 From New York City, where the American stage begins, here is another program with a cast of outstanding players. Public service time has been made available by this station for your Army and your Air Force to bring you the story as, proudly, we hail the United States Army. Our story is entitled, Cable Job. This is the story of Captain Carol W. Leibach, Master Sergeant Lawrence Criminas of the 51st Single Battalion, the men and officers of the 14th Army, the men and officers of the 14th Engineer Combat Battalion, and 568th Ordnance Heavy Maintenance Company, and all elements of First Corps Korea. Plan ahead to get ahead. There's sound advice for you young men of America, and here's how you can act on that advice. Your United States Army is offering a bright future in such interesting technical fields as radio, radar, electronics, mechanics, meteorology, photography, and many, many others. Perhaps you're not qualified in any of these urgently needed skills. Well, here's the answer to that. The United States Army, through its many fine technical schools, is prepared to train you in the field for which you show an aptitude. Now, there's a great opportunity, your opportunity, to plan ahead, to get ahead. For full details, visit your nearest United States Army and United States Air Force Recruiting Station now. And now your Army and your Air Force present the proudly, we hail production, Cable Job. Korea, 1952. First Corps zone near the Han River. Captain Carol Ibeck, a master sergeant, Lawrence Criminets of V Company, reporting to the commanding officer of the 51st Signal Battalion, United States Army. Hey, Captain Ibeck, we've received an emergency order this morning from Corps. Take a look at it. Thank you, Colonel. Lay a five pound per foot submarine cable across the Han River. We'll call it from point X to point Y. The terminal is amok here on this map I'm giving you. Thank you, sir. Cable to be laid across the Han from point X to point Y without delay. That's all of it? That's the order. It's of vital importance to the Allied effort to get it done quickly. Our Lieutenant Smith here, the 14th Engineer Combat Battalion has been sent along to help you sweep the job through. Now this is Captain Ibeck, Lieutenant and Sergeant Criminets. Glad to know you, Captain, Sergeant. This is our problem, Captain. There are three factors you'd better have in mind and maybe Sergeant Criminets can clarify a fourth one for us. The start with, the job's desperately important. You don't need spelling out on that, do you? Now, sir, cable that size could lick just about every foam problem that divisions would have, or will have, east of the river. Now your second factor is the interplay of current and tide. With a seven not an hour current and tides down at the river mouth that can go up to 35 feet, we've got just one two-day period each month when water conditions are even close to favorable for a project of this kind. And do you have the dates on the next period coming up, Colonel? Of this month, you said the 23rd and the 24th. That's right, sir. Your next chance comes at 23rd, Captain. It's the 11th now. That gives us 12 days. It's not half enough, Captain, but you've seen the order. Now your third factor may cramp you even more than the time elements. Now that stretches the rivers under enemy observation and well within their artillery range. It's got to be done this month. Be a serious blow to the allies to wait until next low tide. Mind if I have a look at that map, Captain? Take a good look at it, Sergeant. This gets us to where you come in. I know the place, sir. It's over a mile across there. For the flood margin we could need up to 82, 83 hundred feet of cable. 83 hundred feet? That's just shy of 21 tons, Colonel. We'd be splicing from the... let me see. Call it splicing from seven reels, Captain. Do you have that amount of cable on hand, Sergeant? Well, we've got it. I know where we can get it, sir. The problem would be to waterproof the splices by using sleeves. They'll have to be flown in. We can locate any this side of Honolulu. You're geared for it otherwise, Sergeant? Not as we stand, sir. No, not for a job this size. But we can improvise the rest of it if we get the seals to close them off in time. Colonel, can you tell me what help we can count on from the Army's other technical services? All engineer elements have been asked to cooperate as requested. We'll have Lieutenant Smith on that. If anything else you can't get directly, you will have authorized through first call. That's square you away? Yes, sir. Now you will be able to meet the title of deadline? Yes, sir. One way or the other. Okay, good luck with it. Keep me posted with your progress. This is as near as I can get with the Jeep, Captain. From that bluff up ahead, you get your best view of the crossing point. All right, let's get up there. Those field glasses of yours look like good ones, Lieutenant. Well, they're a legacy, Captain. My brother got them from a German SS colonel back in 44. There she is, Captain. Not as deep as the old Mississippi, but right here, blame near as wide. Let's check that map again, Smith. Mm-hmm. There's a little stream of twists in below our takeoff points. I'll make the terminal across just this side of that smashed red tank. You see there, back maybe 90 yards from the bank? That's it. We'll resurvey after we've