Mysteries Of A Hobo's Life

Cisco Houston

I took a job on an extra gang,

Way up in the mountain,

I paid my fee and the shack shipped me

And the ties I soon was counting.



Well the boss he put me driving spikes

And the sweat was enough to blind me,

He didn't seem to like my pace,

So I left the job behind me.



I grabbed a hold of an old freight train

And around this country traveled,

The mysteries of a hobo's life

To me were soon unraveled.



I traveled east and I traveled west

And the shacks could never find me,

Next morning I was miles away

From the job I left behind me.



I ran across a bunch of stiffs

Who were known as Industrial Workers.

They taught me how to be a man

And how to fight the shirkers.



I kicked right in and joined the bunch

And now in the ranks you'll find me,

Hurrah for the cause, to hell with the boss

And the job I left behind me.