 Ladies and gentlemen the railroad hour and here comes our star-studded show trade Tonight the Association of American Railroads presents the rousing Rudolph Fremel operetta of three musketeers Starring Gordon MacRae and his charming guest Dorothy Warren show Our choir is under the direction of Norman Lubeau and the music is prepared and conducted by Carmen dragon Yes tonight another great musical success is brought to you by the American Railroad The same railroads that bring you most of the food you eat the clothes you wear the fuel you burn and all the other things You use in your daily life, and now here is our star Gordon MacRae Good evening ladies and gentlemen tonight. We're going back to the adventurous days of Louis the 13th Dorothy Warren's shoulders the lovely lady in waiting Constance. My name is Darthanian and may I present? Mr. Portals at your service Mr. Artos, Mr. Miller Mr. Aramee, your humble servant, and you know who we are It all began when I first came to Paris a very young recruit from Gascony, and I stumbled right down to the free musketeers How can such a fat man dual so magnificent are we not musketeers and what is a musketeers duty to fight to love Don't live and the devil take rich lose guys. We do not take them first Musketeers my lady Constance. Oh my dear friends Atos the melancholy portals the portly one and our amese the heartbreaker The Constance you must choose one of us. Yes. Tell us what kind of a man do you wish to marry? Indeed we shall fight please I beg you Fight among yourselves the lady orders you to stop Idiot You've knocked the very plate from my hand and you walked on my feet and ripped my cape Oh, are you that you dare to stumble on us like that? My name is Darthanian I am from Gascony and I have come to Paris to become a musketeer Well, you've made a bad beginning young sprout. I challenge you to a duel I accept only because I am the best swordsman in France behind the Luxembourg at noon agreed sir You have equally insulted me. I challenge you to a duel behind the Luxembourg at one He won't be alive to be present as for me. You've insulted both my feet and me Behind the Luxembourg at two very convenient. It is where I live. Good It is where you will die. Come musketeers so your duties Oh, monsieur you should not have accepted their challenges They are the musketeers the best swordsman in France on the second best Thank you for your concern mistress Constance Constance Lovely name for a lovely girl. He's romantic. I guess I'm not only the greatest swordsman in France But the greatest lover ha ha you are not the most modest man in France, monsieur Well, I haven't talked to speak frankly Mistress Constance Gascony when we see a girl who is more beautiful than any we've ever seen before We do this We take her hand. Yes We look into her eyes. Yes, and then we say I Must see you again. Tell me where and when you must not duel with the three musketeers. They will kill you Concerned mistress Constance There are only two things I wish in life love of a good woman and the chance to become one of the king's musketeers Only by proving I am their equal Can I become one of them? They didn't expect all three of you at once but There may not be enough of me to go around We're each other's second. We'll take you on one at a time. No Why not let me fight off three of you at once, sir You're a brave young man, and if you survive my sword, I should be most happy to make your acquaintance. Thank you See you for those you are first Boy, I like your spirit. What a pity. I have to annihilate you Oh god Take those red-coated dummies with you. You insult my man. We challenge you just a moment She's like surely even you wouldn't attack three men with your five. There are four of you This young gas can he's no musketeer. I feel like a musketeer retire young sprout and save your skin I'd rather stay in puncture, Mr. Jusak very well Jusak. It's three and a half to five Honkers musketeers. Let's serenade them with our motto as they die Haha Taking away here On your fuel normally would like to become your friend and I thank you gentlemen Are you are still alive? What's this constant such concern for us? Oh, you're not dead, Mr. Dutton. I thought you would be lost This is the he father. Bye dear lady. My eyes are still open We'll be looking only at you The most beautiful girl in France loves me How can I fail? All I wish in life now is to become a musketeer perhaps one day you shall wear a uniform May we say there is hope. Thank you my friends I hope a man lives I have read history and I've heard tales of brave men, but none were like the musketeers Fish and poets have extolled. They seem small do these men the home on here True for you true for you this beside the king So Last week and on several previous occasions We discussed on this program how important it is to all of us that our railroads receive adequate revenues Revenues that today can come only from freight rates which are in keeping with current prices And the higher cost of doing business Because railroad freight charges enter into the price of virtually everything you buy You might think that freight rates constitute a much larger part of the cost of things than they do As a matter of fact railroad freight rates are a very small percentage of the cost of most commodities According to calculations based on studies by the bureau of transport economics and statistics of the interstate commerce commission The total amount collected by the railroads in freight charges Average is less than six cents out of each dollar of the wholesale value at destination of all the commodities moved by rail And of course when it comes to retail prices freight charges represent a still smaller proportion Probably no more than three or four cents on the dollar Because their operating costs