HONORS AND REWARDS 165 
cliffs over and through which we have been compelled to pass 
in order to gain possession of our land of promise. We have, 
however, been more fortunate than the Jews of old; we have 
had a Moses who was able to lead on his associates, and when 
he found them cast down and discouraged, he did not call 
manna from heaven nor smite the rock, but just got us to 
look through his telescope at the pleasant fields that lay so 
temptingly in the distance before us, and in that way he was 
able to inspirit his associates with courage to go on until, 
with the help of the Great Eastern, and the means and in- 
fluence of the noble band of men that Mr. Field has been 
able to enlist in the mother country, we have at last accom- 
plished a work that is now the wonder of the world... . I 
trust our united efforts will hasten the glorious time when 
nations will have war no more; when they will beat their 
swords into ploughshares and their spears into pruning- 
hooks.” 
The Chamber of Commerce of New York arranged a ban- 
quet at which Field was toasted as “the projector and main- 
spring of the Atlantic telegraph . . . his fame belongs to us, 
and will be cherished and guarded by his countrymen.” ‘The 
members had requested him in advance that “they may hear 
from your lips the story of this great undertaking.” Field 
spoke frankly and vividly of the vicissitudes of the long effort, 
and in particular of the great grappling expedition when “a 
slimy monster fresh from the ooze of the ocean bed” was 
snared and dragged on board after many heart-breaking fail- 
ules; then tested for electrical response while the crew held its 
breath. As a sufferer from seasickness, he emphasized the dis- 
advantages under which they often labored from storms, 
rough seas, and fogs. He made clear also the human element 
in the long vigils, the bitter disappointments, and the hard 
road to an understanding of the technical problems. Such a 
talk showed Field at his best—courageous, modest, and in- 
formal, a combination of New England background enlivened 