got things started back at Cable Supply. About this raft building team of yours. Yeah, what about the raft? Have you worked it out yet? Whether we can get by with a standard four-pantoon rig? You'll still say no, don't you, Sergeant? Oh, we can't leave the cable on reals, Lieutenant. Not with this much of it. Maybe five big bundles of cable to ship and pay out. We'll need a deck twice the width of your standard aluminum job. What, not more than four-pantoons? No. We'll put that to be company. My own outfit. As soon as you pick where you want the raft built, Captain. I take it you'll want it assembled upstream. Four or five miles at least. If we start building it down here in the commie's artillery, it'd be zeroed in before we could half-start it. It's heavy stuff they've got over there now. We'll give them a target for too long, and they'd be bringing up more of us. All right, five miles or so upriver for the raft building. You want to go pick a site now? As soon as we drop the sergeant back at our own shop, to start getting set up for the splicing. Say, can I call back when Zully and Keo on this, Captain? When Zully and Keo aren't they out with the South 3 and 1st Division? Yes, sir, since Monday. Helping on that wire installation job. The biggest was I could send out Franklin and Jackson to finish up there, and have Renzi and Keo back here on the splicing. They're a handier that way. Line up anybody you need, sergeant. With your best hands, it'll still be tight going. Six miles upstream and with that ridge back there to screen off observation. Figure this is far enough? It'll have to be, Jeff. Get any further on this cow track, and you'd never get your heavy cranes in. It'll be tricky enough as is. On these bottom lands, they didn't have fill enough to stiffen the section back there that's supposed to be halfway decent. Well, there's that cove you picked off the map. Well, sure that's the cove, but... Yeah, but what? Well, where's the sandbar that's supposed to be giving us smooth water there? Remember the one just above the cove that should be showing for about 60 yards out? No one's had time to bring these river charts up to dates. Now, put it down for one more chore. We'll have to do ourselves before the actual crossing. The chart isn't any better for down below than it is here? It might still be on the nose, but we can't depend on it. We'll check flow and tide rise, take soundings and try to make a rough bottom profile before we go over them. But that'll be easier than getting your raft together here. This is pretty soft stuff on the foot. It's this way for miles. If we've got the cove and the ridge below there for cover, this'll have to be it. What are your pontoons in the double deck way taking them all together? Well, then two tons of your cable, 19 tons are over. Lucky, you'll have the cranes. You'll have to harass those sections around by hand. You'll have the weirdest bunch of engineers this side of the engineer school back at Fort Belvoir. That'll be weary enough, even with the cranes. There isn't enough timber around for the rollers we'll need. Will you set up tents out here? Don't worry about that, Captain. You could throw combat engineers halfway up Mount Everest in their underwear and they'd have a tight roof and a fire going five minutes later. Yes, I could believe it. I saw one of the bridge jobs your boys tossed up over this river after the landing at Inchon. Dropped those men back in the States money from any contractor lucky enough to get hold of them. How might be? Well, I've seen enough now to know what I'll need and the first thing I want to do is get back and start nailing down a couple of cranes. Yes, let's go. I won't feel right till I know the sergeants got those waterproof cable seals located and started into us. Hey, you look as wet as if you'd swum back, Captain. That rain catch you out on the road? Just after I'd dropped Lieutenant Smith. Remember to get a top back on that jeep one of these days. I could send Renzi over to try and get it. No, not now, Sergeant. We've got more to do than that. Do you want to verify the cable? We've got the cable, Captain. That's not the headache, though I just got an answer back on our query for the cable seals. Oh, no dice? None near enough to get here in time, whatever the priority. We're gonna have to ship them up ourselves over at 568th Ordnance. Well, they've never done anything even close to these. I've seen them do everything from armoring up a jeep to grinding out quarter-inch gears. Maybe they'll thank us for throwing a new one at them. Have you called over there yet? Well, I've just been making up some drawings and specifications to take over to them. I'm going to get back in with my raincoat. I've got an extra raincoat inside there. Let's get going now. 568th, still using needle and thread to solve cracked engine blocks. Very old Milwaukee talking himself. About time you showed to pick up that windmill rig of yours. You got that portable radio you said you'd put up for it? Come on, break it up. Will you, Danny, break it up? Uh, Captain, this is Danny O'Hara, the man I was telling you about on the way over. Sorry, Captain, I didn't know you were with the Sergeant here. Well, if I hadn't been O'Hara, what's this about a windmill rig? Well, it's just something we were clowning around with last week, Captain. That isn't worth