and Kathy. You have no idea how many years I wished and hoped you’d wake up to what I knew so long ago, just by observing your relationships and the girls you dated the longest. I truly could not be happier for you bro, you deserve it. My happiness for you is equaled only by my own happiness for Darci and I.”

To truly understand what the Lord has done, let me point out. I am in my late 40’s, I was in my late 20’s when the Lord was telling me things about me, my future, etc. things that I am only now, understanding what He meant, and that He had been talking to me then about Darci. Not just talking to me about her, He told me things then, about what He wanted from me. Things that I have only learned since Darci and I got together at Thanksgiving of this last year, (2011) what He meant by the things, He told me then. I have this thing, like I said, I remember everything. He told me things then, that He knew I would not understand till now, some of those things, it’s amazing. The understanding, of some of those things He told me then, comes with some simple little statement she makes now, that ties in with what He told me then. When this happens, it hits me like a ton of bricks, so that is what He meant. One of those things, understanding came when I was doing her genealogy and I looked up the meaning of her name. He knew I would not understand it till I did, so He put me in the situation that caused me to get into genealogy. It was long after He had told me what He did about her in this instance, that I became interested in genealogy. Had I not gotten into genealogy a number of years ago. I would never have looked up what her name meant, as I did a few weeks ago. I can look back now, and see how He tried with us all, to get us together, straighten us out, practically our whole lives. We were all just too caught up in ourselves, I would bet all of us had all but given up on love, happiness, when He was finally able to open us all up, to what we needed to do, to get where we needed to be.

For those that think the Lord does not interfere in the affairs of men, or believe, that He does not deal with individuals. You better think again. I have learned in the last 20+ years there are no coincidences in this life, there are only things that we fail to understand their meaning. Do not ever doubt the love of God, nor Jesus. Jesus’ love surrounds us, it is in everything He created.

God bless and keep you all, always, in all your ways. I hope that each of you who read this find the love and happiness, we have all found in Jesus!

See also A Further Testament of the Love of our Lord Jesus Christ as shown in my life

The Wisdom and Love of God as Shown by His Creation by Noah Webster

Genealogical history of the Lewis Family

Taken from: “Some prominent Virginia families: Volume 2 – Page 620″ by Louise Pecquet du Bellet, Edward Jaquelin, Martha Cary Jaquelin

Motto translated means”Every land is a brave man’s country.”

It is a question very often discussed of late as to whether the hour makes the man or the man the hour. To a student of the history of Virginia an answer is very soon given, for since the settlement of Jamestown, in 1607, which was virtually the birth of this country, there has never arisen a crisis of any kind when Virginia, our mother State, has not had one or more of her sons ready to meet it. When the hour arrives the man appears. We may search the pages of history in vain for a nobler or as noble a group of men as Washington and his patriot Virginians in 1776.

Read more: Genealogical history of the Lewis Family

“Eulogy of the Dog” famous Story of Old Drum

My Great Uncle Charlie’s beloved dog Old Drum, was shot by his brother-in-laws nephew at the instigation of the brother-in-law they owned farms next to each other in Missouri

From: MISSOURI STATE ARCHIVES

Man’s Best Friend: The Old Drum Story
Old Drum Remembered

Monument to Old Drum

Old Drum memorial

A monument to Old Drum was erected on December 12, 1947, by Fred
Ford of Blue Springs, Missouri. Ford placed the monument on the
banks of Big Creek approximately where Old Drum was found after he
had been shot.
Ford received donations of money and rocks from all over the world to
create the monument. The sixty-seven block base of the monument
consisted of small rocks placed in cement blocks labeled with metal
donor name plates. Dog lovers sent stones from the Great Wall of
China, Mexico, the West Indies, South Africa, Germany, Guatemala,
France, the White Cliffs of Dover, Jamaica, and most of the states in
the U.S. Unfortunately, due to vandalism in later years, the original
base no longer exists.
The part of the original monument that still remains was constructed by
the Indianola Memorial Works at Indianola, Iowa, using gray granite
stone. The monument is illustrated with a dog treeing a coon in the
middle, a fox in one corner, and a deer being chased in the other. It
contains the inscription: Killed, Old Drum, 1869. It remains a symbol of
all dogs that people have loved and lost.

