...Nylon plant in Seaford, Sussex County, Delaware, home of the DuPont Company's first nylon plant. The DuPont Company of Wilmington, Delaware, makers of better things for better living through chemistry, presents the cavalcade of America. Tonight's stars, Dana Andrews and Louise Albritton. Tonight's story, the Valley of the Swans. ...Music... Sussex County, the most southerly of Delaware's three counties, is a land rich in tradition. The site of one of the earliest supplements on the North American continent. Our story tells of one of these supplements, Swanandale, a brief chapter of almost forgotten history. And now with Dana Andrews and Louise Albritton as Peter and Catherine Plocois, here is the Valley of the Swans. ...Music... There are some who say Swanandale is gone, wiped from the face of the earth by the hands of time. I say it is not gone. I say its roots are deep in the land and it flourishes even yet. You can crush a fort, lay low a town, but an idea, a principle, a dream is unconquerable. You today reap the rich bounty of Swanandale. Listen, then judge the truth of that statement for yourself. ...Music... This true story of our adventure begins on the fifth day of May, 289 years ago this month, the year 1663. It begins with 25 Mennonite families, 41 souls, standing on the deck of the little ship St. Jacob, watching the shores of Holland fade off in the distance. My wife Catherine stood beside me and as the last hint of land disappeared, she turned from the rear. I can't see the shore anymore, Peter. Gone. Gone is if a careful Dutch housewife had scrubbed the last bit of dirt off the horizon. Sorry to see you go, Catherine. Why should I be sorry? Everything you ever knew or had is back there. Your family, home, friends. Perhaps, but everything I want is ahead. No, I'm not sorry, not one bit. Nor afraid? No. Fear is for the lonely, Peter. Wherever we go, if we go together, I'll never know fear. Oh, Catherine, look. I bought this book at a stall just before we came aboard. It tells of explorations along the South River. The English call it Delaware, just near where we're going. Listen to what it says. Heaven and Earth never agreed better to frame a place for man's habitation. Everyone who's seen America says the same thing. Here it is on this map, just beyond this little cape. That's the Hawkeye or Swannendale, as it's sometimes called. The Valley of the Swanns, even the name has the sound of peace. The first few weeks of our voyage were uneventful, but then, about the third week out, I noticed a strange uneasiness take hold of many of the men and women in our company. When I came on deck with Peter, they would make some excuse to go below, or they would remain silent and curiously aloof. I don't understand it, Catherine. What's happening? I don't know, but I'm going to find out now. Come along. Oh, Jan, just a minute. Huh? Oh, oh, it's you, Peter. Jan, what's the matter? Why, why, nothing, Peter? We've been friends for many years. I have a right to ask you to be honest with me. Oh, Peter, it's not me, not me alone. The others are... What about the others? Well, they say that you should have told them about what happened before at Swannendale when some of the others tried to settle there. You, you hid it from them. At least, that's what they say. I hid nothing? What happened at Swannendale? The first Dutch settlement, 28 men slaughtered by the Indians. No. Who told you this? Captain van der Hoos. He says he was with Captain de Vries when they came to Swannendale and found the bodies. Why didn't you tell us that before we left, Peter? How could I tell you what I didn't know? And why didn't you come to me when the captain first told you the story? We were going to. As soon as there were, well, we, well, decided... Decided what? Stop stammering on. Tell me everything. Well, Captain van der Hoos has offered to take us to New Amstel. He says the patrols there will treat us well, employ us on their plantations. Oh, so that's it. Catherine, we're going up to the captain's deck. Come on. But what if it true? We'll see. We've got to get to the bottom of this, and quickly. All of our company, on deck! On deck, everyone! On deck! Here, here, here. What's going on here? What's the meaning of this? Captain van der Hoos, I'll ask you to stand here with me. You can't give orders on my ship. I'm not giving orders. I'm only calling a meeting at my company, and I want you to be present. I could have you chained for this. Possibly. Friends, I understand that our worthy captain has taken great pains to circulate a story about an Indian man who was killed in the war. A story about an Indian massacre