e Chester road? Yes? Well, dere is where I was borned,
in May, 1853.

"I doesn't know who my pappy was. You know in them times folks wasn't
particular 'bout marriage licenses and de preacher tying de knot and all
dat kind of thing. But I does know mammy's name. Her name was Celie.
Dese eyes of mine is dim but I can see her now, stooping over de wash
tub and washing de white folks' clothes every Monday and Tuesday.

"Us belonged to Marster Charlie Bell and his lady, Miss Maggie Bell, our
mistress in them slavery days. Does I 'member who Miss Maggie was befo'
her married Marster Charlie? Sure I does. Mistress was a daughter of
Miss Anne Jane Neil, who lived to be a hundred and five years old, and
its writ on her tombstone in Concord Cemetery. I 'spect you has seen it,
ain't you? Old Miss Anne Neil was a Irish lady, born in Ireland across
de ocean. She had a silver snuff box; I seen it. She'd take snuff out
dat box, rub it up her nose and say: 'De Prince of Whales (Wales) give
me dis box befo' I come to dis country, and I was presented to his ma,
Queen Victoria, by de Duke of Wellington on my sixteenth birthday.' Old
Miss Anne Neil claims she was born over dere de very night of de battle
of Waterloo. And she would go on and 'low dat when de duke took her by
de hand and led her up to de queen, him say: 'Your Majesty, dis young
lady was born on de night of our great victory at Waterloo.'

"My young mistress was named Miss Margaret. She married Marse Wade
Brice. I was give to them when I was 'bout five years old and I went
along with them to Woodward, S.C. My mammy was give to them, too, at de
same time. Us lived in Marse Wade's quarter, to de east of de white
folks' house. Dere was a row of log houses, 'bout ten I think. Mammy and
me lived in one dat had two rooms. De chimney was made of sticks and
mud, but de floor was a good plank floor. De bed was a wood bedstead wid
a wheat straw tick. Dere was no windows to de house, so it was warm in
de winter time and blue blazing hot in de summer time.

"My white folks was mighty good to us; they fed us well. Us had wooden
shoes and no clothes a-tall in de summer, 'cept a one-piece slip on. My
mistress die 'bout a year after her marry, and then Marster Wade marry
Miss Tilda Watson, a perfect angel, if dere ever was one on dis red
earth. She take a liking to me right at de jump, on first sight. I
nussed all her chillun. They was Walter, Ida, Dickey, Lunsford, Wade,
Mike, and Wilson