The Old Drum Memorial
Today a monument to Old Drum stands in Warrensburg, Missouri,
along with the words of Vest’s eulogy. On September 23, 1958,
through the coordinated efforts of the Warrensburg Chamber of
Commerce and dog lovers from around the country, Old Drum was
immortalized in statue by the sculptor, Reno Gastaldi.
On the southeast corner of the current Johnson County Courthouse
lawn, stands a bronze statue of the much beloved black and tan hound,
Old Drum. The sculpture is of a hunting dog standing on all fours, with
tail lowered and head up. On the front of the trapezoid concrete base
on a plaque in raised letters, appear Vest’s well-known words which

Missouri State Archives
Man’s Best Friend:
The Old Drum Story
The story of the Burden v. Hornsby trial, involving the untimely death of a black
and tan hound dog named Old Drum, comprises people and events that have
become more legend than fact. Yet, the Burden v. Hornsby trial, or the Old
Drum trial as it came to be known, is a true story well-documented through
court records progressing from a Justice of the Peace to a final appeal before
the Supreme Court of Missouri.
The Story of Burden v. Hornsby
The Death of Old Drum
On the 28th of October in 1869, around 8 o’clock in the evening, Charles
Burden heard the fire of a gun from the direction of his neighbor’s adjoining
farm only a mile south.
His brother-in-law, Leonidas Hornsby, owned the adjoining farm about five
miles southwest of Kingsville in Johnson County Missouri. It was only four
years after the Civil War and farming was beginning to return to the war-torn
western counties of Missouri. Lands once plundered by guerillas and raiders
now began to support families attempting to farm and raise livestock.
Leonidas Hornsby was doing his best to farm, but was struggling to maintain
his flock of sheep because of the constant threat of prowling dogs and wolves.
He had lost more than a hundred sheep and made a vow to kill the first stray
dog that appeared on his property. On the evening of October 28, Leonidas
made good on his promise after a hound dog wandered into his yard.
Samuel “Dick” Ferguson, Hornsby’s young nephew, immediately proposed to
shoot the intruder. Thinking it might be a neighbor’s dog and in an effort not to
kill the dog, but merely scare it, Hornsby instructed Ferguson to load the gun
with corn and then take the shot. According to Ferguson, after the dog was
shot it yelped in pain, jumped over the fence, and disappeared.
Neighbors heard the howling of the wounded dog as it grew fainter and then
finally died away. Charles Burden also noted the silence following the sound of
the gunshot. He remembered Hornsby’s threat and feared the worst. He called
his dogs, but his favorite hunting dog, Old Drum, did not come.
After Old Drum failed to come home the next morning, Charles Burden began
the search for his missing dog. First, he went to his neighbor Hurley and inquired about Old Drum’s whereabouts. Then, he went to the farm of Leonidas Hornsby and began to question him. After Hornsby denied having seen Old Drum, Burden asked, “What dog was that you shot last night?”
Hornsby replied that he had not shot any dog, but that his nephew Dick had
shot at a dog he thought belonged to their neighbor, Davenport.
Unconvinced and angry, Burden replied, “I’ll go and see it may not be my dog.
If it ain’t it’s all right. If it is it’s all wrong and I’ll have satisfaction at the cost of
my life.” He then left his brother-in-law’s property to continue the search.
On that same morning of October 29, Burden, along with a neighbor, found Old
Drum dead lying with his head in the water on the banks of Big Creek just
below Haymaker’s Mill. He appeared to have died from multiple shots of
different sizes with no hole completely penetrating the body. It was apparent to
Charles Burden that Old Drum had been carried or dragged to his final resting
place along the banks of the river. There was mud on Old Drum’s left side, the
fur on his ear and side were roughed up the wrong way, and evidence of sorrel
horse hairs were on his body. Coincidentally, Leonidas Hornsby owned a
sorrel mule. To Burden, the circumstantial evidence was overwhelming.
The Burden v. Hornsby Trial
Unable to let the death of his prized hound dog go unpunished, Burden filed a
lawsuit for damages against Hornsby. A summons was issued to Leonidas
Hornsby to appear before Justice of the Peace Munroe of Madison township on
November 25, 1869. Burden originally asked for a $100 judgment in damages.
Hornsby’s attorneys, Nation and Allen, filed a motion to dismiss because the
amount sued for was beyond the jurisdiction of the Justice of the Peace.
However, Burden was allowed to file a motion to amend, changing the amount
to the legal limit allowable of $50 for the worth of Old Drum, and the trial
proceeded.
· Summons, Leonidas Hornsby, November 25, 1869
· Motion to Amend Statement, November 25, 1869
The jury was not able to agree on whether Hornsby was guilty for instructing his
nephew to shoot the dog. The trial was rescheduled for December 23, 1870,
but was continued until January. In this second trial on January 27, 1870, a
verdict of guilty was returned and Burden was awarded $25 plus court costs.
· Transcript of Proceedings before Justice of the Peace, February
5, 1870
Hornsby appealed the case to the Johnson County Court of Common Pleas in
Warrensburg. He claimed that amendment of the original statement to bring
the case before the Justice of the Peace should not have been allowed. New
lawyers were hired, with Thomas T. Crittenden and Francis M. Cockrell now
representing Hornsby and George N. Elliott and Wells H. Blodgett representing
Burden. The trial date was set for March 25, but later moved to March 30.
· Subpoena for Court of Common Pleas, March 30, 1870
According to their testimony, Hornsby and Ferguson went back to Big Creek,
where the body of Old Drum still lay, and removed lead bullets after the
January trial at Kingsville. Because the burden of proof could not be
established, there was doubt as to whether Hornsby was directly the cause of
Old Drum’s death. On April 1, 1870, Hornsby received a verdict in his favor in the amount of court costs.
Dissatisfied and still seeking justice for his dead dog, Burden filed a motion for
a new trial alleging the discovery of evidence not available before. A new trial
was granted and Burden hired the Sedalia legal team of John F. Philips and
George G. Vest. A formidable group of attorneys now sat on both sides of the
table.
On September 21, 1870, in what is now known as the Old Johnson County
Courthouse in Warrensburg, the case went to trial for the fourth time. As the
court convened, Judge Foster Wright looked out on a packed courtroom and
four prominent lawyers destined to become known as Missouri’s Big Four.
Hornsby was represented by the firm of Crittenden & Cockrell, with Philips &
Vest now joining Elliott & Blodgett for Burden.
· Old Johnson County Courthouse
· Missouri’s Big Four
Arguments were made by both sets of attorneys. Depositions from witnesses
now out of state in Kansas and Texas were read in evidence. The defense
tried to show that Old Drum was sighted at Haymaker’s Mill and shot there
around the same time a different dog was shot at Hornsby’s farm. Hornsby
admitted to telling his nephew to shoot at a dog, but denied the dog was Old
Drum, even though no other dog was found dead.
On September 23, 1870, Vest presented the closing remarks on behalf of
Burden and Old Drum. However, he made no reference to the evidence or to
Old Drum, but delivered a powerful tribute to all dogs and their masters.
Following his summation, the jury quickly returned a verdict in favor of Burden
in the amount of $50 and court costs. Even though Vest’s Eulogy of the Dog
was not written down until some time after the trial, the speech became famous
because of its universal appeal to dog lovers everywhere. Eulogy of the Dog