at Swannendale. Is that true, Captain? That is true. What of it? When did that take place? In 1632. Over 30 years ago. 30 years doesn't mean the man is a savage. I don't think God ever made a savage. He only made men. Why were the settlers massacred? What difference does that make? And besides, I don't have to answer questions on my own ship. Well, answer one question, if you will, sir. Isn't it true that the patrons of New Amstel offer a bounty for every servant you bring in? Isn't that true? You stand to make a handsome profit if this company is put ashore at New Amstel instead of Swannendale. That's the truth, isn't it? Listen to me, all you people. If you want to entrust your lives with this man, this crazy man who will take you unarmed and unprotected among the savages, then you deserve whatever you get. In New Amstel, there's a force. Soul girls. You'll be safe. Yes, you'll be safe. Safe and enslaved. Is that what you want? There's something to what the captain says, Peter. It's true we won't have everything we counted on, but at least we'll be safe. How safe will you be? Will you be safe from your own conscience? Have we traveled all these miles to exchange one form of indignity for another? Let's just consider why we're here. First, we want the freedom to practice our own form of religion. And second, we believe that each man has the right to hold property and to keep his property separate from that of his neighbor. Peter, I know these things, and if it were just for myself, I would agree to go to Swannendale with you gladly, but I'm not thinking of myself. Who are you thinking of? The women. I feel we can't take this chance because of the women. May I answer that, Peter? Yes, Captain. Go on. The things we want, the things Peter just talked about, they're as precious to us as women as they are to you as men. Perhaps even more precious. For these things are for the future, for our children more than for ourselves. And that's where a woman thinks and dreams. With her children. I don't want my children to be born to slavery. We are going to Swannendale. We're going to Swannendale. Is that agreed then? Yes. All right. We'll call this meeting ended. Then came that bright, that glorious day. On the 21st of July, 1663, the San Jacob rounded the Cape, now known as Henlopen, and we had our first view of the dunes of the Hawkeye, of Swannendale, the low, gray shoreline, unbroken by even the shape of a solitary tree. And then suddenly the shore seemed alive. Millions of wild swans crowded the shoreline, and somehow the flapping of their great wings seemed a symbol of greeting. By twilight, we were all ashore. Senator Plassoy, one last chance. I can still take you and your party back on board to St. Jacob. This is our destination. We'll stay. You can still change your mind? There's no reason to, Captain. No? Just listen. You hear those drums? Beyond the dunes is the forest, and in the forest watching are the Indians. In the sound of the drums, they're planning a welcome party for you. I hope it meets your pleasure. Olsen? Sir? We're going back to the ship. That old Plassoy and his company are staying here. Aye, aye, sir. All right, man the arms. Look lightly now. All right, bounce strokes now. Roll, roll, roll, roll, roll, roll. For a long while, we watched as the men at the oars fought the pounding surf, and then they were beyond the breakers, off into the twilight and the distance. And with each stroke, the sound of the drums seemed to grow louder and nearer. We stood and shivered until Peter broke the silence. I will read from the 21st chapter of Revelation, first verse. And I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away, and there was no more sea. We will pray. You are listening to the DuPont Cavalcade of America, starring Dana Andrews and Louise Aldreden as Peter and Catherine Placoy in The Valley of the Swans, sponsored by the DuPont Company, makers of better things for better living through chemistry. Ladies and gentlemen, it might be interesting to know that quite some time after our stories tonight, at the Valley of the Swans, there was another pioneer who settled in Delaware. This man's name was Élophère Irénée DuPont, and he founded the company which now bears his name. This was back in 1802, so this year is the 150th anniversary year of the DuPont Company, maker of better things for better living through chemistry. It was the night of unrelieved terror that first night at Swanandale. Beyond the dunes, the forest seemed at the top with war drums. We were only 41 souls stranded on a strange and foreign shore, a little isle of silence set between the pounding surf and the