*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."
"Dey gimme 'bout as good clo's as I got now. When I was doin' 'roun' de
yard at Marster' house I wo' a shu't wid pleats 'cross de bosom in
front."
"Dey gimme some britches befo' freedom come, and den I t'ought I's 'bout
as big as anybody. Dey gimme dem when I was big 'nuff to dribe de calfs
up from de lot. But I neber go in de fiel' to wuk."
"Atter freedom come I go to school to a white lady name' Mrs. Tunsten
she had a son name' Waddy. She teach de school at Shiloh and all de
white chillun and nigger chillun go to school in de same room. She teach
her own chillun in dat school on de Huntsville road. I 'member de stages
and t'ings gwine by. I t'ought she was a good teacher, but she whip me
half a day one time 'cause I didn' spell "gangrene." She whip me 'till I
learn how to spell it and I ain't neber forgit. I kin spell dat word
yit. I's satisfy she from de Nor'f. Dere was a ol' stage stan' dere by
de school house."
"I went to dat teacher and dat school t'ree or fo' year'. Atter she quit
teachin' dey was other teachers what come drappin' in and teachin' t'ree
or fo' months."
"My pa he uster wuk in de fiel' 'till freedom come. My ma she wuk in de
kitchen. Dat how come I git so much outer de kitchen to eat. Sometime
she hafter wuk in de fiel' too."
"Jis' like I say, I stay 'roun' de big house. I raise up wid de white
chillun 'till I was 25 or 30 year' ol'."
"I t'ink dey stay at de ol' place a year or mo' atter freedom. Den dey
'gin to drif' 'roun' to diff'rent place w'ere dey find wuk to do. I stay
wid de ol' folks and he'p s'po't (support) 'em wid what money I git for
de wuk what I doin'. My ma lef' my pa at de ol' plantation, and her and
me and a gal what was ol'er dan me, what was my sister, us move."
"De fus' wuk I done and de fus' money I mek was pickin' cotton for a
white man. De fus' money I git I buy me a ol' Webster Blue-back speller.
Lawd, I uster look at dat book sometime 'till dem A B C's all run
togedder seem like."
"Dat plantation was de Johnnie Murchison plantation. Us stay dere 'bout
five or six year'. Atter dat I lef' dere and went to wuk for cullud man
what was name' Sam Scott. I wuk 'roun' in de fiel' and go to mill when I
was on dat place."
"I 'member seein' de sojers. Dey was a big troop of 'em come marchin'
down de road. Dey was all of 'em dress' up in blue coats and some of 'em
had blue capes over dey shoulders. Dey had wagons and lots of sich
t'ings comin' 'long behin'."
"I can't tell you much 'bout de ol' marster 'cause I didn' see him eb'ry
day. Lots and lots of time I didn' hab no notion where he was."
"Dey was a large troop of cullud folks on de place. When dey want 'em
dey blow a bugle or ho'n or sump'n'."
"I git marry in Houston county. I don' 'member what year it was but it
was back in Cleveland's 'ministration. Den atter while she die and dat
lef' me a widower. Den 'bout 28 year' ago I marry Ollie Washington. I
was wukkin' for Scott befo' I marry Washington. Dat's my li'l 'dopted
gran'chile dere. You see dat t'ing 'roun' her neck? Dat's hoss hair roll
up in a clo'f. Dat to he'p when she teethin'. Dat good for stomach and
bowel trouble, too. Long as she wear dat she ain't gwine to hab no fever
in de head needer. I gwine to let her wear it 'till she finish cuttin'
her teef. I jis' put dat rag 'roun' it to keep it from stickin' her. You
kin see how healthy she is."
"Anudder t'ing what good for chillun when dey's teethin' is for to tek a
rabbit head and 'noint (anoint) dey gums good wid rabbit brains. Some of
de ol' folks wear a dime tie' 'roun' dey leg wid a hole in it for de
rheumatism."
"May-apple for a good purgative too, but you got to know how to use it.
Iffen you don' use it right though, it gwine to stir up your stomach and
mek you sick. And you better not drink no milk when you tek dat
May-apple root and you don' want to eat nuffin' needer. Dat's bitter'n
quinine."
"Co'se, sometime some of de slaves die on de plantation. I know dey have
home-mek coffin, but I ain't neber see 'em mekin' one. Sometime' when de
corpse a-layin' dere dead dey have a wake."
"Dem what wanted 'em had a li'l patch of groun' where dey plant garden
truck and veg'tables for deyself. Dey have half a day off on Sunday, and
den co'se, dey have Sunday. All de slaves have big holiday on Crismus."
"Dey lib in log houses. Moss and du't (dirt) was pack' all in 'tween de
logs and boards was nail' on over dat. Ol' marster he have a awful large
house buil' outer plank. It had a gallery to de front and back."
"Dey had a li'l house down de way dey had preachin' in. De white
preacher he do de preachin'. Seem to me dat soon play out."
"Dey had a ol' lady what ten' to de chillun when dey in de fiel' pickin'
cotton. Sometime she uster sing:
'My Lord say dey's room enough,
Room enough in hebben fer us all.'
fotch (fetch) 'em a whack on de head and say:
'Come 'long wid dat row."
"Atter freedom come de darkies uster have a song what go like dis:
'Come along
Come along
Make no delayin'
Soon be so Uncle Sam give us
all a farm.
'Come from de way
Come from de nation
'Twon't be long 'till Uncle Sam
give us all a farm.'
Atter while de Klu Kluxers git atter de cullud folks. Den dey mek a
song:
'Run nigger run de Klu Klux git you.'
Lots of time dey come on Sunday. One place dere was a big plum thicket
'long de road and dey dodge in dere and ketch people. Lots of cullud
folks hafter pass by dere to git where dey gwine. In de day time dem Klu
Kluxes was jis' in dey common clo's but when dey come in de nights dey
did figger deyself wid dem high p'int hats and white t'ings wrap 'roun'
'em."
"I b'longs to de Baptis' Chu'ch. I reckon dat was de Baptis' chu'ch back
in dem days, but I don' 'member no baptisms back in slavery. I 'members
though that dey was a blin' cullud man what uster preach."
"I 'members dey was lots of smallpox one time. Dat was atter freedom
come, 'bout 50 year' ago. De people was sho' scare' of it, wusser'n if
it was a Winchester. When I fus' 'member 'bout dat smallpox dey was a
man had it and dey run him 'bout a mont' and bu'n him. If dey find out
you got de smallpox you jis' long gone, you better not go out nor in.
Dey put de food on de gate-pos'. If you don' git better in so many days
dey bu'n you and de house and eb'ryt'ing up."
"I uster farm 'till de boll weevil start in dis part of de country.
Atter dat sawmillin' and public works. Jis' go from one sawmill to
anudder. But I spen' my bes' days on de farm."
"When I was cut off dem sawmill and public works jobs I was done wo'
out. Dey orter stop' me fifteen years befo' dey did, 'cause den I
mightenter (might not have) been wo' out. Now I can't do nuffin'."
"I los' one of my eye 'bout seben year' ago. I have de fever and it
settle in my eye and jis' cook. Dat was when I had meningitis."
"I can't plow no mo'. I jis' live on my li'l bit of pension and dat
ain't nuttin'."