 Remember a Hallmark card when you carry enough to send the very best. Some actual persons who in their own way have contributed to a better world for all of us to live in. Presented on the Hallmark Hall of Fame by our distinguished host, Mr. Lionel Barrymore. And welcome to the Hallmark Hall of Fame. Well each Sunday night we dramatize a true story for you. A true story about real people to whom we respectfully dedicate this Hallmark Hall of Fame. Those men and women whose service, sacrifice and devotion have made our own lives better. But about whom we know all too little. Tonight we honor a man who conquered the Atlantic Ocean. No, not Christopher Columbus, not Charles Lindbergh. Compared to those two giants, few of us know the name of Cyrus Field. The man who brought two hemisphere within a split second of each other by laying of the Atlantic cable. Listen then to the true story of one of the greatest achievements in the history of mass communication. And now here is Frank Goss from the makers of Hallmark Cards. When you're looking for a way to say something to someone you care for, look for a Hallmark card and you'll find the card you want to send. Because Hallmark cards are designed to say what you want to say, just the way you want to say it. With the good taste you demand of anything that bears your signature. That's why Hallmark on the back of a greeting card has come to mean you cared enough to send the very best. Lionel Barrymore appears by arrangement with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, producers of the Technicolor picture Lily, starring Leslie Carone, Mel Ferrer and Jean-Pierre Amant. And now here is Lionel Barrymore with the first act of your Hallmark Hall of Fame. He learns to speak and to make known his needs and wishes and desires and so it is with the nation. In 1837 America was growing into a lusty manhood. It was also finding a new voice, a voice of sound and electricity given to it by Samuel Morse. New giant among nations began to shout across vast distances, but the voice was stopped at the edge of the sea. Implacable, the Atlantic waited through the years for a challenge. Whom would it come and when? Well, nobody knew. Not even Mary Field as she and her young husband Cyrus paused to watch the surf during an evening stroll along the beach. The year is now 1854. Cyrus, is anything wrong? Wrong, my dear? No. You seem so preoccupied of late. You should be happy. You're retired so you could relax and enjoy life. At the age of 35? But you've accomplished a great deal, Cyrus. I just know that my mind and my hands cry out for work. This country is growing. I want to do something new, important, to I sound pompous. Well, I must say you sound most ambitious. I mean it very humbly, Mary. I want to be worthy, worthy of you, worthy of my country and what it has given to me. You understand? Yes. I guess I'd forgotten that you were really two men. I wanted to have both of you to myself. But I guess that stubborn one will always insist upon working. Yes, Mary. What will you do, Cyrus? Return to the old business? No. Now I've been thinking about that engineer, Fred Gisborne. Gisborne? The gentleman who came to you with that, that wild scheme about a telegraphic cable from New York to Newfoundland? Oh, it's not a wild scheme, Mary. A cable under the water? Well, of course it's wild. It would get all rusty and everything. Wouldn't it? Now be serious. What are you going to do? Mary, I'm going to lay a telegraphic cable from New York to Europe under the Atlantic Ocean. It's complete for Cyrus Field. Each day sees 100 letters written or received and the house lights burn through the night as small groups of men gather to hear his plan. Some of them leave with a bothering concealer laughter. Others frown, few are thoughtful. A year of preparation and then the final interview, the important interview. Mr. Morse finally receives Cyrus Field into his home. How old are you, young man? Thirty-six, Mr. Morse. At the rate you've been flooding my home with letters, you must have started writing them when you were ten. I didn't intend to inconvenience you, Mr. Morse. It doesn't matter. I'm going to be blunt, Mr. Field, but you propose to attempt is impossible. But it isn't, sir. How can you say that? You haven't your own writings predicted a transatlantic cable. In time, yes, but not now. It's too uncertain. No sane person would invest a penny in such an enterprise. If you had investigated the difficulties to be encountered, you'd have abandoned the project long ago. I'm not an idle dreamer, sir. I've been in preparation for more than a year. I've consulted engineers. I've studied every available chart in the topography of the ocean floor. Since you've already wasted your time, please be prudent enough not to waste your money. My personal investment has already spent, sir. Spent on what? A hundred thousand miles of copper wire with more to come. Options on ten thousand tons of iron for casing and thousands of bales of insulating material. Too bad you haven't enough left to build a ship to carry your purchases. There isn't a vessel in the world big enough to attempt it. Not one. Two vessels can do it, sir. Two war frigates. One from America and one from England. They'll give me the ships with your help. War frigates are not equipped for carrying or laying cables. They can be refitted, sir. I've been over it with Brunel, the shipbuilder. Here are the plans. And here are the blueprints for the cable laying machine. You're a very industrious young man, Mr. Field. I'm going to lay that cable, sir. May I have the honor of your support? I'm sorry. I admire your enterprise, young man. I don't permit yourself to be ridiculed as a fool. If I were afraid of a word, I would have