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"Don't know," Stuffy said "Muffing flies for a price, you think? Tanking?"

Hooper crossed the field to them

"We're going to strike, boys"

Stuffy McInnis said, "You're drunk"

Hooper shook his head "They're fucking us, boys"

"Who?"

"The Commission Who do you think? Heydler, Hermann, Johnson Them"

Stuffy McInnis sprinkled tobacco into a slip of rolling paper and gave the paper a delicate lick as he twisted the ends "How so?"

Stuffy lit his cigarette and Ruth took a sip froe of trees under the blue sky

"They changed the gate distribution of the Series The percentage of receipts They did it last winter, but they didn't tell us till now"

"Wait," McInnis said "We get sixty percent of the first four gates"

Harry Hooper shook his head and Ruth could feel his attention begin to wander He noticed telegraph lines stretched at the edge of the field and he wondered if you could hear theh Gate receipts, distribution Ruth wanted another plate of eggs, some more bacon

Harry said, "We used to get sixty percent Noe get fifty-five Attendance is down The war, you know And it's our patriotic duty to take five percent less"

McInnis shrugged "Then it's our--"

"Then we forfeit forty percent of that to Cleveland, Washington, and Chicago"

"For what?" Stuffy said "Kicking their asses to second, third, and fourth?"

"Then, then another ten percent to war charities You seeing this now?" Stuffy scowled He looked ready to kick so into

Babe threw his hat in the air and caught it behind his back He picked up a rock and threw it at the sky He threw his hat again