"Tribute to a Dog"
"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 his 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."
Senator George Vest
1870
