The I'm Claire Trevor in the builders of the bridge on the cavalcade of America sponsored by the DuPont Company, maker of better things for better living through chemistry. But first here is Gene Whitman. Crisp fall days remind us that winter is just around the corner. Your car needs cold weather protection now. Why not go to your dealer tomorrow and have him clean out rust and scale with DuPont cooling system cleanser. Prevent leaks with DuPont cooling system sealer and add a dependable DuPont antifreeze. Xerox, war emergency Xeron or 5 star. Each gives you double protection against freezing and against rust. And Xerox is non-evaporating. All of these car protection products are examples of DuPont better things for better living through chemistry. This is the story of a mighty dream and of how it passed down from father to son, from man to wife. To become at last a monument to human genius and the soaring gateway to America's progress. The DuPont cavalcade presents the builders of the bridge starring Claire Trevor as Emily Warren Roebling. I knew and loved them both. John A. Roebling who dreamed the dream and his son, Colonel Washington Roebling, my husband. He made it a reality. John Roebling came to this country burning with a vision. A vision of mighty bridges spanning the broad rivers of America linking city with city, man with man. He built bridges for America that crossed the Allegheny, the Monongahela, the Niagara, and the broad Ohio at Cincinnati. I remember that bright morning in the spring of 1867 when Papa Roebling strolled excitedly into our living room. Washington, I want you to sail at once to Europe. Europe, father? The company has been formed at last to build a bridge over the East River between New York City and Brooklyn and I have been appointed chief engineer. Oh, Papa Roebling, how wonderful! After all these years waiting. And you think they doubted you and said a Brooklyn bridge would be impossible to build. There are many who still think so, Emily. Why the East? Europe, father. Well, son, I wanted to consult the leading engineers in England, France, and Kerry. A new message of thinking case on foundation has been developed. Find out everything about it and while you are there, investigate this new structure theory. They call it steam. Hurry well, father. I'll miss you, Emily. And I won't be here when the baby comes. You're not going to leave me behind, Washington. Where you go, I go. Sure, and that is good. Stay a year if you like and maybe that baby will be born in Mule House like his grandfather. Have a good time. But remember, I want precise details of the post-it mentioned. Bigger, blue print... And pin types of the baby, especially if it's a boy. Oh, yeah, naturally. That is good. But in what? I could be making my survey and drawing up my plans. Hmm. It seems I can see it now. Ah, the baby's going to be old now. We sailed for Europe, Washington and I, and as the months fed by, he consulted with Europe's thromosh engineers, studied all of Europe's latest engineering achievements, and reported everything to his father in long detailed letters. Letters in return from Papa Roebling were of very disheartening. The fools, the dull, witted dunderheads. Washington, what is it? More trouble about the bridge. Father writes that his plan for using steel wire instead of iron has aroused violent opposition. People are saying that the only reason he's so eager to build the bridge is because his sons own a wire factory. Don't be upset, darling. There are always these small-minded people who spread ugly rumors. They won't stop your father. No, but Emily, he says New York is calling the whole project fantastic and impractical. Is he? This guy? He hasn't stopped making the survey. Oh, no, not father. He says he's asked seven leading engineers to review his plans and to make special trips to examine the Cincinnati and Niagara bridges. Oh, I should be there with father. I know how you feel, dear, but don't you see he needs you more right here, doing just what you're doing. Yes, but there's so many people there in New York working to defeat the bridge, even before construction gets underway. They won't succeed, and you must go on with this tour because the bridge will be built. It must be. Our baby was born in New Housing and Christian John Roebling II. My husband visited the steelworks at Eschen Germany and in Birmingham, England, and found the new material superior in every way to iron. Then with drawings and details of the new construction methods, we returned to New York, where Washington immersed himself in a full year of work as aid to his father in protecting the plans for the bridge. Then Justice Papa Roebling was completing his survey. He was badly