have gone up so much farther and faster than their revenues The railroads have found it necessary to ask the interstate commerce commission For authority to increase freight rates a little more than seven percent above present rate levels But that would not mean a like percent of increase in average prices It would mean only an increase in those three or four cents out of each dollar of retail prices Which are represented by railroad freight charges So that the increase would be on the average only about one third of one cent in each dollar of retail prices If freight rates are such as to enable the railroads to meet today's costs And to continue their progress in efficiency and economy through improvements in their facilities The resulting increase would hardly be noticeable in the prices you pay But it would mean that the industry in which we all have such a big state Could go ahead with its expansion and improvement program A program essential to meet the transportation needs of commerce and national defense Now here is act two of the laurence and lee version of rudolf frimmel's the three musketeers Starring gordon macray as d'artanian and dorothy warrenscholl as the lovely constance My friends the musketeers malady the queen is in great danger. We live to serve her tell us constants Tell us what we can do harish lure has discovered letters of the queens in england Letters such as any girl writes when she is young the queen is a woman now. She loves france She loves the king then what value are the letters harish lure plans to use them to split the royal family To split all of france and and thus come to power himself One of us will go to england. We will get the letters and destroy them harish those guards wait like wraps at the Warves any of you who try to leave france will be killed then i shall go Harish who does not know my face not yet. No d'artanian. We will never see you again. We will all go together One for all I will go along No Not alone My oldest friend will go with me Lord will clear my way Lord will make them pay Who's afraid or who will face the blade That brings you blood and death and judgment there Who dares my will defy That's your handle here is my report stand alone. We can defend my own We live to fight love By sword and knife Who dares my will defy You're a brave man There is danger for you here milady constance If rishlu knows you plot against him we must each go down dangerous paths dear friend I shall remember the look in your eyes that memory will make me brave and the look in your eyes dear constance Will make me invincible Oh the path that I must tread is full of dread And dark no storms that rock He's been gone for weeks. No words. No signs. Stop worrying. You are in love with him, aren't you? Oh, yes, porthas. Abel your constance For love is the law of the universe Listen Don't hand him. Don't hand him. Oh, he's coming back We met this young sprout of callae and raced him back here in the fastest carriage We knew there would be somebody waiting Mr. Constance May I report that the work is accomplished the deed is done Her majesty the queen is safe musketeers About face this young sprout has some more who work to do Oh Your majesty Rise monsieur d'artanian I've heard from my musketeers of your service to our country The house that I appoint you musketeer but What you're already wearing the uniform I was not certain of your intentions sire So I put it on so you could see how well I look in it You are an anxious young man Tell me in exactly what manner did you serve us in france? The sire it was a question of love Of love your majesty Love of one of the queen's ladies mademoiselle constance But I'm afraid she will not have me unless I'm a member of the great camaraderie sire A fourth musketeer Deal monsieur d'artanian Your majesty I louis king of france Appoint you d'artanian one of my musketeers to love To live To fight for france Your majesty I serve you with my life And mademoiselle constance I serve forever Years and years No folk can hide his fears When faced by musketeer Ever sharing strangers through dangers Indeed I can turn or ride a bowman down There's one more all and all for one We stand before united we must begin Lady Dorothy Warnshaw will be back in just a moment Meanwhile our very heartfelt thanks to the other members of our cast Francis X Bushman Bill Conrad Ted DeCorsia Bill Johnstone Carlton Young and to our entire company The three musketeers were booked by William Anthony McGuire lyrics by P.G. Wodehouse and Clifford Gray and music by Rudolf Frimmel was dramatized for The Railroad Hour by Lawrence and Lee And now here again is our delightful leading lady Dorothy Warnshaw Wasn't that romantic though? Well it certainly was Dorothy Frankly I swashed the buckle right off my belt It certainly is good to have you back Dorothy You know we really consider you part of our railroad family Well thank you Gordon and of course you know I never miss one of your broadcasts Tell me what can I listen to next week? Well sir maybe Benzel will be our guest Dorothy and we're presenting the delightful Romberg Hammerstein Operetta East Wind Well now that sounds like a nice breezy show Good night Gordon Well you come back with soon Dorothy All aboard sir it looks like we're ready to pull out And so on to next Monday night and East Wind This is Gordon McRae saying goodbye The three musketeers was presented by special arrangement with the Tams Whitmark Music Library Gordon McRae can be seen starring in Warner Brothers Starlift Our choir is under the direction of Norman Luboff and our music is prepared and conducted by Carmen Dragon This is Marvin Miller saying goodbye until next week for the American Railroads Now keep tuned for your Monday night of music on NBC Hear the voice of Firestone with Eugene Conley Next on NBC