I was sittin' beside the road in Blackjack County   Not knowing that the sheriff paid a bounty   For men like me who didn't have a penny to their names   So he locked my leg to thirty-five pounds   Of Blackjack County chain      And all we had to eat was bread and water   And each day we had to build that road a mile and a quarter   And a black sneak whip would cut our backs   When some poor fool complained   But we couldn't fight back wearin' 35 pounds   Of Blackjack County chain      And then one night while the sheriff was a sleepin'   We all gathered round him slowly creepin'   And heaven help me to forget that night in the cold cold rain   When we beat him to death with a thirty-five pounds   Of Blackjack County chain      Now the whip marks have all healed and I am thankful   That there's nothing but a scar around my ankle   But most of all I'm glad no man will be the slave again   To a black sneak whip and thirty-five pounds   Of Blackjack County chain   Blackjack County chain   Blackjack County chain