Which excerpt from The Land, Part 4 is an example of direct characterization of Mitchell? But I also figured Mitchell needed somebody to speak up for him, the same way Mitchell must have figured I needed somebody to speak up for me on the day we buried my mama. At this time, though Mitchell had befriended me more than once in his way over the years, I still did not consider Mitchell a close friend. I asked him if Mitchell could go with us. "He's right good with horses now," I said. "He's gentle with them, and they trust him." Mitchell didn't say anything. He just gave me a look and walked away, but I knew I'd gotten to him.