names of sixteen others of the most prominent and most competent white citizens, all of whom certified that there was no reasonable grounds for any doubt whatsoever but that Phillis Wheatley was the original author of the poems.
Her glory and fame had been sounded far and wide, but now comes a dark day. Mrs. Wheatley, while Phillis was in the height of her glory in Europe, became quite sick and much desired to see her Phillis, although the photo of this girl hanging upon the wall was some comfort. She finally grew worse and kindly asked Phillis to come home at once. This summons the grateful and loving-hearted girl obeyed, immediately sailing direct for Boston. She arrived in time to see but little of her former mistress—mother—before death came and called the sick away. Not very long afterwards Mr. Wheatley and daughter followed Mrs. Wheatley to the grave. The son married and took up his abode in England. Phillis, now, left to look out entirely for herself, accepted a proposal to marry a colored gentleman of respectability named John Peters.
The noble woman, being quite popular and much beloved, caused John Peters to become jealous, which jealousy grew into cruelty. Their only child had died at an early age—all of which bore so heavily upon the already feeble woman that she, after spending a very short married life, died on the 5th day of December, 1784, at the age of thirty-one. Thus passed away the brightest and most generally beloved Afro-American woman of her day. This Afro-American, coming in a