After the war he returned to Pettis County moving to Sedalia,
Missouri and resumed his law practice. It was at this time in
1869 that Vest was asked to represent Burden and Old Drum
in the case that would make him famous.
Vest took the case tried on September 23, 1870 in which he
represented a client whose hunting dog, a foxhound named
Drum (or Old Drum), had been killed by a sheep farmer. The
farmer had previously announced his intentions to kill any dog
found on his property; the dog’s owner was suing for damages
in the amount of $50, the maximum allowed by law.
During the trial, Vest stated that he would “win the case or
apologize to every dog in Missouri.” Vest’s closing argument
to the jury made no reference to any of the testimony offered during the trial, and instead offered a eulogy of sorts. Vest’s “Eulogy of the Dog” is one of the most enduring passages of
purple prose in American courtroom history (only a partial
transcript has survived):
“Eulogy of the Dog” text

“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 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 that a man has, he may lose. It flies away from him, perhaps when he needs it the most. A man’s reputation may be sacrificed 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 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. Gentlemen of the jury: 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 encounters 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 falls to pieces, he is as constant in his love as the sun in its journey through the heavens. If fortune drives the master forth an outcast in the world, friendless and homeless, the faithful dog asks no higher privilege than that of accompanying him to guard against danger, to fight against his enemies, and when the last scene of all comes, and death takes the master in its embrace and his body is laid away in the cold ground, no matter if all other friends pursue their way, there by his graveside will the noble dog be found, his head between his paws, his eyes sad but open in alert watchfulness, faithful and true even to death”

Missouri state archives
The litigation continued with Hornsby appealing the decision to the Missouri
Supreme Court. Hornsby’s attorneys claimed the judgment should be reversed
because the Justice of the Peace allowed the original statement to be amended
from $100 to $50 and the Court of Common Pleas granted Burden a new trial.
During the July 1872 term, the judgment was affirmed by the Missouri Supreme
Court. Charles Burden finally had justice for Old Drum.
· Burden v. Hornsby Opinion, July Term 1872
· Burden v. Hornsby Opinion, Mo. Reports, vol. 50, 1872