little chance to conquer an ocean. The label of fool leaves a very deep scar. A scar can become a mark of honor, sir. When I was a boy, the world was snickering at a man who made a one inch spark jump from a laden jar. He went on with it, though, and gave the world a telegraph. His name was Samuel Morse, sir. Good night, sir. Well, just a moment, Mr. Field. As long as we're going to be partners, you'd better stay for dinner. The Atlantic Ocean. Mountains of copper and iron and insulation to be woven into cable. For two years it grew, coil upon coil. Field was ready to take his first small step. And it was a successful one. The cable was laid from New York to Newfoundland. The Atlantic, like a giant disturbing sleep, began to toss and mutter, turning its baleful green eyes to the puny Christmas air. Oh, thank you, Captain. You'd better have a look at these, Mr. Morse. All right. You too, Fred. Yes, sir. Our starting point, gentlemen. Now, one end of the cable is secured to the land station. As we start laying it out to sea, we'll be able to keep in constant contact with them. By communicating through the cable as it's being unwound? That's right, Captain. We've got almost 1,200 miles of cable aboard the Niagara, and we finish laying that will be about here in mid-ocean. You'll keep me informed on speed changes? Of course. Now, the British frigate, the Agamemnon, has an equal amount of cable on board. Sheila Company is out to mid-Atlantic, at which point we'll transfer the end of our cable to her for splicing. And she'll lay the second half. All clear? Perfectly. Now, that's it then. Machinery all in order, Fred. I'll be our guide, gentlemen. All right, Captain. You may get underway. Attention now, why? We're still in contact with the shore station. I'll signal them. You can look astern, sir. And wasn't your fault? What do I say to you, my dear? What do I say to the people who trusted me? There's only one thing you need to say to me. For the others, I know what you're going to say to them. It's been in your mind for days. Yes, and stopped at his first defeat. We'd have no country. We'd have no world. This ocean can be conquered. And I swear, before heaven, it will be conquered. Far true story of Cyrus Field. What does Easter mean to you? A stroll to church with your family and friends, a child's delight in his Easter basket, or the first fresh tulips in the garden? For most of us, Easter means all these things and something more. It's the time of year when we long to share our joy in the shining new season with all our loved ones, near and far. And that's why I think you'll appreciate the varied collection of Hallmark Easter cards you'll find at fine stores across the country. You see, there's a Hallmark Easter card for everyone you're fond of, from grandmother to the tiny tot next door. You can select religious greetings that recall the holy promise of the first Easter Sunday, or light-hearted cards, bedecked with bunnies or flowers or perched spring bonnets. And you can be sure of it, each Hallmark Easter card you mail will grab in the heart and lift the spirits of the receiver. So why not get yours soon? Just look for the Hallmark and Crown on the back. The familiar symbol you always look for when you carry enough to send the very best. And now here is Lionel Barrymore. Failure? Cyrus Field started again, bidding himself and his cable against the Atlantic Ocean. But this he wouldn't yield. The second turn. And the third. The ships returned with a frayed and broken cable trailing out. All but Cyrus Field. There's one last thing I want to try. What's that? Instead of starting with the cable joined to a land station, I want to start laying it from mid-ocean. Join the cable there and head to Niagara for America while the Agamemnon heads for Britain with a cable connecting the two ships, laying it out between them. We can maintain telegraphic contact between the two vessels. It's the only way we haven't tried. If nothing happened, none of those of the completed cable walked the world. A message from James Buchanan, the President of the United States, was immediately telegraphed to Victoria, Queen of England. The Queen replied within minutes for the first time in history, instantaneous communications between the two hemispheres. Pandemonium heralded the dawn of a new era. A two-day holiday in New York to honor Cyrus Field. No forewarning of the trouble to come. The cable lies silent during the festivities, waiting for the formal opening of regular service. A momentous occasion. President James Buchanan will personally handle the telegraphic key. Are we ready, gentlemen? Yes, Mr. President. If you will step over here. You just tap the key a few times, President Buchanan, and the London End will answer. Really? Just sit right here, sir. That's key. They'll actually receive it in London and answer me. In a split second, sir. Wonderful, fabulous age we live in. May I go ahead? Whenever you wish, sir. Proceed. Most immediately. Some technical difficulty, perhaps, gentlemen? No, sir. Any message to Queen Victoria was prepared. The home that her message to me might also have been prepared some time ago. Mr. President, I hope you don't think... Mr. Field, I'm just pointing out a fact that skeptics will make capital use of. Unpleasant memory. Queen Victoria's field five years of brooding. History moved on. Only the sea was unchanged. He's always down here by the water, Fred. He likes to be alone at times. Marry him. He'll be delighted to see you, Fred. Say the same things there about us. That the cable was a fake, that there never was a message. Fred isn't even going to answer that. You both know the truth, and so do I. Yes. And so does the sea. The truth is buried out there, someplace lost forever. The