The following poem first appeared on July 10, 1802, in the Port Folio, a Federalist literary paper published in Philadelphia. The version below was reprinted in the Richmond Recorder on September 1, 1802, on the same page as James Thomson Callender's article accusing Thomas Jefferson of having children by his slave Sally (presumably Sally Hemings). Although this version is unsigned, the original was attributed to Asmodio, possibly referring to the biblical king known in the Talmud as "the genius of matrimonial unhappiness" and who fell in love with Sara, killing seven of her husbands in turn. According to the Jefferson biographer Fawn M. Brodie, "The choice of pseudonym is a curiosity, since 'Sally' is the nickname for 'Sara,' and the intent of the ballad maker was clearly the destruction of Sara's 'husband.' It suggests that the author was a man of considerable erudition." Some spelling has been modernized.