taking. He's being modest, Captain. You don't have to go glouring at me, Larry. You pulled your materials out of a trash pile. We ran it up for you on our off-duty time. Well, this wonder I'll have to see. But after we get the cable across. Have you ever turned on waterproof cable seals here, O'Hara? Cable seals? Yeah, cable seals waterproof the joints of the cable. I've got the seals drawing here, Danny. Have a look at them. Wait a minute. Hold it. Let me turn this thing off. Is it a rush job? You ever get any other kind, Danny? No, I mean, you really got to have these like maybe by next week. Like tomorrow, if you can get on the ball. Not a chance, Larry. Day after tomorrow? Look, Larry, we got to cut patterns and make special tools before we can even get started on this. And then with the accuracy that you call for here, we could reach. O'Hara... Yes, Captain? I'll see your CO before we leave here, but I promise you you'll have authorization to get on this full time till you lick it. Help cut down your time estimates? Well, I was figuring it for hot captain or you wouldn't be backstopping the sergeant on it. And I said maybe a week. That was allowing full time. Oh, wait a minute, Danny. Let's you and me recheck this right through for materials and tools, aren't you? Oh, hello, Lieutenant. Jeff, I'll get you over here. Corporal Ranzuli over at your place said this is where I'd find you. You run into trouble getting the cranes? Not getting them. Using them. Oh, you mean the rain? This rain cuts our throats. I've just been out rechecking the back road and it's pure soup. We'll never get the cranes out of that cove now. But if the rain lets up tomorrow, won't that let you... If it stopped right now, that last mile it'd still take days to dry out. The weather officer tells me this rain will go for two or three days more. So the raft will have to be assembled on the spot. That can take on half a week at the time we worked out. Maybe more. Are you going here? No, medium. The cable seals are going to have to be made. Criminas and O'Hara are hashing it out now. What about it, Danny? Will you admit that it'll knock off a day? Okay, Larry, I'll give you a day picked up on that. That still leaves you almost... Now, we take it easy. You're still counting in full welding time. Either way, I figure you can chop that. You are listening to the proudly-we-hailed production Cable Job. We'll return in just a moment for the second act. Young man, if you're interested in continuing your education, here's important news for you. The United States Army urgently needs qualified technicians to operate and maintain the many kinds of equipment that science has brought into being. Right now, men are being trained in such varied fields as radio, radar, meteorology, mechanics, electronics, photography, and many, many others. This training is given by the finest technical training schools in the world. It's an excellent opportunity for young men with intelligence and ambition. It can be the start of a great career for you. For full details, visit your nearest United States Army and United States Air Force Recruiting Station. Do it today. You are listening to Proudly We Hail. And now we present the second act of Cable Job. The following day at the upstream raft-building site on the bottom lands by the Han River. Corporal, six men over and give a hand in this truck. Okay, let's go, sweethearts. Come on, give it some muscle this time, will you? Come on, boys. Hey, Lieutenant, you won't get this one through. She's double-loaded. All right, Corporal, let's get that cartoon out of there. We'll slide it down to the core from here. Through all that muck, Lieutenant? Be glad it's as slippery as it is. It'll slide like on ice. Come on, I'll give you a hand getting it chillin' out of there. And on the day after that. Come on, now. Okay, Steve, you and your five guys, heave up on that end. Well, I knock out the rockets, holding up the rollers. All right, now, come on, get a good hold, Augie. Anyone slips this time and I'll have to start all over. Okay, okay, I got a good hold. All right, here she goes, Corp. Come on, come on, boys. That's it. Come on, Al. Here we go. Ah, that's got it. Get your bar on it, Angelo. Okay, okay, Steve. Okay, keep her up just a couple of seconds more while we get these rollers ahead. Come on. Yeah. Okay, okay. Down again easy at that end. And let's get shoveled again. Your fingers crossed that we get that other deck section down here, that'll be the tough one. I got a boat lined up down below. I'm going to try some soundings this afternoon. If you'll be able to shake loose long enough to have a look at the other sign. This afternoon earlier. You can make it at 1530 if you get clear. I'll see you there at the boat. 10 feet 4. 10 feet 4. 10 feet 2. 10 feet 2. 10-1. 10-1. 9-11. 