Old Drum

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Old Drum’s Story: The Death of a Dog, the Birth of a Legend.

The shot that rang out the night of Oct. 18, 1869, affected dog lovers everywhere. On the night Old Drum was shot, Charles Burden found his favorite dog dead and vowed someone would pay for the murder of his beloved and valuable hound. That “someone” was his neighbor and brother-in-law, Leonidas Hornsby. Several of Hornsby’s sheep had recently been killed by dogs, so he vowed death to the first dog found on his property. Old Drum just happened to be that unfortunate dog. Burden could not let the death of Old Drum go unpunished, so the case went to court.

Burden v. Hornsby (1869-1870)

The case of Burden v. Hornsby was tried three times before the final case on Sept. 23, 1870, in Warrensburg. Hornsby took the case to the Court of Common Pleas in Warrensburg, claiming the case against him was circumstantial. Ironically, Hornsby did not actually pull the trigger; his ward Samuel “Dick” Ferguson did.

At this trial, Burden brought in the legal expertise of George Graham Vest, who made his now-famous speech — essentially a eulogy for Old Drum — appealing to the jury and to dog lovers all over the world. The speech won the case for Burden, who was awarded $50 in damages for the loss of Old Drum. Hornsby took the case to the Missouri Supreme Court, where the verdict was upheld.

Eulogy of the Dog
“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 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 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.

“Gentleman 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 the 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 fall 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.” — George Graham Vest (Sept. 23, 1870)

Characters in the Case

George Graham Vest
George Graham Vest, probably the most famous face from the trial, was born Dec. 6, 1830, in Frankfort, KY. Following graduation from law school, he moved to Pettis County, MO, and began practicing law in Georgetown. He moved to Boonville, MO, and in 1860 was elected to the Missouri House of Representatives, where he was Chairman of the Committee on Federal Relations. He was also the author of the Vest Resolutions, which denounced coercion of the South.

When the Civil War broke out, Vest returned to the South to give his services to the Confederacy. After the war, he returned to Sedalia in Pettis County and resumed his law practice. In 1869, Vest was asked to represent Burden and Old Drum in the case that would make him famous. In 1877, he moved to Kansas City, where he was elected two years later to the United States Senate. He served in the Senate until March 3, 1903.

In 1854, Vest married Sallie Sneed of Danville, KY. They had three children — two sons and a daughter. On Aug. 9, 1904, Vest died at his summer home in Sweet Springs, MO. He’s buried in St. Louis.

Charles Burden
Charles Burden, owner of Old Drum, was born Feb. 28, 1825, in Kentucky. He came to Missouri before the Civil War to farm. Burden was known for owning choice land along Big Creek in Johnson County and a pack of good hunting dogs. He had three children: Sallie, Jennie, and Charles. Charles Burden died in February 1911 on the farm.

Leonidas Hornsby was Burden’s brother-in-law and neighbor. There was no known ill will between the men either before or after the case of Old Drum; the years healed any wounds after the trial. According to relatives, though both men were not poverty stricken, it took several years to fully recover from the financial losses of the trial. Burden and Hornsby are buried a few yards apart in Hornsby Cemetery outside Kingsville, MO.

Learn more about Old Drum and the Johnson County Courthouse here.