Tonight, Cavalcade brings you a special program in commemoration of Navy Day tomorrow, and in honor of 100 years of superlative American naval ordnance. Rear Admiral W.H.P. Blandy, Chief of the Bureau of Ordnance, has something to tell all Americans, which you will hear as part of our program. To conduct our salute to the United States Navy, we welcome back to the stage of the Cavalcade Playhouse, Orson Welles. Good evening, Mrs. Orson Welles. Every now and then, an American is awarded the Navy Cross. It doesn't happen often. The Navy Cross is an honor that means something. When a man does get one, his citation sounds something like this. ...face of great danger and very large opposition, or in keeping with the finest traditions of the United States Naval Service. In keeping with the finest traditions of the United States Naval Service. Tomorrow is Navy Day. So tonight, we thought we'd like to talk about our Navy and its traditions. Well, what about it? How did you know about that we have a Navy and why? Here it is. Let's say the 13th of October, 1775, and the Continental Congress is in session. A motion to equip the swift sailing vessel to carry ten carriage guns for intercepting such transports as may be laden with warlike stores for the enemy. Well, well, well, what's all that about? Here's a man who wants us to fight on the sea against the biggest and most horrible Navy fleet in the whole world. The gentleman from Pennsylvania. The use of naval force is quite different from the defense of Boston against unjustifiable attacks. An armed vessel is aggressive. The use of it is open defiance. I am clear against any opposition to that. Mr. Chairman, gentlemen, is it any more threatening to fight the enemy on the sea than on the land? What craven timidity is this that would confine our battle to the safe land in the hope that so our commerce will continue unimpeded? Our fight is for the principle, and a principle which will walk the land will sail the seas as bravely. I move the question. Yes, sir. I move the question. A vote. A vote is taken. Motion is passed. It's close, though. Seven colonies aye, six nay. And so on paper we have a fleet. We're 13 colonies with 13 flags. 13 colonies, but only one coastline. And where there's coastline, there's ships. And where there's a threat to shipping, there must be a navy. So we take seven ill-assorted merchant vessels. We pierce their wooden sides for guns. We give them new names, Columbus and Cabot and Providence and Alfred. We devise for them a flag. John Hancock? I am John Hancock. What's your business, sir? John Paul Jones, sir. Reporting for my commission. John Paul Jones. And I am John Paul Jones. Fine, sir, fine. To be lieutenant on the Alfreds. And, uh, oh, I have another mission for you, lieutenant. Here. Flag. To be the standard of the United Colonies at Caesar. New flag for a new nation. 13 strikes. And the canton, this is the rapids make of Carolina, coiled around the pine of New England. Don't tread on me. We shall break out our flag with pride, Mr. Hancock, and we shall fight as bravely as our cause is just. And John Paul Jones wrote, That flag and I are twins, born in the same hour, from the same womb of destiny. We cannot be parted in life or death. For long as we can float, we shall float together, if we must sink, we shall go down as one. Would you hear of an old-time sea fight? Would you learn who won it by the light of the moon and stars? Whist to the yarn as my grandmother's father, the sailor, told it to me. Parpo was no skulk in his ship, I tell you, sir, he. His was the surly English pluck. And there is no tougher a thrower, and never was, and never will be. Along the lowered eave he came, horribly raking us. We closed with him. The yards entangled. The cannon touched. My captain lashed fast with his own hand. We had received some eighteen pounds shot under the water. On our lower gun deck, two large pieces had burst at the first fire, killing all around and blowing up overhead. Fighting at sundown, fighting at dark, ten o'clock at night, the full moon well up, our leaks on the gale, and five feet of water reported. The master at arms, loosing the prisoners confined in the after-hold, given the chance for themselves. Our frigate takes fire. The other asks if we demand quarter, if our colors are struck, and the fighting done. Now I laugh content, for I hear the voice of my little captain. We have not struck. He composedly cries. We have just begun our part of the fighting. Only three guns are in use. One is directed by the captain himself against the enemy's main list. Too well served with grape and canister, silent his musketry and clear his decks. The tops alone second the fire of this little batter, especially the main tops. They hold out bravely during the whole of the action. Not a moment cease. The leaks gain fast on the pumps. The fire eats across the powder magazine. One of the pumps has been shot away. It is generally thought we are sinking. Serene stands the little captain. He is not hurried. His voice is neither high nor low. His eyes give more light to us than our battle lanterns. And toward twelve, there in the beams of the moon, they surrender to us. We won that war. We won our freedom. We still had our coastline. But, peace having been concluded, all naval ships are to be sold or given away. We still had our coastline and presently Congress heard reports like these. The ship Ohio from New York has been captured and carried into Morley. The ship Raven of Philadelphia bound for Bordeaux has been taken and sent into Laurean. A privateer of Beloit has sent into Calais an American vessel, the William. And so we