9-11. All right, Jeff. That'll do it for now. We're back at where she starts to open up. Yeah, we've checked it from that anchor float. I'll be drafting up to get the raft in as close as we'll have to go. If we hit the tide right. Well, if we don't hit the tide right, we won't even get this far. How about your current velocity? You got enough readings on that? I'll lay average out of just over seven knots. Yeah, it's pretty fast. We'll never hold the raft on course with that one power board we've been from. You'll have to hit the 58th Fudway Bridge Company with another one. I don't see any other way out of it. I'm sweating a couple of bridge jobs now, but I'll phone them when we get by. Reggie, keep on for the bank. We'll tell it and I are going ashore again. I can't get a run all the way, Captain. We might get hung up on the beach. I'll get her in as close as you can. Got a drainage over here, then we've got back across. Gravel runs out a few yards ahead, but we'll be able to use jeeps right from the water. This'll do it, Jeff. You can mark the terminal flag stake by that pile of brush just beyond the next rise. You want the bunker beyond that and below? Whatever you decide the temporary security is to be. It'll be a four-man position to start with when your outfit gets over here and starts running off the tie-in lines. You can work out whatever it's necessary. I think those are strayed. We better get Renzuli shoved off and start heading back so we won't be spotted. Well, let's go. Let the line unslip. Start kicking her back, Renzie. Your bow's swung out, give her the gun. Well, next week we'll find out the score on today's findings, Renzie. Next week, sir. We have the real thing on this river, one that won't be able to skim out as we're doing now. Keep staggering your course, but don't weave all over the river. This is where we were supposed to find criminals, Jeff, but I suppose they're getting worried. Hey, wait a minute, Carol. You haven't sounded like us as we got started on this. Oh, we'll keep working on it, all right. Yeah, but you're worried about the deadline. Now, look at the way the jumps are piling up, Jeff. If we ever get those cable seals and if your boys can sweat the raft together and if we can hold it steady enough crossing over... Your CEO knew this would be tough. It's why he picked you to rattle it through. All right, say we get past all those jumps. And we've got 40 tons of cable and raft calling across the river. We've got all to be done in 24 hours. I see a phone over there I want to use. I'll be on it while you're checking with the sergeant. Hey, how's the raft going along, Captain? Those engineers still in the mud on the piano lifting detail? Well, you've got to grin from ear to ear, sergeant. Has the harrow been able to cut down on this time estimate? Let's see, what did we get them down to yesterday? Five days altogether? There's the third day they've been on us. Are they ready to try at least one seal or are they still... Come on, take a look, Captain. Danny's just over in the next aisle here. You can see for yourself. You see what he's got stacked up there? Auto-proof seals with four, five, seven of them. And the last one on the machine will have them all tonight. Harrow, how'd you do it? It's 568, Captain. We're local from way back. Local? Yeah, see, if you come in looking for a windshield wiper, maybe you'd have trouble. But anybody walks in here thinking they got a big problem, we knock our brains out showing them it's kid stuff. I've had a micrometer on these, Captain, and they're on the nose. We can get splicing in the morning. Well, Harrow, if you ever need a job when you get out, hit only the biggest in the business and don't take less than $10,000 a year. I can do better than that, Captain. I'll go to work for the sergeant here when he retires and starts his own company. I'll take care of that one. But not till we get this cable thrown across. Well, how about it, Captain? That raft's gonna be ready when we are. There's Lieutenant Smith. He can tell you better than I can. Jeff, you got the seals. Well, Harrow's on the last one now. God, go on. Let's get your splicing back on schedule. That's what the sergeant was just asking about your raft. If our engineers can haul it by the 23rd, we should be ready to load. We'll haul it, Sergeant, if I have to put a squad in diving suits. But I got better news than that for you, Captain. I've been on the phone with the 58th Treadway Bridge Company, the 388th Smoke Generator Outfit and Core Artillery, all unofficial so far, but you can count on support all around. Jeff, you got the second powerboat from the 58th? The second powerboat and a promise of two of the best crews this side is saltwater. What about the chemical unit from Core Artillery? They'll be standing by the 388th at the river with a smoke screen if we need it. Count a battery fire ready to tie up any opposition in case they start nosing around. Yeah, that's really a team you're lining up. Larry, this copper spaghetti of yours is going over in style. This was a team job. And as Captain Livek and the cable specialists of the 51st Single Battalion pushed through their final preparations, it was with the knowledge that army engineers, army ordnance men, army chemical technicians and artillery batteries were backing them up. When any army unit needs aid on a job, the other members of the army team are there to be called on. In this case, by their own efforts and with the skillful help of the combat engineers and the 568th Ordnance Craftsman, Captain Livek and his men were nearly ready to go on the afternoon of the 21st, two days before the beginning of the expected favorable title period. But then the odds were suddenly shifted again, and it was another service of First Corps' very team that flashed the warning. Captain. Captain Livek. Yes, Sergeant. Sorry to break in on you, Lieutenant Smiths. It's