The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1892-07-24
A TRIBUTE TO FIELD.
John A. Coekerill on the Father
of the Cable.
THE ILLNESS OF Mr.. CURTIS.
Austin Corbin rs . Preserver OF Ameri-
can Big Game-His Plan to Shorten
the Atlantic Voyage.

NEW YORK, July ls.-TSpecial. Death
has at last ended the career Of Cyrus ".
Field, one OF the few men Of this marvel
Gus period entitled 70 everlasting distinc-
ton. A career such as that Of Mr.. Field
does not often fall TO human being.
Coming to this city "a boy. and working
IN store for 81 per week, he passed
through various financial vicissitudes. and
finally found himself the most honored
and distinguished man Of his time. There
Is something really majestic in the con-
temptation Of his struggle in behalf of the
submarine cable, which, as Mr.. Evarts
says. made one world of two" There
must have been in Mr.. Field soue-
thing of that indomitable courage
which some writer says causes the
Angio-Saxon TO begin fighting at the
point where others are inclined 10 leave
OF. The failure Of the first Atlantic cable
N lc5s brought dismay TO every financial
investor, but il did not shake the faith Of
Mr.. Field. He saw his great work
crowned, and lived 10 know that sub
marine telegraphing is as much an &C
compiished fact a. the telephone of today.
1t was not alone as the father of the
cable system that Mr.. Field is deserving of
grateful memory in this great metropolis.
He was as well the promo.or OF the system
OF elevated railroads. which has given
modern New York its growth and impetus.
He had greater difficulties to overcome in
that enterprise than in laying the Atlantic
cable. The cable was merely question of
money, but the elevated railroads were
fought from the first to last by property
ris NH hal
the project either feasible or desirable. To
overcome this prejudice and secure the
necessary legislation and rights of way
was task greater than any Hercules ever
performed and one vastly of more benefit
TO the human family. Mr.. Field was %
years of age at the time of his death. He
came of a long-lived, vigorous family, and
his careful mode of living entitled him to
at least ten more years. But the blow
which came to him in 1857 through the
loss of a great portion of his fortune, par
alyzed his energies somewhat, and the
more recent calamity, which came to him
in the shape of disgraced and dishonored
son, broke his spirit and stamina and made
him an easy victim to disease.
/ think that there is nothing more pa
thetic in the history of our financial war
fare on this island than the crushing of
Mr.. Field in 1887 by Jay Gould and his CO.
parceners. Up to that time Mr.. Field had
made himself 9 ruling spirit in the Man.
haitian elevated railway system. He had
lifted the stock from almost nothing to
$50 per share, and saw still further de-
velopments and prosperity in the reduc-
ton of the fare to the uniform rate of 5
cents. The Gould crowd resisted, but Mr.,
Field succeeded in carrying his point. Up
to that time the fare on the elevated rail-
ways had been fixed at cents during GER
tain hours in the early morning and even
ing, 10 cents being the rate during the
greater part of the day. Gould held that
this was sufficient concession to the
working people of the city, and.
inasmuch as he never forgives anybody
| who crosses his path, he "bIded his time, -
as doth the villain in the play The
opportunity came in the summer of 1857,
and all of a sudden the community learned
that Mr.. Cyrus W. Field, benefactor and
philanthropist. had been caught with
heavy loads of Elevated stocks and ham,
mered down to as low as $50 per share.
This closed him out and he was compelle ed
to part with considerable of his property,
including his newspaper. the Mali and Err
press. There never was more deliberate
crime, in my opinion. committed in this
country than the robbery of Mr.. Field
If Gould had schemed and planned to
burn his house or steal his securities
out of his safe he could not have gone
about it with more systematic and
finished viliaiuy. 1t is safe TO say that
while Mr.. Field was man of great enter
prises and unbounded genius tor affairs,
his fortune never reached beyond 81 00O,.
600 or 100000 He escaped from the
clutches of Gould and Sage with million
or two, but his reverse occurred when it
was too late in life TO recoup. After his
struggles in early life he was entitled to
comfort and ease, with freedom from care.
But there was no composure for him, and
his last days were sad and bitter, but
noble in every sense. He never COM
planned.
1t was difficult matter to find a more
wonderful quartette OF brothers than that
of the Field family-Davld Dudley, Cyrus
W.. Stephen J. and Henry M.-not one
without distinction. A more affectlonate
body never existed than these four BROTH
ers. Up TO short time ago they were in the
habit OF holding an annual reunion, and
the dinners on these occasions were marked
social events. The brothers were always
helpful to each other. DR.. Field. the
clergyman, being the younger and
least accumulatjye member of the family,
was the reel pient of many kindnesses, from
his brother Cyrus especially. | remember
his telling me one time. almost with
tears in his eyes, of the benefectlonS
which Cyrus had rendered him. He said:
Upon one occasion called upon Brother
| Cyrus, when he said 10 me: Henry, you
are not looking well. You need a rest.
\ on mus, do some travelling. he sat
down at his desk, wrote me check Tor
large sum Of money, told me 10 settle up my
affairs and start off. | did so, and made
most delightful trip around the world.
DR.. Field has great literary taste and ca
paCitv, and he has contributed some
valuable works TO current literature, be-
sides his journalistic and pulpit work.
Mr.. Cyrus W. Field was the one promi-
nent and conspicuous man in this country
whom | was always anxious to meet and
know. | had had my youthful lmaglna-
ton stirred by the stories OF the Atlantic
cao.e and / always wanted TO see the man
who inspired that vast enterprise. The
opportunity came during the finishing OF
the Bartholdi monument pedestal. met
I him first in the office OF General Stone,
the engineer in charge of the pedestal, IN
the Field building. at the foot OF Broad
way. We had a pleasant chat and he
could hardly be made to believe that L, as
printer boy. had set up the type IN
country newspaper Office which conveyed
TO the readers Of our little country
/ paper the story of the first attempt 10 lay
the cable. We had several pleasant meet
| lngs thereafter. | always found him genial
and accessible, but the most remarkably
modest man concerning his own achieve
menrs that | ever encountered. In his
cable enterprises Mr.. Field earned the
friendship and good will of so many