The next morning as I walked up to the gates with Jack, I heard yelling coming from the others.
"Hey what's going on?" Jack asked Race. " They jacked up the prices! you hear that Jack? 10 more cents a 100! You know it's bad enough that we got to eat what we don't sell, now they jack up the price! can you believe that?"
" This will bust me, I'm barely making a living right now," Skittery complained.
" I'll be back to sleeping on the streets," Boots said miserably.
"It don't make no sense," Mush said to Jack, " I mean, all the money pulled there's making, why would he gouge us?"
"Because he's a tight wad, thats why!" Racetrack yelled.
Pipe down, it's just a gag. So, why the jack up Weasel?
Weasel gave him a slimey grin. "Why not? It's a nice day. Why don'tcha ask Mr. Pulitzer?"
"They can't to this to me Jack." Blink said. Race glared at Weasel. "They can do whatever they want. It's their stinkin' paper. " He said. Boots looked at the ground sadly. "It ain't fair. We got no rights at all." " Come on, it's a rigged deck. They got all the marbles." Race said.
Mush sighed and walked over to us. "Jack, Jace, we got no choice, so why don't we
get our lousy papes while they still got some, huh?"
"No!" Jack yelled. " Nobody's going anywhere. They can't get away with this!" He sat down on the curb with mr. "Give em some room, give em some room. Let them think." Les said. If I wasn't so annoyed, I would've laughed. After a few minutes Race said; "You two done thinkin' yet?"
"Hey! Hey! Hey! World employees only on this side of the gate!" Weasel yelled at us, causing most of us to yell back.
"Well, listen. One thing for sure, if we don't sell papes, then nobody sells papes. Nobody comes through those gates until they put the price back to where it was." Jack said, standing up. "You mean like a strike?" David asked. "Yeah, like a strike!" I said, also standing up.
"Are you out of your mind?" Race asked us. "It's a good idea!" Jack replied. " Jack, I was only joking. We can't go on strike, we don't have a union." David told him. "But, if we go on strike, then we are a union, right?" I asked.
"No, we're just a bunch of angry kids with no money. Maybe if we got every newsie in New York, but..." David trailed off, knowing where this was gonna go.
"Yeah, well we organize. Crutchy, you take up for collection. We get all the newsies of New York together." Jack said. "Jack, this isn't a joke. You saw what happened to those trolley workers." David told him. "Yeah, well that's another good idea. Any newsie don't join with us, then we bust their heads like the trolley workers." Jack said. I smirked at the idea.
"Stop and think about this Jack. You can't just rush everybody into this." Dave told him.
"Alright. Let me think about it. Listen. Dave's right. Pulitzer and Hearst and all them other rich fellas, I mean, they own this city, so do they really think a bunch of street kids like us can make any difference?" Jack said. "The choice has got to be yours. Are we just gonna take what they give us, or are we gonna strike?" I chimed in after.
"Strike!" Les yelled, causing me to laugh and David to cover his mouth. "Keep talking Jack, tell us what to do!" Boots called out. "Well, you tell us what to do Davey." I said, putting an arm on his shoulder. David looked at Jack and said; "Pulitzer and Hearst have to respect our rights."
Jack grinned and called out, "Hey listen! Pulitzer and Hearst have to respect the rights of the working boys of New York!" He leaned over to me and Davey. "Well, that worked pretty good, so what else?" I smirked. "Tell them that they can't treat us like we don't exist." I told Jack. He grinned at me, and jumped up onto the statue.
Song starts
Jack: Pulitzer and Hearst, they think we're nothing. Are we nothing?
Newsies: No!
David: If we stick together like the trolley workers then they can't break us up.
Jack: Pulitzer and Hearst, they think they got us. Do they got us?
Newsies: No!
David: We're a union now, the Newsboys Union. We have to start acting like a union.
Jack: Even though we ain't got hats or badges, We're a union just by saying so. And the World will know!
Boots: What's to start somebody else from selling our papes?
Jack: Well, what's wrong with them?
Racetrack: Some of them don't hear so good!
Jace: Well then we'll soak 'em!
David: No! We can't beat up kids in the streets. It'll give us a bad name.
Crutchy: Can't get any worse.
Jack: What's it gonna take to stop the wagons? Are we ready?
Newsies: Yeah!
"No!" David called out, but most of us just ignored him.
Jack:
What's it gonna take to stop the scabber?
Can we do it?
Newsies: Yeah!
Jack:
We'll do what we gotta do until we Break the will of mighty Bill and Joe!
Newsies:
And the World will know. And the Journal too! Mr. Hearst and Pulitzer, Have we got news for you!
Now the World will hear, What we've got to say, We've been hawking headlines, But we're making 'em today. And our ranks will grow!
Crutchy: And we'll kick their rear!
Newsies: And the World will know that we been here!
Jack:
When the circulation bell starts ringing
Will we hear it?
Newsies: No!
