William Ostrum 
Dec. 25, 1994 
William J. Ostrum, 63, Of Lower Demunds Road, Dallas, Died Sunday In 
Wilkes-barre General Hospital.

Sunday, December 25, 1994 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Page: 10B 





I won pyrrhic victory in war of words &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 I began this column on a dareMy soon-to-be-ex boss had been suggesting it
for months, maybe years, when he finally threw down the gauntlet. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; "Why don't you write a column? " Dale Duncan asked me once again. "Readers
would be interested in knowing how decisions are made in the newsroom and what
the editor thinks." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 My not-enough-time excuse was worn out from overuse. He wasn't buying it.
Of course I didn't have time, but I didn't have time for the 10 other things I
was doing as well. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "Why don't you write a column?" I responded. "You used to be a journalist
--before the powers that be gave you a blood transfusion and filled you with
the publisher's type." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 We exchanged looks. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The challenge was on. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 At first, we were neck and neck. He'd stroll down to the newsroom. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "Mine's half done," he'd say nonchalantly. "How's yours coming?" &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "Haven't started yet," was my most common response. "I'll start tomorrow." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 There are advantages to being, respectively, the editor and publisher. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 We ignored deadlines with abandon. No, with glee. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The first few months, we were close to even. He'd miss a week. I'd miss a
week. You'd see the small editor's note in gray: Either No Duncan or No
Walzer. At first the editor's note added "this week." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Then there were the weeks of No Duncan and No Walzer. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 They were the least fun. Neither of us could say anything to goad the
other. There was no competition. We had both given in to the time genie. And
lost. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 But I'll tell you when I knew I had won, not that week's battle, but the
war. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 There were two clues. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 First he stopped coming to ask me if I was writing the column. I'd have to
volunteer the information and he'd get a sheepish look. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 But the real clue was when the editor in charge of the page stopped putting
a No Duncan note on the page when his column didn't appear. It had become
obvious: the exception wasn't when Duncan didn't write. It was when Duncan
did. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 I would have stopped writing, too. Without his needling, it just wasn't the
same. But some of you decided to take his place. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 You'd stop me in the street or the market to tell me you like the column
and notice when it's not there. You'd mark it up when I made grammatical
mistakes so I realized I had to pay extra attention to that, too. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The truth is Duncan is a much better writer than I am. We both know that. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 But as long as you'll keep reading, I'll keep writing. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Oh, and promise me you'll needle me every now and then, too. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 We all need that from time to time. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 * * * &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 I'm superseding the editor's note today: Have a happy holiday. I'll be back
next year! &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Allison Walzer is vice president and editor of The Times Leader. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

I Won Pyrrhic Victory In War Of Words I Began This Column On A Dare.