made it official. Being enacted by the Senate and the House of Representatives in the United States of American Congress assembled, that the President of the United States may be hereby as empowered could he deem it expedient to cause the frigate United States, Constitution, and Constellation to be manned and employed. The Constitution. Old Ironsides. I tear her tattered ensign down. Who of us didn't remember those lines and reach down into his pocket for a dime ten cents to save old Ironsides? Save old Ironsides and the God of Storms, the lightning and the gale. Our growing seacoast needed old Ironsides back when she ruled the waves. An expanding seacoast meant an expanding navy meant bigger ships meant heavier guns. Heavier guns. Now a ship could stand off a mile or two or even three and toss a ball of metal at an enemy halfway to the horizon. An expanding coastline was creating a need. And the need would climax in a naval battle to change the world. Sea battles. Great names, great stories. The men of war. The Phoenician armed galleys of Tyre and Sighten. The Greek and Persian craft that exchanged the war hug at Salamis. The Roman and Egyptian galleys that eagle-like with blood-dripping prowls beat each other with actiom. The Danish keels of the Viking. The mosquito craft of Abbas-Dul, king of the Pelus, when he went out to vanquish Archengold. The Venetian Genoese and Papal fleets that came to the shock at La Ponto. Both horns of the crescent of the Spanish Armada. The Portuguese squadron that under the Gallic gama chastised the Moors and discovered the Maluccas. The Dutch navy led by Van Tromp and sunk by Admiral Hock. The 47 French and Spanish sailed with the liner for three months, assayed to batter down Gibraltar. Nelson, 74, the thunder bolted off St. Vincent's at the Nile, Copenhagen and Trafalgar. Ferry's war-bricks, slopes, schooners that scattered the British armament on Lake Erie. The Barbary Cortez captured by Bainbridge. The war canoes of the Polynesian king, Tomonohama and Pamere. Virginia Bay and Hampton Road. Remember? The Monarch, the Melonac. Yeah, that's the fight that changed the course of things. Yes, sir. I was there. Oh, and your name, sir? Dahlgren. Dahlgren? You were in the navy? Yes, sir. An admiral. Oh, who do you serve? Admiral John Adolphus Dahlgren. I developed a cannon. The navy saw quite a lot of it. And you were in the navy? Yes, sir. And you were in the navy? Yes, sir. And you were in the navy? Yes, sir. And you were in the navy? Yes, sir. I thought quite a lot of it. What sort of cannon was it, sir? Smooth one. Streamlined, you might say. And just to give you an idea of how much they thought of what I did, you know the naval proving grounds they have down in Virginia? Yes. They named them after me. Dahlgren Proving Ground. Oh, yes. Of course, they mispronounce it down there. Dahlgreen, they say, but still named after me. And at Annapolis, the midshipman's armory, they call that Dahlgren Hall. It's pronounced right at Annapolis. That's fine. But people don't remember me. Maybe now if you'll tell us about the new cannon you developed. The guns I developed were mounted on the monitor. I was clever with guns. And the shot three times pierced the Merrimack's cannon. You want to tell us what was unique about your guns? No, no. I don't think it would interest you very much. Oh, I'm sure it would. No, no, no. Very much. It's complicated by triangulation, calibration, you know, logarithmic formula. Very mechanical mathematics. Better skip that. Well, you don't think it could be explained? Well, look at it this way. Before my gun was introduced, the maximum range of our naval artillery was three miles. Yes. Now, today, guns shoot 20 miles. Right. Due to a ton of explosive. Well, that distance is bad. And your guns made that leap possible. It helps. It helps. It's a question of ordinance. But don't ask anybody to explain it. It's too complicated. I'll take your word, Admiral. We'll just agree that you made a better gun. A better gun so that tonight in the Solomons, tonight off the Guadalcanal, tonight in the zigzagging North Atlantic convoys, the men of our Navy, equipped with arms and armor superlative during the century since John Adolfus Dahlgren, may fight in keeping with the finest traditions of the United States Naval Service. Fog, gray sea, or mist green, sun-filtered water, or storm, salt and spray, daylight or midnight, two bells or eight bells, tropic sea or arctic, Antarctic or equatorial, the Navy knows them all, colossal the Navy and paradoxical, parachested in many arms, yet glinting its gun barrels with astronomical precision and split-second timing, turban webbed feet on the open sea, submarine fins under the sea, plane wings overhead, hunting the enemy, slugging, pounding, blasting, and all the chores we got with tenders, oilers, rods, smoke screens, with harbor submarine nets, mine layers, minesweepers, torpedo, and depth bombs, heavy chores with endless patrols, and long breathing convoys, caravans of the sea. In the Navy you get every snoot full of the sea there is. As Kyle Sandberg wrote that, you probably guessed it, yes we launched a Navy to protect our shores and as our shores grew bigger there was need for our Navy to keep pace with them. But the day came when our shores had stretched from one to eight thousand miles. The world had shrunk to the span of a long-range bomber, and our Navy has been charged with winning freedom for the waters of the world. Our Navy strengthened by a tradition of gallantry that's summed up in the immortal lines of a handful of its leaders, for in each time of battle for each crisis a captain spoke. For