injured. Hurry, Lybor. Hurry. Colonel Paine, how did it happen? Your father and I were making a survey to determine the exact location of the Brooklyn tower. Yes, I was on the transit. He was standing on a cluster of piling near the Fulton Ferry. Fulton Ferry. Flipped receiving my signal. Just what happened? Well, he was so engrossed in the work that he didn't notice the ferry approaching. Crashed heavily into the piling and his foot was crushed. Oh, I'm glad you took him to our place. Emily can look after him. What did the doctors say? They were preparing to amputate the foot when I left. Tried to convince your father to permit the use of an anesthetic. And of course he wouldn't stand for it. You know, he's prejudiced against conventional medicine. Yeah. Driver, faster. Quick, up the horses. Mrs. Roebling, you may be able to make him take his medicine. He has locked on. Now and without it, I would despair of saving his life. Oh, I'll do the best I can. Come. Come, Papa Roebling. Please. Just one teaspoonful of this medicine. It'll ease the pain. Emily, I prescribe my own treatment. I'm not afraid of pain. Oh, but Papa Roebling... You're a good girl, Emily, but you should be with your baby. Oh, she's well cared for, Papa. Now it's you that needs care. Ah, I'm like a helpless child. My sweet Emily, you are like a daughter of my own. Washington is lucky if I have a wife like you. Emily. Yes, Papa. Where is my son? Washington? Right here beside you, Father. Son, things carry on in my place. I shall not survive without you. But you will, Father. I have the slightest doubt. Work on the bridge may be delayed a few months. Oh, son, you have worked with me. I know the plans for the bridge. Yes, Father. Good. Let the construction work begin. Emily. Yes, Father. You'll achieve if you build the bridge. You must complete my task. I will not be there to see it, but I know when it is done, the bridge will be the heart. The bridge will be beautiful. An ancient tradition has come down across the century. The bridge demands a life. Our bridge has yet to be tragic told. At the end of his long flight, within sight of his goal, John Roebling, scientist, engineer, and man of vision passed away. He had entrusted the bridge to his son Washington, and the board of directors appointed my husband chief engineer in his father's place. Through this task he devoted his strength, his career, his life. The base will have to support a weight of 80,000 tons. The roof of the case must have adequate strength. Oh, Emily. Yes, I've made you some hot tea, dear. What time is it? Almost daylight. Oh, you should be in bed, dear. So should you. Now, I'm going to sit right here until you drink this. Emily, I don't know what to do. This new method of building deep foundations underwater, there's little known about it. And yet, in order to erect the two towers in the river, we've got to have firm and deep support. Well, just what is the new method? Well, we build a pneumatic casing. You might call it an enormous wooden diving bell. A near-tight box with a roof and sides but no bottom, so the men can work under the water. Well, but if it has no bottom, what keeps the water from rushing in? Compressed air, which is constantly pumped into the chamber. Oh. You see, the object is to sink the casing far beneath the river, digging away the mud and boulders until it rests on a firm foundation. Then fill it with concrete. I see. At the same time, we'll be building tens of thousands of tons of masonry on the roof of the casing. These will be the towers that rise far above the surface of the water. And from which the suspension cables will be swung. Exactly. Emily, my dear, you'll become a bridge builder by contagion. The first casing was built and sunk under the East River. My husband was the first man to enter the underwater chamber to make certain that it was safe for the workmen. Every step of the construction was a question mark and a hazard. And Washington met each one with ingenuity and courage. As the Brooklyn tower neared completion, work was begun on the New York side. Here layers of quicksand had to be conquered, and the men had to penetrate to an underwater depth twice as great as that on the Brooklyn side. And then, the cruelest hazard of all, the dread and mysterious tape and disease struck at the men, gripping them in agonizing paralysis. Dr. Smith, isn't this something we can do? Colonel Roebling, we know practically nothing about this strange matter, except that it's connected with working under high air pressure. And that it usually strikes the men as they emerge from the compressed air chambers. Oh, Washington, have you had your lunch? Emily, what are you doing down here? Mrs. Roebling asked me how she