from the wood of the Charter Oak, that was given to 

 him in December by the workmen of Central Park. 

 On August 18, seemingly without advance publicity or 

 elaborate preparations, there was a parade on Broad- 

 way of the workmen of Central Park. The procession 

 was headed by a squad of policemen in full uniform, a 

 band, and a standard bearer with a muslin banner in- 

 scribed "The Central Park People." The men 

 marched in squads of four, and wore their everyday 

 work clothes with evergreens stuck in their hats. Each 

 squad carried a banner giving the name of its boss- 

 workman. The procession included four-horse teams 

 drawing wagons in which rode the workmen of the En- 

 gineers' Department. The parade was composed of 

 1,100 laborers and 800 carts from Central Park and 

 700 laborers and carts from the new Croton Reservoir, 

 makmg a procession three miles long. Since it was 

 altogether unexpected it created no little excitement 

 and inquiry.'^ 

 The tankard (fig. 13) has a silver spout inscribed: 



The Oak of this Tankard is a part of the tree in which was 

 preserved the Charter of the Liberties of the People of 

 Connecticut during a temporary success of tyranny A.D. 

 1687. 



There is a silver shield on the left side with the mono- 

 gram "C. VV. F." and a silver shield on the right 

 inscribed: 



The men, working in the Central Park Aug"' 17"' 1858 

 Present this tankard to Cyrus W. Field, as an expression of 

 their respect, for the untiring labor which on that Day 

 resulted in proving the practicability of Trans-Atlantic 

 Communication, by the Electric Telegraph. 



The knob on the lid is made of silver and is decorated 

 with an anchor and a rope in silver. No maker's 

 mark is discernible. 



While the public adulation was at its peak the cable 

 suddenly stopped working. Immediately public opin- 

 ion changed and Field was accused of being a fake. 

 He suffered severe business reverses and in 1860 went 

 into bankruptcy. The outbreak of the Civil War 

 prevented any further activity on the cable until 1865. 

 Field engaged the world's largest steamer, the Great 

 Eastern, to make the next attempt. The cable of 1865 

 parted in midocean during the laying operations, but 

 in 1866 experience and technical improvements won 

 the fight. The cable was laid and this time it contin- 

 ued to operate. 



Again Field was the darling of the American people 

 and he was greeted with enthusiasm. Immediately 

 on his return to New York in 1866 he sold enough 

 of his cable stock to enable him early in November to 

 write to those who had been hurt by his bankruptcy 

 in 1860 and send to each the full amount of his 

 indebtedness with 7 percent interest. The full amount 

 paid out reached about $200,000. For this action 

 George Peabody of New York City gave Field a silver 

 service. 



The silver cake basket '^ from this service is in the 

 United States National Museum. The shallow basket 

 is on a pedestal with handles on each side. The 

 inside of the basket is gilded. Inscribed on a plaque 

 on one side is: 



George Peabody to Cyrus W. Field in testimony and com- 

 memoration of an act of very high Commercial integrity 

 and honor. New York, 24 Nov. 1866. 



The inside of the foot of the basket is marked with the 

 lion, anchor, and "G" of the Gorham Silver Company. 

 Field continued to be active in many business 

 enterprises but the last years of his life were again beset 

 with severe financial difficulties. He and his wife 

 celebrated their golden wedding anniversary in 1890, 

 and in honor of this occasion their children presented 

 them with a silver gilt vase." The vase contains a 

 portion of the first Atlantic cable mounted in the base, 

 a part of the steamship Great Eastern, by which the 

 cable was laid, and the inscribed names of all the 

 Field's children and grandchildren. It is marked 

 "Tiffany & Co. Sterling Silver, M." 



FOR DIPLOMACY AND LEGISLATION 



In January 1861, Dr. Samuel Lilly, physician, 

 politician, and judge, was sent to British India as 

 consul general from the United States. Dr. Lilly had 

 been elected a representative to the 33d Congress as a 

 Whig, and he served from 1853 to 1855. He also 

 served as a judge of various lower courts in New 

 Jersey. On his appointment as consul general he was 

 given a silver goblet"* 8 inches tall and 4)^ inches in 

 diameter, having an embossed design of fruits, nuts, 

 and flowers. On the goblet is inscribed: 



" Isabella Field Judson, ed., Cyrus \V. Field, His Lije and 

 Work (New York, 1896), p. 110. 



> 8 Gift of Isabella Field Judson (ace. 116488, cat. 37662), 

 Division of Political History, USNM. 



" Gift of Isabella Field Judson (ace. 32290, cat. 7214), 

 Division of Political History, USNM. 



's Gift of William Lilly (ace. 103012, cat. 35780), Division 01 

 Political History, U.SNM. 



96 



BULLETIN 24 1 : CONTRIBUTIONS FROM THE MUSEUM OF HISTORY AND TECHNOLOGY 