Jack: What if the Delancey's come out swinging', Will we hear it?
NEWSIES:No!
When you've got a hundred voices singing, Who can hear a lousy whistle blow? And the World will know. That this ain't no game. That we got a ton of rotten fruit and perfect aim. So they gave their word, But it ain't worth beans!
Now they're gonna see what 'stop the presses' really mean. And the day has come. And the time is now. And the fear is gone.
Boots: And their name is mud!
Newsies: And the strike is on
Boots: And I can't stand blood!
Newsies: And the World will..
Jack: Pulitzer may crack the whip but he won't whip us!
Newsies:
Pulitzer may crack the whip but he won't whip us! And the World will know. And the World will learn. And the World will wonder how, We made the tables turn
And the World will see
That we had to choose
That the things we do today
Will be tomorrow's news
And the old will fall
And the young stand tall
And the time is now
And the winds will blow
And our ranks will grow
And grow and grow and so
The World will feel the fire
And finally know!
Song ends
Everyone started chanting "Strike" while a few of us huddled around Jack. "We gotta get word out to all the newsies of New York. I need some of those....what'dja call 'em?" He asked David. "Ambassadors." I answered. Jack nodded. "Yeah, right. Okay, you guys, you gotta be ambastards and go tell the other that we're on strike." I smirked at his mispronunciation.
"Say, Jack, I'll take Harlem." Kid Blink said. "Yeah, I got Midtown." Race chimed in. "I got the Battery, Jack." Mush said. "Hey, I'll take the Bronx." Crutchy said.
"Alright." Jack said. " And Bumlets, and Specs and Skittery, you take Queens. Pie Eater! Snoddy! East Side! Snipeshooter, you go with 'em. So, what about Brooklyn? Come on, Spot Conlon's territory." No one said anything. "What'sa matta? You scared of Brooklyn?"
"Hey, we ain't scared of Brooklyn." Boots said. "Spot Conlon makes us a little nervous." I rolled my eyes. "I'll take Brooklyn then." No." Jack said immediately. I looked at him confused. "I can take care of myself Jack." I told him. He looked at me with a smirk playing at his lips. "It ain't youse I'm worried about, it's whateva poor soul tries to mess with ya. The last time someone got ya mad youse ended up beating up five guys from Queens."
I smiled fondly at the memory. "Yeah... That was a fun day." David looked at me nervously, while Jack laughed. "Youse can take Brooklyn if Boots an I go with ya. And Davey here can keep us company." I nodded.
David shrugged. "Sure, just as soon as you deliver our demands to Pulitzer." Jack looked at him, surprised. "Me? To Pulitzer?" "You're the leader, Jack." David responded. I gave him a look. He noticed and added in; "You too Jace, but Jack's less likely to hit him. From what I'm hearing." I shrugged. He wasn't wrong. Jack locked at us before grabbing Les. "Well, maybe the kid'll soften him up." He said as the two entered the building.
A man walked over to David and I. "Hey, what is the strike? What's going on?" "We're bringing out demands to Pulitzer." David responded.
"What demands?" The man asked us. "The newsies demands. We're on strike." I told him. He nodded. "I'm with the New York Sun. Bryan Denton. You seem like the kids in charge. What're your names?"
"I'm David." David said. "David. David as in David and Goliath?" David nodded and he turned to me. "And you?" He asked me. "Jace Kelly." I told him. "You really think old man Pulitzer's going to listen to your demands?" Denton asked us.
"He has to." David said as Jack and Les were thrown out the door. "Well, so's your old lady! You tell Pulitzer he needs an appointment with me!" Jack yelled. "Yeah!" Les chimed in.
Denton looked at us then said; "How bout we go over to Tibby's and you four tell me about this strike of yours."
At the restaurant Jack begins telling us what happened. "So this snooty mug says to me, 'You can't see Mr. Pulitzer. No one sees Mr. Pulitzer.' Real hoity-toity, you know the type?" "Real hoity-toity." Les echos.
"So that's when I says to him, 'Listen, I ain't in the habit of transacting no business with office boys. Just tell him Jack Kelly's here to see him now!'" Jack continues. "That's when he threw us out." Les said after. I snorted at that.
Denton looked at us a bit surprised. "Does he scare you? You're going up against the most powerful man in New York City." Jack laughed. "Oh yeah, look at me. I'm trembling." Denton nodded. "Alright, keep me informed. I want to know everything that's going on." I look at him with interest. "Are we really an important story?" I asked him. Denton smiled and shrugged.
"Well, what's important? Last year I covered the war in Cuba. Charged up San Juan Hill with Col. Teddy Roosevelt. That was an important story. So, is the newsie's strike important? That all depends on you."
"So my name's really gonna be in the papers?" Jack asked him. "Any objections?" Denton asked. Jack shook his head. "Not as long as you get it right. It's Kelly, Jack Kelly. Oh, and Denton? No pictures." Denton nodded. "Sure Jack." he said as he left the restaurant.