By the end of the seventeenth century, indentured servants who gained their freedom had little choice but to hire themselves out for low wages to their former masters (D). Indentured servitude was a labor system in which individuals worked for a set number of years in exchange for passage to the colonies. Many indentured servants were poor and had few opportunities in their home countries, so they agreed to work for a set period of time in exchange for the chance to start a new life in the colonies. However, once their term of service was over, many found that they had few options for employment. Some indentured servants were able to acquire land and start their own farms, but many were forced to hire themselves out for low wages to their former masters. This was due in part to the fact that there was a surplus of labor in the colonies, which meant that employers could pay low wages and still find workers.