The Last Rose of Summer

14

Phones were ringing constantly in Pulitzer's office and he was growing tired of it.

Jack and Ellie brushed past Bunsen who was yelling behind them.

Jack slapped a copy of the Newsies Banner down on Pulitzer's desk. "How ya doin' this mornin' fellas?"

"You're behind this! Both of you! We had a deal!"

"And it came with a money-back guarantee!" Jack threw the money back at Pulitzer. "Oh, and thank you for the lesson on the power of the press."

"Did you read this boss?" Seitz asked. "These kids put out a pretty good paper! Very convincing."

"No doubt written by my daughter and Hearst's daughter," Pulitzer frowned.

"I would sign both of them before someone grabs them," Jack stated.

"I demand to know who defied my ban on printing strike-related material."

Jack sat down in one of Pulitzer's chairs and said, "We're your loyal employees. We would never take our business elsewhere."

"That old printing press in the cellar," Seitz answered almost immediately.

"Ah," Hannah said.

"I gave you the offer of a lifetime," Mr. Pulitzer told Jack. "Anyone who does not act in his own self-interest is a fool."

Davey and Spot entered and the former said, "What does that make you? This all began because you wanted to sell more papers. But now your circulation is down 70 percent. Why didn't you just come talk to us?"

Jack scoffed as he stood. "Oh, guys like Joe don't talk to nobodies like us. But a very wise reporter once told me bein' a boss doesn't mean you got all the answers, just enough brains to snatch the right one when you hear it."

The group made their way to the window as a sound caught their attention.

--

Newsies:

Now is the time to seize the day.

Stare down the odds and seize the day.

Minute by minute, that's how you win it.

We will find a way.

Jack laughed as he glanced at Mr. Pulitzer and fixed his hat.

Newsies:

But let us seize the day.

--

"Have a look out there Mr. Pulitzer," Spot said. "In case you ain't figured it out, we got you surrounded."

Jack, Spot and Davey waved to the newsies below who waved up at them.

"New York is closed for business," Jack replied smugly. "Paralyzed. You can't get a paper or a shoe shine. You can't send a message, ride an elevator, cross the Brooklyn Bridge -- you can't even get out of your own building. So what's your next move?"

"Mr. Pulitzer, the mayor is here, along with your daughter, and... and you'll never believe who else," Bunsen informed.

"Good morning, Mr. Pulitzer," the mayor said as he entered the office. "I think you know the Governor."

"Governor Roosevelt!" Pulitzer cried.

"Joseph, Joseph, Joseph. What have you done now?" Governor Roosevelt asked.

"Wait until you hear my explanation..." Pulitzer began.

"Thanks to Miss Medda Larkin bringing your daughter to my office, I already have a thorough grasp on the situation -- graphic illustrations included! 'Bully' is the expression I usually employ to show approval, but in your case, I simply mean 'bully'. And is this the boy of whom you spoke? How are you son? I was told we once shared a carriage ride."

"Pleasure's mine, Mr. Governor," Jack answered with a surprising amount of calmness.

"Well, come along, Joe. Don't just stand there letting those children sing... endlessly. Give them the good news!" Governor Roosevelt said.

"What good news?" Mr. Pulitzer asked.

"That you've come to your sense and rolled back prices. Unless, of course, you want to invite a full state-centered investigation into your employment practices."

"You wouldn't."

"After the pressure you wielded to keep me from office? I'd do it with a smile! Come along Joseph. There is one thing worse than a hard heart, and that's a soft head. Think of all the happiness you'll bring those children. ...He doesn't do happiness, does he?"

"Mr. Kelly, if I may speak to you. Alone."

Ellie squeezed Jack's hand and smiled before following Katherine outside to the front of Pulitzer's office.

As the Governor was leaving, he patted Jack's shoulder and said, "Keep your eyes on the stars and your feet on the ground. You can do this."

After he left, Pulitzer turned to Jack. "I cannot put the price back where it was. I'm sorry, I can't. There are other considerations."

"I get it, Joe," Jack said. "You use the same face in front of all these folks. I ain't stupid, but I got constituents with a legitimate gripe!"

"What if I reduce the price by half and get the others to do the same? It's a compromise we can all live with."

"But... you eat our losses. From now on, every pape we can't sell, you buy back full price."

"That's never been on the table! And what's to keep newsies from taking hundreds of papers they can't sell? My costs will explode!"

"No newsie is gonna break his back carryin' around papes he can't sell; but if he can take a few extra with no risk, he might sell those and then your circulation will begin to grown." Jack mocked his words. ""It's a compromise we can all live with.""

"That's not a bad head you've got on those shoulders."

"Deal." Jack spit in his hand for a spit-shake.

"That's disgusting."

Pulitzer made a face and Jack smirked as he said, "That's just the price of doing business."

Pulitzer reluctantly returned the spit-shake.