could help, and I asked her assistance in serving hot coffee to each man as soon as she comes out of the casing. And it seems to help them, Doctor. Good. Dr. Smith, if medical science is powerless to find a remedy, then we must increase our precautions. Colonel Roebling, Colonel Roebling. Yes, Martin, what is it? Bad news, sir. I just got word from John Myers' house. John Myers? Is that the man I sent home this morning when he came out of the casing? Yes, Dr. Smith. He's... he's dead. Washington, you must stop blaming yourself. The worst of it is there'll be others. We can't lift a finger to stop it. But many of them have already recovered, and heaven knows you've done everything, everything. You saw the editorial in evening paper, a case of criminal negligence. But you can prove that it wasn't. You engaged Dr. Smith to be at the bridge every day, long before the first case occurred. Emily, I'd better prepare a report to the public at once. Now? Oh, but it's so late. You've had such a wearing day. No, Emily, it must be done now. I'll be in my study. Please see that I'm not disturbed. Yes, yes, I'm coming. Oh, Mark. Where's the Colonel, Mrs. Roebling? In his study. He asked not to be disturbed. But there's a fire in the casing. A fire? Under the East River? The entire timbering's in danger. If it burns, the whole tower will collapse. The carbonic acid gas doesn't work. They need more pressure on the hoses. All right, I'll give it to them. More pressure on the hoses. The fire's got inside the timbering. How did Scott, does anyone know? Some darn fool kept his lunch on top of one of the timbers and went to look for it with a candle. Coming through. Hey, Redden, you can't get out of the casing again. The Colonel gave strict orders. No man was to be down there for more than half an hour to stretch. But the Colonel himself's been down there for seven hours. Martin, Martin, is that true? Has he been down there that long? Mrs. Roebling, you shouldn't be here. You're liable to get hurt. Martin, we can't let him do this. Please go down and bring him up. Please. Martin, I tell you, I'm all right. Probably all right. We put the fire out except for the inside, the fourth post of the timber. Colonel, you've been down here over seven hours. You want to get the casing, Ben? Come on. Mrs. Roebling is waiting for you upstairs. Emily, here. Here. All right, huggle up. But if you can't get us those timbers or the hoses, hug the casing. Here he is, Mrs. Roebling. Washington. Oh, my dear. Now, Emily, there was no reason for you to be here. Washington. It's all right. I'm just... Emily. Emily. Oh, darling. Martin, call Dr. Smith. Hurry, Martin, hurry. You are listening to Claire Trevor as Emily Warren Roebling in the Builders of the Bridge on the cavalcade of America sponsored by the DuPont Company, maker of better things for better living through chemistry. At the age of 35, my husband, Colonel Washington Roebling, chief engineer for the Brooklyn Bridge, was struck down by the Cajun disease, painfully paralyzed, doomed to lifelong suffering. In 1872, there was no remedy, no hope of recovery. Only the terrible knowledge that his sight and hearing would grow steadily worse, and that every hour would be tortured with pain. But his mind was not affected. In fact, it seemed to me he was sharper and quicker than ever before, driven by a divine urge to finish the bridge. Emily, my instructions for the work on the bridge are so incomplete. No one will be able to follow them if I die. You won't die, and you will finish the bridge. My dear, how can I? Helpless cripple confined to this room, unable to walk. Listen to me, darling. I'm only a woman I know. I can be your feet, your hands, your voice. I will go to the bridge every day, give the men your instructions, see that they're followed through the letter. Emily, you... you know nothing about engineering. But I can learn if you'll help me, teach me what I have to know. So much. Higher mathematics, stress analysis, bridge specification. I'll learn, and I'll be your messenger. Here from this very window, you can watch the building of the towers and the stringing of the cables. Your brain will direct them in. Your spirit will inspire them. Darling, you will finish the bridge. You will. Emily, we will. And Martin? Yes? These are Colonel Robing's instructions for the boom barracks. Once they're in place, they must be inspected daily by the foreman in charge of the bridge. Gentlemen, these are Colonel Robing's plans for the masonry anchorages to be constructed at the indicated distance forward from each tower. Mr. Farrington? Yes, ma'am. These plans show the equipment that Colonel Robing wants you to set up for the spinning of the cables. Martin is