Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1893-07-29
A FIJI CLIMBS A WALL
The Way Newspaper "sp.ce Writers" Gee IN
Their Work.

The following. from the pen Of NJ A. Jeu1-
nings, is capital illustration OF how
writers can I'll space and make much ont
OF little. IL they want to and are allo~ei:
once upon time there was a CITY Cd
itor who said to a green reporter who had
olou tl1l IN a piece Of news TO the nSwspa-
per once; Write a column about it
But" said the reporter. Il hayea't ma
terial enough for a column
Inc city editor looked I'D with n pecu-
mar expression In his eyes and said.
gravely:
hhen you have been IN the business az
long as L have you can write a column
about ny crawling Up a blank wall
The reporter turned that over In his mind
10. q Week. Then he Sat down ana wress,
ny crawled up a blank wall"
Ten years later the reporter sat M a
desk with many blank sheets Of pap-r he
iore MIN. and he wrote this story:
a. was only plain. ordinary little house,
~, ~ Just such a fly as one can see ly Ire
six uttls hi any summers day. He had me
~, ANsie oiack. hairy legs. with the Eix 1T
u IIe suckers for feet that every little m h..
a.t - ,oshcateiy-veined, transparent rdnes
cnInrn ~ me sunshine would show pr1srnario
ism, would nutter hundreds 81 fine ,r =
ssoS were the same as those OF hun
saus u n,a ln,ihons OF other flies. He had the
same many lensed eyes, the same litris
trunk. the same yeliowish fat hosx ~,
character1zes all his kind ''@'
,ersI,s . =, particular little fly. aithouVn dif-
- heihs ID no physical particular from 0rhers
naa peculiar interest for the man who Va.
watching HIM. The fy was stanaI,.s -
~ mess lust above the wooden wainscotinr
go Wall Inc wall was OF rough rlasteT
an was unornamented II was abo,,t
to ~. ie eeIu rom the top OF the wain.cotinF
p. After the fly had stood quite st,r fo- mar
maps nrty seconds he started TO clirsh ~.
and ,hIs walked rapidly for seven Inches
apparent e eeDpoed suddenly. There was no
ala, and not only that. but he ,,,r,'sP ~, ~
his ma nan way around. Then he scTatched
thought He Hen nis Tore feet as II in deep
rubbing I bia b shes paused again and began
ousiv w. rs niho legs together very v1gor-
he synootb nsn a ne had tired OF this exercise
-, .oone1 Gown his wings and tbe, ,-,,h
uea ms hind legs together again. N.xt y.
Mashed his fore legs with fnyfv,hls 800 -
with ereat care water" and he did Il
slSuIar ABOUT his personal aopearanee enr
ln.ra,t Ie ms simple toilet with much de-
hperaulon ana thoroughness ~
ne was now eight inches above .b. ,.r,,~
sSotlns. Immediately in front OF him not
an eghth OF an inch away from his t,,,,I
va as ,a,,1 little white bowider. OF course to
me me human eye II was not a bowlder al ali
out only tiny bit OF gravel. but then n
was half as big as the iy's body, and n was
= great stone to him, The ~ looked at the
form and sharp corners jutted IRON n al
many places. The bowlder was dustv 40
and the ny. as has been said. had bit very
recently made his toilet. OF course he
could have easily flown over the bovlder.
put ne wasn't flying on this trip; be was
The Hy eazed at the bov.der with an .x-
preston OF doubt In one or two hundred OF
his eyes and his trunk curled and uncurled
rapidly, which Is 9 ny's way Of showing
To the Immediate right Of the bov,aer
was little brown patch. II stuck out from
the wall quite as high az the bowidsr. per-
IL was q little tuft OF cow hahn ssch as
plasterers mix with mortar and gravel to
make rough plaster walls. That was an 70
veritable Jungle. q tangled ana impenstrabiS
thicket, dangerous 20 6ehcate wings and
containing shsrp-pointed branches which
should he try to force his way through.
No, II would never do TO 60 to the right.
that was certain.
bowlder and IL OF his eyes Frightened as
he saw that the road was clear there, why
he hadn't noticed this IN the first place 70
for hts not doing so would require a most
thinking. ana, anyhow. IL was strictly the
the right first instead OF to the Ieft be
probably had his own private reason for
so doing. He was climbing that wall and
or he neessS sa. 4. s
not intimate IL
As soon as he saw that the way was
upward I'VE and one-haif inches. Then be
stopped very suddenly indeed Tbs road
ahead OF him was quite free from tmpedi-
70 rest He was a vigorous young nv and
his legs were strong. He could easily have
walked all the way from the wainscoting %
the ceiling without pausing for breath n
nothing happened 20 stop him II Vas evi-
dent that something serious WINS TIE mat
ter for ses fly not only s,epgsdhs ssesa
half an inch. Then be waved his preboscis
about IN the air as though he were seeming
something.
The ny started on again, walked q quar-
ter OF an inch and again stopped The man
watching him smelled the wall at other
,Sse doas f, ,S,. feet swsy; A. last after be
made a discovery. He smelled turpentine
on the wall. The painters who had been
tered turpentine on the wall Flies detest
can help st. The ry wa. afraid to stir for
wasn't quite sure In what direction u was.
He scratched his head with his forefeet
again and coyitsted. Then he folded his
sank little lower than be usually carried
II. his legs-all but the suckers on his feet
relaxed, and he went 70 sleep. He would
sleep there till the odor Of the turpentine
should have passed away.
He had climbed up thirteen and q half
lncneSs had recedel half an inch ana had
made up q quarter OF an inch OF the lost
ground. He was therefore just thirteen
and a quarter inches from the starting
point and six feet ten and three-Qnarter
inches from his destination.
surprising that the ny should have as
many adventures during the rest ~ HIS
journey as he had already had. II would
take, say, six and half times much
space 20 describe them as has been 20 far
devoted TO him; Then HIS behavior when
he arrived at the ceiling. the surmises as
20 why he wanted 20 get there at all and
Why, being a .1y. he had started to walk In
stead OF flying, would surely use up . good
half column. Why. that ny was worth o
page OF any newspaper.
Flies have been known TO sleep an winter,
and this happened IN October. besides the
man went out OF town Until he returns
and begins to watch that ny again-thst fs.
II the ny IS still there-it will be fnlpoesi-
bic to finish this story. II the man ever
does come back and finds the Nv. anc tbs
iy wakes up and starts on his sourney
again. and the paper and pencil hold out,
the story may be published as . serial and
later In book FORM 1t must stop here foe
the present
The Influence of Dress Upon Humssfev.