That voice your sons hath swayed! ’Tis heard, and is obeyed! This gloomy day Tells you of ermine stained, Of Justice’ name profaned, Of a poor bondman, chained And borne away! Over Virginia’s Springs, Her eagles spread their wings, Her Blue Ridge towers:— That voice,[17]—once heard with awe,— Now asks,—“Who ever saw, Up there, a higher law Than this of ours?” Must _we_ obey that voice? When God, or man’s the choice, Must we postpone HIM, who from Sinai spoke? Must we wear slavery’s yoke? Bear of her lash the stroke, And prop her throne? Lashed with her hounds, must we Run down the poor, who flee From Slavery’s hell? Great God! when we _do_ this, Exclude us from thy bliss; At us let angels hiss, From heaven that fell! [Signature: J. Pierpoint] PASSAGES IN THE LIFE OF A SLAVE WOMAN. BY ANNIE PARKER. The slaves at Oak Grove did not mourn for poor Elsie when she died, said Aunt Phillis, continuing her narrative. She was never a favourite, and from the time her beauty attracted the notice of the young master, and he began to pet her, she grew prouder and prouder, and treated the other slaves as if she were their mistress, rather than their equal. They hated her for her influence over the master, and she knew it, and that made matters worse between them. When she died in giving birth to her second child, her little boy and I were the only ones who felt any sorrow. The master had grown tired of her, though he had once been very fond of her. Besides, he was at this time making arrangements for his marriage with a beautiful Northern lady, so that whatever he might have felt, nobody knew anything about it. Elsie was my younger sister. I loved her dearly, and had been almost as proud as she was of her remarkable beauty. Her little boy was very fond of his mother, and she doated upon him. He mourned and mourned for her, after her death, till I almost thought he would die too. He was a beautiful boy, and at that time looked very much like his father, which was probably the reason why the master sold him, before he brought his bride to Oak Grove. It was very hard for me to part with poor Elsie’s little boy. But the master chose to sell him, and my tears availed nothing. Zilpha, Elsie’s infant, was given me to take care of when her mother died, and with that I was obliged to be content.