downstairs. Is he worried about the storm? Terribly. He says almost every dock and walk on the East River has been blown down, and the wind is still rising. Tell him the bridge will stand. The bridge did weather the peaceful storm of 1878, but suddenly it was facing another storm, a rising storm of public opposition. Well, I'd like to say, yes, sir. They've already exceeded the funds fixed by the legislature, and now they're asking for more. And all of a sudden they need 1,000 additional tons of steel. Now, isn't it a little late to be making that discovery? Just what is this? Plunder or plunder? Why isn't the chief engineer himself here to explain? Yes, why isn't he? Gentlemen, the well-known fact that Colonel Robing is an invalid, unable to leave his room. Then he has no business being chief engineer of the bridge. I move that Colonel Robing be requested to be present at the next board meeting, and that whether he appears or not, we appoint another engineer in his place. Yes, sir. Emily, they can't take the bridge away from us. I'll tell them for myself at the next board meeting. My dear, for your own sake, I can't allow you to attend it. You'll have to write them another letter. No, Emily, this time a letter will not be enough. These accusations, these suspicions must be answered personally. Washington, for ten years I've been your messenger. If you tell me what you want to say, I'll appear at that meeting for you. That is, if you have enough faith in me. Emily dear, I have as much faith in you as I have in the magnificent plans of my father. My dear son. Why Robling send his wife? Why isn't he here himself? What can a woman know of these things? Gentlemen, gentlemen, please. Mrs. Robling. Gentlemen, my husband has asked me to tell you this. It will be impossible to complete the bridge for the sum total originally estimated. Yes, ma'am. The design of the bridge has been widened to 85 feet in two tracks for horse cars added. Labor costs have risen, and the price of iron and steel have greatly advanced. Well, what about this 1,000 extra tons of steel? What's the excuse for that? Colonel Robling has no excuses. He has reasons. The additional steel is necessary because Colonel Robling has been authorized by a member of his very board to strengthen the structure so that the train of heavy pullman cars might be run over it with absolute safety. Mrs. Robling speaks with comfort. I, I so authorize the chief engineer. Mrs. Robling, would it not be better for Colonel Robling's state of health if he were to be relieved of this enormous responsibility? Sir, Colonel Robling would be deeply touched by your concern. As for sparing his health, gentlemen, through 12 years of bitter trial and constant suffering, he has carried the project successfully forward. Now, after all his work, it's proposed to take the bridge away from him only nine months before it's completion. Gentlemen, the injustice of this proposal must be evident to you. The bridge is Colonel Robling's by right of inheritance, by right of his own labor, and by right of his own sacrifice. Well, gentlemen, you doubted the stability of our bridge. This is the first official crossing at the roadway level. Now what do you think? We're only walking on plank, and yet there's no swaying. Everything's so massive, so solid. Wouldn't you like to consult with your engineer? Well, how about it, Mr. Field? What's your professional opinion? Sir, I call it the engineering triumph of the age. It will mark a new era in the science and art of bridge building. Mrs. Robling, our doubts have been cleared away. We have confidence in the bridge and in Colonel Robling. Oh, thank you, gentlemen. Thank you very much. Yes, that's just thank you, Mrs. Robling. Are you signaling someone? Yes, Mr. Field. You see, my husband is watching us through his steel glasses, and I want him to know that all is well. On May 24, 1883, 13 years after the first station was conceded near the old Fulton Ferry ship, the bridge to which John Robling had given his life and Washington Robling his strength was completed. A gala celebration was arranged to mark the opening, and Washington and I watched from his window. Emily, we've waited 13 years for this hour. Yes. Look, here in the headlines, the Brooklyn Eagle calls it the eighth wonder of the world, and hates to add, eight in time but not in significance. They're starting the course. Here, use your field glasses. Yes. There they are, Emily, President Arthur and Governor Cleveland. They're leaving their possession across the span. There go the guns. A salute to the Brooklyn Eagle. Emily, I take the glasses, my dear. I can't help thinking, Father, if he could only be here to see us. The bridge is beautiful, just like