"Goodbye," I said to my conscience--
"Goodbye for aye and aye,"
And I put her hands off harshly,
And turned my face away,
And conscience smitten sorely
Returned not from that day.

But a time came when my spirit
Grew weary of its pace;
And I cried: "Come back, my conscience,
I long to see thy face."
But conscience cried: "I cannot,
Remorse sits in my place.

by Paul Laurence Dunbar