booming drum. But morning came at last, a bright, sunlit morning that gave us comfort. Strangely, the drums were suddenly quiet. Then we started for the deserted forest. We charged together over the sand dunes, huge strips of sand that stood like eerie sentinels guarding the unknown wilderness beyond. And then we came to the fort, a dismal place haunted by the memory of death. The palisades were broken, rotted. The ground was covered by a mapping of moss and weeds. So still, Peter, so deathly still. It isn't much of a place I've brought you to, is it? A few deserted houses, broken doors. It'll be our new home. Our new home. It's wonderful the way you say that. I feel as if every step we've taken in life were headed to this little spot, Peter. It's as if I always knew that this is the place to call home. The days went by, days of worry, indecision, fear. Well, Peter tried to keep the minds of all of us from the thought of the Indians, who we knew were watching our every movement from the forest. The land around the fort was divided into plots. Boundaries were staked out. A schoolhouse was planned. But there was little spirit in the work. For each night the drums would sound. Throughout the night, steady, always sounding nearer, terrified. And then on the eighth day, even at dawn the drums didn't stop. We knew then that they were coming. We crowded within the sarcay and waited. They're coming! The Indians! They're all around the fort! Yes, Peter. Yes! I'm going out to meet them. Alone? The only way. We've got to show them that we've come here in peace. I'll go alone. I walked out the gate of the stockade and stood for a moment. The edge of every dune was a mass of weirdly painted faces, feathered bonnets. Then, from one of the dunes, I saw an Indian walk out toward the fort. I met him halfway. He was tall, handsome. Me, Chief Horn, Chief of Nanticoaks. I am Peter Cornelis Placoy. I come as a friend. White men always come as friends. He sits in council, smokes pipe, makes fine promises. Then, when fires are low, he steals, murders. We haven't come to steal or murder. We've come to build houses and grow corn to trade. What do you have to trade? Axes and cloth for beaver skins and corn. And in time, we'll trade even better things. What is better than beaver skins and corn? The ideas men have. You will teach us how to plant and hunt. We'll teach you how to live with law and in peace with your neighbors. You will teach us of the forest. We'll teach you God. How do you know? I believe what you say. Because you are a man of peace. If you were otherwise, you would have swept down on us without warning, slaughtered us. Instead, you walk out alone from among your warriors. I think you will be a good neighbor to have. I think you are a good man. I protect you. You live here in peace. From that day on, our colony took on new life. Our fields were laid out, seeded, each man knowing that whatever profits he took from the land would be his own. We lived in peace with the Indians. They taught us where to fish the streams, hunt game, to raise corn, harvest wild grapes. In the years that followed, our roots dug deep into the soil. We were content. Then, suddenly, the world crashed down around us. My brother, I bring evil news. What is it, Chief Horn? The English come to New Amstel. They come in two great seabirds that spit fire. Now all Dutch and New Amstel prisoners and seabirds come this way. English ships coming this way, are you sure? Sure. I bring my warriors. Fight with you. But this is Dutch territory. How can they come here? They can. They've denied the Dutch claim to New Netherlands for years, Catherine. They evidently mean to settle the matter of ownership once and for all. We fight them. No, no, we can't, Chief Horn. Take your people back from the stockade. We fight. How can we fight? With what? Bows and arrows against cannon? No, it would be murder, suicide. Your people have been good friends to us. We'll not repair your friendship by letting you sacrifice your lives in a hopeless struggle. Get them away from Swannendale, far away. I do, as you ask. But we stand here. We watch. If you need your brothers, call to us, and we will come. The very next day the ships appeared off Swannendale. We all watched as the soldiers filled the longboat and the sailors rode them to the shore. As quickly as they touched the beach, the soldiers formed into squads and marched toward the village. What is happening, Catherine? What have we done wrong? Nothing, Peter. Nothing. It is a testing. A testing of our faith. And we will not be found watching. Company! Halt! Who is the leader of the settlement? I am the elected