truth is never lost forever. No, I suppose not. Where was the flaw, Fred? The weak spot. Was it where we made the splice between the two ships? I stopped wandering a long time ago. Only there had been one ship big enough. One ship big enough to carry the entire cable and equipment. Maybe there never will be. There's one big enough right now. Twice the size of anything you've ever seen. No. I saw it. You remember Brunel, the shipbuilding? Of course. I remember he refitted the Niagara for it. The sea hasn't been too kind to him either. He built the ship I speak of. The Great Eastern. Huh? Well, did something happen to it? Did it sink? Sink? No. Probably rot. Nobody wants it. They say it's impractical. Well, then they're wrong. Brunel is no fool. Oh, if only we had the Great Eastern. We could have laid one cable straight across. One that our friend out there wouldn't grind apart. The Great Eastern is rotting. You could make use of it, Cyrus. You and Fred now. Mary. You did it once, didn't you? Anything with you, Cyrus. You know that. But it'll take money. I haven't any. I'll get it. Where? From friends, neighbors, strangers, anybody I can talk to. Anybody who believes in this country, I'll get it. The people who believed in America and progress and the future. From rich and from poor, from ten dollars to ten thousand, he charted the Great Eastern. And in July of 1866, the transatlantic cable was laid. No failure this time. Not one message, but hundreds and thousands. Two hemispheres within a second of each other by day and night. Breakfast is ready. Oh, and the same mountain of mail again. Well, it never stopped. Why can't fix a broken perambulator? The success of your new cable to the satisfaction of the entire world that the honors accorded you all too briefly for your first cable were truly and are now doubly deserved. doubted you will now be as loud in their acclaim. And in 1866, it's still in operation today. And from the very first, it carried the voice of our nation across the seas, making our pulse beat the pulse beat of the world as we grew and learned and thought. The distant lands were no longer distant. Men could make known to each other their most urgent needs. Fast communications led to new speed and innovations in transportation with bigger ships and greater railroads conquering time and space. Dispelling ignorance and destroying want. Did Cyrus Field retire? No. He went out building and helping her grow down through the years. And next week, we're nominating another remarkable person for our whole, whole fame. I want to tell you a little about him. But first, to tell you about the rebirth of a charming old custom. Long ago, when the Pilgrims came to America, they brought with them a charming custom. It seems that on a certain day in May, all the children gave May baskets to their friends. They were simple little baskets woven from grass or rope and filled with wild flowers. When a May basket was left on a doorstep, I like you. You're my friend. Today, thanks to the makers of hallmark cards, May baskets are back again. Yes, your youngsters can discover the fun of giving May baskets that they make themselves. All you need to do is supply them with hallmark May baskets you will find at fine stores across the country. Each package of hallmark May baskets contains five different paper baskets delicately colored and ready to put together without glue or scissors. And the cost is low. Just 50 cents for the entire set of five. You'll know hallmark May baskets by the hallmark and crown on the package. The symbol you look for on your greeting cards when you carry enough to send the very best. And out here again is Lionel Barrymore. Well, I'm certainly pleased to hear that hallmark cards are helping to bring back the real meaning of May Day because the meaning of this beautiful day has sure been corrupted and distorted these past years. So that today, if you ask most people about May Day, the first things that come to their mind are demonstrations and uprisings and protest marches and the like. Well, I much prefer to think of the first of May in the words of Thompson. Wide flushed the fields, softening air is bomb, echoed the mountains round, the forest smiles every sense and every heart is joy. Yes, sir. To me, the first day of May is the promise of summer. It's the real awakening after a long hard winter, and it's certainly a day for rejoicing with one's friends. Well, before I get completely lost in my spring fever, I'd better tell you about next week's play on the hallmark hall of fame. It's the true and very inspiring story of Catherine Mumford Booth and the founding of the Salvation Army. I know you want to miss that. A hallmark hall of fame is every Sunday. I'll produce you directly tonight and it's written by Joel Merkett. Till Sunday then, this is Lionel Barrymore saying goodnight. Please, service, remember a hallmark card when you're carrying up to send the very best. The part of Cyrus Field is played by John Stevenson with Barbara Eiler as Mary Field, Whitfield Conner as Fred, her Butterfield as the captain, Ted DeCorsi as James Buchanan and Norman Field as Samuel Morse. On Sunday afternoon, April 26th, there will be a special hallmark hall of fame program. Hallmark cards will present Mr. Maurice Evans in his two-hour television production of William Shakespeare's Hamlet. Consult your paper for time and station. This is Frank Goss saying goodnight to you all until next week at the same time when we present another true-to-life story of actual persons who in their own way have contributed to a better world for all of us to live in. Next Sunday, we honor Catherine Mumford Booth on the hallmark hall of fame. This is the CBS Radio Network. This is the CBS Radio Network.