Jury case against a man who had killed the dog of his client

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 jury case against a man who had killed the dog of his client.
He won the case.
 
"The one absolutely unselfish friend a 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 ground, where the
wintry winds blow and the snow drives fiercely, if only he may be at his
master's side.
 
He will kiss the hand that has no food to offer. He will lick the wounds and
sores that come from the 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 falls to
pieces, he is as constant in his love as the sun in its journey through the
heavens.