A Synopsis Of 'The Most They Ever Had'

"The Most They Ever Had" is an inspiring story about hard working and suffering mill workers. The book is a compilation of stories about mill workers from Jacksonville, Alabama during this time. Rick Bragg, the author, wrote this book to remember those that endured the hardships of the mill workers. The people worked in extremely heated areas that contained thick smoke and cotton lint which often made it difficult to breathe and caused disease. Despite the health risks, the cotton mill workers endured these conditions because it was their way of life to keep their families stable and together. The mills were virtually their only option to provide for their families. Though today we learn about the tragedies of mill working, the mill workers

He began working in the mills when he was seventeen years old. In the current day of the story, he was sixty-five years old and he was currently having lung issues, needing to use oxygen tanks just to go about his daily life. We first meet Mr. Spears, passing by in Joe Green's cart, hanging out of the mill window gasping for fresh air. The workers would take turns to grasp a hint of fresh air during working long hours in a polluted work area. Many people who worked in the conditions of the mills developed respiratory issues and breathing problems. The most common disease was "brown lung disease" which is formally known as Byssinosis (page 122). When asked "why do you do it?" Leon's response was "it put bread in your mouth" (page 121). Basically, the commonality of the mill people was to have a "working to stay alive" mentality. Though it was entirely what they had, the job came with more complications than benefits except the fact that it gave them a stable job to provide for their families. Essentially, the health of the workers was more important than the little pay they earned but unfortunately, not a great deal of worker realized

Workers suffered when they began to live in mill villages because the privacy of the families was little to none. Mill owners would often intrude in the private lives of the families to monitor their daily lives. Owners gaining control over their workers was used solely to keep them in the area of work and intimidate them from making any mistakes because they would be fired for almost anything that was deemed unsatisfactory. This caused many workers to be cautious of their actions. In chapter three, the infamous mill owner was William Greenleaf, a stingy man, who never gave his workers their rightfully deserved wages. When the wages were supposed to be set at $7.00, he instead agreed to compromise to increase their wages twenty-five cents a week. The mill people had resentment lingering and burning for years, but everyone has a breaking point. The workers became fed up and began to take action. They angrily marched out their houses, waving pistols, torches and axe handles to find their "beloved Greenleaf." The workers brought a dummy, which was an effigy representing the mill owner, to the hanging tree to release their anger and watch their frustrations "hang on the tree." It is described that the workers wrapped its head and tied a sign around its neck that read "GREENLEAF" therefore the whole town,