Colonel Robling said it would be. But what are they doing now, Emily? They're crossing to the Brooklyn side with speeches, festivities, and then they will come here, the governor and the president of the United States. Here? To this house? Yes. They want to tell you things the whole world is saying about this. Without you, Emily, the bridge could not have been built. Without you, I would not have been here. Oh, my dear. Yet the governor and the president of the world do not already know it. I shall tell them. Yes, Emily, whether the official records say so or not, you too are a builder of the bridge. Our star, Claire Trevor, will return to our capitol microphone in just a moment. Now here is Gene Whitman. The whole world celebrates the happy birthday this week. Today, November 5th, opens a nationwide observance of the 50th anniversary of a great healing discovery, the X-rays. These mysterious rays that shine like invisible light through a man's body or a metal casting had been observed in the United States at the University of Pennsylvania before 1895. But it was a German scientist, Wilhelm Konrad Drenken, who recognized them for what they were. In his darkened laboratory, watching a fluorescent screen glow and flicker when no visible light rays were there struck against it, Wilhelm Drenken realized that he had come upon a new kind of ray. To this day, in his honor, experts in the field call it the Drenken ray. Many people 50 years ago didn't believe in the discovery at all. Some laughed at it. Others were indignant and even angry. They thought burglars with X-ray spectacles would peer through their walls and spy out the family's silver. But the medical profession realized at once that an instrument which could let them look into the human body would help them immeasurably in their age-old battle against disease. And they were right. No one can say how many of us are alive and well today, who might not be if it weren't for the friendly X-rays. Modern X-ray machines range from the small units with which dentists examine teeth to million-volt giants, and a hundred-million-volt machine may appear before long. Portable instruments throughout the war help surgeons in front-line dressing stations to locate bullets and shrapnel in wounded men. Important metal products, such as airplane parts, are radiographed to detect flaws. Studying the way X-rays bend and turn as they pass through different materials, scientists have gained new knowledge from which improvements have come in many products you use every day. Motor oil for your car, steel household products, and even cardboard packages. The DuPont Company manufactures X-ray films and developers, X-ray fluoroscopic and intensifying screens that have long been accepted by the profession as noteworthy members of the DuPont family of better things for better living through chemistry. And now here is the star of tonight's DuPont cavalcade, Claire Trevor. There's another kind of cavalcade which starts out tonight, a cavalcade of five special victory loan trains which will visit 40 states on behalf of the Victory Bond Campaign. These trains, sponsored by the Army ground forces, the Navy, and Marine Corps, are carrying valuable historical displays of German and Japanese surrender documents, radar equipment, rare gunnies, and other battle material with which the Allied nations won their victory. Through the whole-hearted cooperation of the 50 American railroads, which have made these victory loan tours possible, the trains will be on public exhibits throughout the country until December 16. See one of them if you can, and in any case, help to pay off your debt to our fighting men by investing every extra dollar in victory bonds. Next week, the DuPont cavalcade has planned a really extra special show for you. Our star will be Colonel James Stewart. Jimmy will star in a touching and humorous story of a man who loved horses, loved them so much that he took a saddle right along with him when he went into the Navy. Be listening next week for A Sailor Who Had to Have a Horse, starring James Stewart on the DuPont cavalcade of America. The DuPont cavalcade of America is currently starring in the RKO radio production, Johnny Angels. The part of Washington Roebling was played by Frank Graves. The music for tonight's DuPont cavalcade was composed and conducted by Robert Armbruster. Our cavalcade play was written by Priscilla Kent and was based on the biography by B.B. Steinman. Tom Collins inviting you to listen next week to James Stewart in The Sailor Who Had to Have a Horse on the cavalcade of America, brought to you by the DuPont Company of Wilmington, Delaware. This is the National Broadcasting Company. The National Broadcasting Company.