all right. I'll just finish checking over the crossing day schedule. What is it? Well, it's about the schedule, sir. We've just had a call from the sergeant over in the weather section. Yeah. They've been working over the reports from the coast, and they say now the top tide water is going to run 18 to 24 hours ahead this month. Here at our crossing point? That's what they were checking for. 18 to 24 hours ahead here. Come on in. Yeah. You hear that, Jeff? Meteorology says our slack water may come nearly a day ahead of time. It's got something to do with that near typhoon we had back a couple of days ago, Lieutenant. The water's been backpiling since last night. Can you have your cable ready to load in the morning? It may take some black coffee to keep Renzi and Keo on it, after the hours they've been putting in, but yes, sir, we can be ready to load in the morning. All right, that's it. Get going on it, Sergeant. Yes. Jeff, have a phone. If you'll hit Treadway Bridge Company on the power boats, I'll see what chemical and artillery can do. Weather without black coffee, every outfit colonon came through. Early the following morning, two power boats towed the outside special raft down to the loading point, and the careful muscle straining loading began. Well over a mile of the spliced, tightly-sleeved, heavy, watertight phone cable had to be coiled in five great figure eights on the aluminum deck, and as the loading reached completion. Liebeck, 51st signal. Calling field control. 388, smoke generated. 388, chemical standing by. We're almost ready for takeoff and no enemy activity yet. If we can get over without the smoke, we're going to try it. We may be able to cut the crossing time to an hour. If you need it, we've got it till you splice up across. Thanks. Liebeck. Calling artillery observer. We're still quiet over here. Can you still see our people across? Now there's the last coil coming on. This is where we shove off. Let's hope your luck holds. Thanks. All set, Sergeant? All cable aboard ready to pay out, Captain. The upstream power boat leaning in, Jeff. Both boats set and looking for that arm signal. Let them have it, Jeff. Course, straight over and easy does it. Let her go, skipper, straight over and easy does it. Captain, it's a fishing trip we're on. It's a heavier line than I ever want to use for fishing. Sergeant, here's another one of those sleeves coming up. They're giving you any trouble as they pay out? Wouldn't know the splices will straight gable, Captain, far as the handling goes. No sleeves are on for keeps. Hey, Lieutenant. Plains coming over the ridge. Plains? If that's why the commies held off. Like it easy, Steve. They don't sound like... No, they're not. You can see them now. There are guys, Lieutenant. Slide down and have a look at the engineers' Navy. Easy, Jeff. That's right. Tell them to keep pressure on to hold the raft in against the bank. Hey, Steve! Get those guys in the Jeep behind, will you? I bought this for a landing, Captain. Aluminum gang cranked those Jeeps to help get this last cable up to the terminal and still no sign of the Reds. They couldn't stop us now if they wanted to, Sergeant. We're over. How long do you figure on getting up to the terminal and wrapping up the last splicing? That's a rosy, Captain. We'll need two, maybe three hours more to get connected up. It'll be dark in an hour. You've got the Jeeps. We'll pull them in close, get tarps over the headlights and finish up with those. Hey, Captain! We're in! There she is, Captain. Want to try the new line? Make sure you're getting through. Criminous. Calling command post, 51st signal. What's with you, Larry? You give up on cat fishing expedition? We're calling from the East Bank, Renzi. How are they biting on your side of the hunt? Calling line. Yeah, get the C.O. if you can. Captain Lybeck's got his report to me. Right, Justice. Your phone, Captain. Thanks, Sergeant. Nice going. Lybeck calling 51st command post. Thanks to the men here and Lieutenant Smith and about nine other outfits, Colonel. Yes, sir. We're over. Company B, 51st signal battalion was cited by 8th Army for exceptionally meritorious conduct between May and November 1952 while the submarine cable project was affected across the Han River. This message is of vital importance to every American but it's particularly important to the young men who are listening. For today, the rapidly expanding United States Army is depending on you to do a vitally important job. Qualified technicians are needed and the Army is prepared to train you in one of the interesting career fields necessary to its operation. You can become a radio or radar technician. You can study meteorology, mechanics, electronics, photography, and many others. Yes, the finest technical training schools in the world will be available to you when you enlist in the United States Army. Why not visit your nearest United States Army and United States Air Force Recruiting Station today? The need is urgent. This has been another program on Proudly We Hail, presented transcribed in cooperation with this station. Proudly We Hail is produced by the Recruiting Publicity Center for the United States Army and United States Air Force Recruiting Service. This is Kenneth Fagnard speaking and inviting you to tune in this same station next week for another interesting story on Proudly We Hail.