Owe My Soul To The Company Store
Olivia Luz
Under this scrip system workers were not paid cash.
Rather they were paid with non transferable credit vouchers that could be exchanged only for goods sold at the company store. I loaded sixteen tons of number 9 coal an the store boss said. 16 tons i owe my soul to the company store fba south parkdisclaimer. Well bless my soul.
Hence the line owe my soul to the company store. Living in these conditions often led men to become cynical bitter and hopeless which is reflected in the lyrics of the song. I owe my soul to the company store i was born one mornin when the sun didn t shine i picked up my shovel and i walked to the mine i loaded sixteen tons of number nine coal and the straw boss said well a bless my soul you load sixteen tons what do you get another day older and deeper in debt saint peter don t you call me cause i can t go. The words of this old song date back to the 1800 s when dominant and rapacious employers in small company towns would require their employees to purchase essentials from a â company store.
This made it impossible for workers to store up cash savings. I picked up a shovel an i walked out to the mine. When they ran out of money the store would run a tab for the workers which would indebt them to the store. Well i was born one mornin when the sun didn t shine.
RELATED ARTICLE :
- where can i watch the bears game today
- where can i watch the thanksgiving day parade
- where can you buy arctic fox hair dye
This and the line i owe my soul to the company store are a reference to the truck system and to debt bondage. I owe my soul to the company store from sixteen tons a song about coal miners made popular by tennessee ernie ford though there are conflicting stories about the exact origin of the song sixteen tons is about the life of of a coal miner or substitute any low wage worker if you like and how impossible it is to drag yourself up from the pit from where you find yourself. And because the employee was so badly paid inevitably they would run up steep tab simply to keep their family fed and clothed. I owe my soul to the company store.
Source : pinterest.com