head. Your name? Peter Cornelius Placoy. In the name of His Royal Highness James, Duke of York, I require of you and your company submission and obedience by virtue of the commission I hold in my position. What is it you want of us? This settlement is to be evacuated and burnt to the ground in 24 hours. Evacuated? Burn? Why? Dr. Coit, this, all this is very distressing to me. I hope you won't make it more difficult by arguing with me. What do you, you expect us to leave our homes on a moment's notice and not protest? You, you've got to understand the realities of the situation, sir. I haven't enough troops to garrison this place and you am still too. In my order state that I can't leave any settlement without protection from the Indians. But the Indians are our friends. Ah, you can't depend upon the friendship of Indians. Oh, what then can we depend upon? The good offices of a government that has in mind the destruction of everything we've done since we arrived in America? Our settlement is prospered, sir. We've accomplished much. Come and see our little village, the schoolhouse, the mill, the farmland that each man owns as his neighbors equal. Believe me, Placoy, this is a matter of colonial policy. I cannot leave you here without soldiers for protection and I have no soldiers to spare. I'm sorry, sincerely sorry. Let me take you all to New Amstel. And if we prefer not to go there? You can't stay here. It's either New Amstel or... Or the wilderness. Yes. I see. May we have some time to decide? Yes, of course. How long? One hour. One hour. That's not very long, is it, sir? No. No. Against the hope of a lifetime, one hour is very short indeed. And so it came about that we had our last meeting. I gathered our little company together, the people who had come to Swanandale. They stood quietly before me. Peter, what shall we do? I think each of us has to search in his own heart for a decision. But what will you do? Catherine and I have talked about it. We feel together on this. We've come so far in our seeking for freedom that we can't turn back on the road. Safety is not half so important to us as liberty. And we believe liberty lies beyond the sand dunes, in the vast heart of this country. And we're going to it. Into the forest? Deep in the forest, John. In some other valley we'll find a place to build. Lead us to this valley, Peter. God will lead us. Amen. We're in agreement then? Aye. Good. We'll go into the forest together. Music ...on the sand dunes toward the forest. At the top of the last great sand dune, Peter and I waited until all the others had gone by. We stood together for a moment, looking back toward Swanandale. It was on fire. The flames licked the air, the smoke billowed into the sky. I couldn't believe that everything we'd worked so hard for could disappear so quickly. Catherine, it's not ended. You see that fire? It'll be a beacon long remembered. What we began to build here, the seed of freedom, will be built again, stronger and firmer. If not in our time, then in another. But it will return. I know that, Peter. I'm sure of it. But I keep wondering, will the people who come after us remember Peter Plaquois and the work he began in the valley of the swan? Will they remember the man who said, God never made a savage? That doesn't matter, Catherine. Just so long as they do remember the dream that was begun here, remember it and carry it on. Peter Plaquois is remembered, and all that he stood for, the equality of man before God, has become a strong bulwark of our democracy. When the story of America is told, one chapter must be labeled, Swanandale, the valley of the swan. Our thanks to Dane Andrews, Louise Albretten, and the Cavalcade players for tonight's story. Tonight's Stupont Cavalcade was written by Irv Churnick. Original music was composed by Arden Cornwell and conducted by Don Bryant. The program was directed by John Fowler. In support of our stars, Dane Andrews and Louise Albretten, our Cavalcade cast included Louis Van Roeten, Charles Dingle, Dan Argo, and Gavin Gordon. Mr. Andrews is appearing in the Samuel Goldwyn production, I Want You, which was photographed on Dupont Motion Picture Film by Harry Stradling ASB. This is John Ray speaking. Next week, the Dupont Cavalcade presents The Long Gray Line, the story of West Point. Be sure to listen next week when our star will be Cornell Wilde. The Dupont Cavalcade of America came to you tonight from the Dupont Nylon Club in Seaford, Delaware, and is sponsored by the Dupont Company of Wilmington, Delaware, makers of better things for better living, through chemistry. Tonight it's Barry Craig, confidential investigator on NBC.