the American Revolution, for the War of 1812, for the Barbary Pirates, and for the Spaniards at Manila. Their words earned them undying fame. Had I not learned them, I could have stone me in the back of the mischief. All I can do Ashford opened the best barrel and removed the way to a tangentsore. I'm honored at the Commodore do it I'm a dog. I do sir now then I was saying seems a pity that when John Paul here Jim Dave with the Commodore I went around the world fighting hard and winning to most always We should just be remembered because we happen to say something once maybe in a little too loud a voice Now you take me what I said We've met the enemy and they are ours. Yeah now there's a stuffy Self-conscious remark for you. I had to be laconic if it killed me Sounds as though I was trying to crowd the whole thing and one of those ten word telegrams Still have room to send president matters in my regard. I see what you mean, but Captain Jones, I don't imagine you object to being remembered for what you said what I just begun to fight Pretty melodramatic. What do you think? Well, what about me? I don't even remember saying what they say I said don't give up the ship soon on a banner proud and treasured down at the map, but we lost the ship What I said, I can't even repeat over the radio. Oh, what was that Admiral Farragut? Oh that business about Torpedo. Oh, yes. Yes. Yes Full speed ahead and for me who would have thought this because I told my gunnery officer to fire whenever he was ready that I'd be Famous all the natural everyday things to say as I remembered I didn't even raise my voice what they expect me to send him A note you see mr. Wells. This is the point It seems unfair that we should be remembered by our countrymen simply because of something we said not because of something we did If you're carrying on any investigation into nature the finest traditions of the United States Naval Service We recommend you re-examine the idea of heroism We wish you'd talk about what kind of a hero it takes to be in the finest traditions of the United States Naval Service Well, you have the heroes themselves on the subject Those captains were the player for the moment sudden shining battle slogan Their permanence is the permanence of inspiration for generations of their country's children and it is good And it is built on the still harder rock of their solid deserved fame as fighting men But without that harder rock the years might have endowed their heroism with something else with a false and tricky glitter a Dangerous glamour, which is no part of the finest American naval tradition A glamour which is the proper attribute of the misleaders the undemocratic the fascist hero Only war carries all human energies to the height of sanctions and gives this tale of an ability to people glamorous Mussolini beautiful hunk of fascist man One group of horsemen gave me the impression of a budding rose unfolding as the bombs fell in their midst and blow them up It was exceptionally good fun glamorous Vittorio Sportsman son of a sportsman father our invincible air models will enforce our new order in Europe Glamorous gering his tunic resplendent with tin War is the father of creative work the mother of culture The vital energy and driving force of the life of the state glamorous tojo Who swore to find the peace in the white house? Mm-hmm democracies heroes have no need for glamour Now their traditions call upon sternest stuff I've proven when men in office is put into practice the skills in which they've been trained time and chance discover instinctive eloquence pure As pure as courage itself Our father which are the most powerful and most powerful of all the world's most powerful Our father which art in heaven hallowed be thy name thy kingdom come Thy will be done on the board deck of a us battleship A navy chaplain is completing divine service the date Sunday, December 7th 1941 Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil For thine is the kingdom the power and the glory forever and ever How do you like those jacks not so much as a postcard I'm a non-competent I'll just take Jerry's place but look no time talking here comes another wave of their bombers. Okay. Let's go Oh, hey look there we got one of them. It's the lord sailor that has the ammunition Fog Grapey or mist green Sun silvered water or storm Um salt and spray Daylight or midnight Two bells or eight bells Tropic sea or arctic Antarctic or equatorial The navy knows them all Colossal the navy and paradoxical Parachested and many armed yet glinting its gun barrels with astronomical precision And split second timing Turbine web feet on the open sea Submarine pins under the sea clean wings overhead hunting the enemy slugging pounding blasting And all with chores we got with tenders oilers tuds smokescreens with harvest of marine nets mine layers minesweepers torpedo and depth bombs heavy chores with endless patrol Long breathing convoys Caravans of the seas Yes in the navy you get every snoot full of the sea there is Thank you orson wells Next week ladies and gentlemen Cavalcade presents madeline carroll in a new play to a farther star it is based on the career of amelia earhart Be with us again next week when cavalcade presents madeline carroll as amelia earhart in to a farther star The poem by carl sanberg heard on this program is from the road to victory exhibition now being shown at the museum of modern art in new york city The orchestra and musical score tonight were under direction of don vouris Our script was by peter lyon. This is clayton collier sending best wishes from dupont New york, this is the national broadcasting company
