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Professional Commentary Stories of Animal Greatness Historical Animal Tributes Rainbow Bridge
Historical Animal Tributes
Stories exemplifying the intensity of the human-animal bond.
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George Graham Vest (1830-1904)
Circa 1855, George Graham Vest, a lawyer in a small Missouri town, represented a man who sued another for killing his dog. Later in his career, from 1879 to 1903, Mr. Graham served as a U.S. Senator from Missouri. He was one of the leading orators and debaters of his time. He made the following speech when his turn came to present a summation to the jury, on this case which he won. A monument outside the courthouse in Missouri also displays this moving statement.
Gentlemen of the Jury: The best friend a man has in the 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 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 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 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 him against danger, to fight against his enemies. And when the last scene of all comes, and death takes his 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 the 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.
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The Story of Old Jock (1858)
There was a Skye Terrier dog named Bobby who worked for a Scottish shepherd named Old Jock. In 1858, the day after Jock was buried in the churchyard at Greyfriars Abbey in Edinburgh, Scotland, Bobby was found sleeping on his master's grave, where he continued to sleep every night for fourteen years. At a street corner near Greyfriars churchyard is a granite fountain with an effigy of a dog on guard. It has the following inscription: A tribute to the affectionate fidelity of Greyfriars Bobby. In 1858 this faithful dog followed the remains of his master to the Greyfriars churchyard, and lingered near this spot until his death in 1872.
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Elizabeth Barrett Browning (1806-1861)
To Flush My Dog
But of thee it shall be said,
this dog watched beside a bed
day and night unweary,
watched within a curtained room,
where no sunbeam broke the gloom
round the sick and dreary.
Roses, gathered for a vase,
in that chamber died apace,
beam and breeze resigning:
This dog only, waited on,
knowing that when light is gone
love remains for shining.
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John Lee Weldon (Deceased), a novelist and poet
excerpt from his book
Fabulous
Mr. Weldon's first parakeet
Chapter 16 - Gone
...I became hysterical and I collapsed on the floor, my entire body trembling as the tears poured out of me - except my left hand where he lay in my open palm. It was strangely still, as still as his dead body. I was like a child again, weeping; yet I was a man enough to release my grief. Thus the child and the man became one and there was no distinction, and there was no need for any distinction, for there are times when the inner child is wiser than the external man and must guide the man beyond his grief.
...Few have lived long without knowing the stark tragedy of death and the deep feeling of emptiness left behind after a beloved has departed. I loved Fabulous as much as any human being I have loved. My love for Fabulous and his love for me was the sweetest and most beautiful love I have ever known.
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The Story of the Akita dog Hachiko (1923-1935)
A white male Akita dog named Hachiko was born in Odate, Japan in November 1923. He was owned by a professor of the Tokyo University. The professor commuted by train to and from work daily, always accompanied to and from the station by Hachiko. Conducting this activity together for over a year and a half, one day the professor did not return because he suffered a stroke and died at the university. Hachiko was eighteen months old. The next day and for the next nine years, Hachiko returned to the station and waited for his beloved master before walking home, alone. Nothing and no one could discourage Hachiko from maintaining his nightly vigil. Although Hachiko was cared for at the homes of relatives and friends, he always continued to await his master, who was never to return, at the train station. It was not until he followed his master in death that Hachiko failed to appear in his waiting place at the railroad station. . A bronze statue of Hachiko was put up at his waiting spot outside the Shibuya railroad station which pays silent tribute to Hachiko's faithfulness and loyalty.
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More to come...
Know of a historical animal tribute? Please send it to webmaster@grieftogreatness.com for publication on this page. If you have your own tribute to a deceased special animal in your life, please post it in our forum's pet loss section. We welcome your contributions and will credit you for the submission.
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