[Aleck Trimble]
His skin was of an extremely dark chocolate color, his hair thin and gray. A blue shirt was about his body while blue trousers enclosed his nether limbs. His bare feet protruded as he sat on an old dilapidated chair. Under his flat nose was a gray mustache, and one eye had completely lost its vision. This small negro man was Aleck Trimble who thoughtfully told the story of his life. [HW: Veth, Tex.]
"I was bo'n in 1861. I warn't much of a chile when freedom come, but yet dey's right smart of t'ings I kin 'member in slavery times."
"My pa name was Aleck Trimble and dat's my name, too. My ma was Ellen Trimble and I was de onlies' son. I didn' hab no brudders. Ol' marster's las' name was Alexander, but I dis'member his fus' name."
"I uster hafter do a li'l wuk 'roun' de place like pullin' up weeds and drivin' de calfs. I 'member one time I was drivin' a calf up to de lot and I saw a crazy man. He didn' try to do nuffin' to me. I jis' walk up on him and he sittin' dere mumblin' and I know right den dere was sump'n' wrong wid him. He didn' try to hu't me nor run atter me, but he sho' scare me and I run away from him fas' as I kin."
"I warn't so glad when freedom come. I was a-farin' pretty well in de kitchen. I didn' t'ink 'eber see better times dan what dem was, and I ain't. I t'ought I was jis' as near hebben as I want to be. It didn' look to me like dey coulder been no betterer dan what dey was."
"I uster had jis' all I want to eat. Us hab biscuit and syrup, and plenty milk and butter. And dey give us all de collard greens and hog jowls us could hol'."
"Dey uster had lots of cows and all de milk and butter anybody want. Dey had a big bucket hangin' in de well. Dey put de butter in dat in de summer time to keep it from meltin'. How dey kep' it from sp'ilin'? Why, dey et it up, dat's how dey keep it from sp'ile."
"I neber see 'em do de slaves bad. Iffen dey did dey tek 'em off in de woods somers where nobody see 'em."
"Sometime nigger traders come 'long de road wid a big drove of niggers. I neber pay dat no min' though. It was jis' a drove of niggers to me."