Why did papa work away from home

Papa had to work for the railroad in order to supplement their income. The needed the extra income to be able to hold onto the farm.

It was good rich land, much of it still virgin forest, and there was no debt on half of it. But there was a mortgage on the two hundred acres bought in 1918 and there were taxes on the full four hundred, and for the past three years there had not been enough money from the cotton to pay both and live on too.

That was why Papa had gone to work on the railroad.