“Resolved, That we wish to recall to our membership the words of eulogy and sincere appreciation spoken at the brilliant banquet given by this chamber to Mr. Field on the final successful laying of the cable more than twenty-five years ago, and to indorse and emphasize them by our action to-day.
“Resolved, That as a loyal and enthusiastic American, a useful and enlightened citizen, and as a warm and faithful friend, Mr. Field’s memory will always be held sacred by all who knew him here, and his invaluable service to mankind will make his name honored in all the civilized world.
“Resolved, That the Executive Committee be requested to suggest to the chamber some plan by which an appropriate and lasting memorial to Mr. Field’s great work may be procured for this city.
“Resolved, That a copy of these resolutions be sent to the family of Mr. Field, with the assurances of our profound sympathy and regard.”
“Mr. President, in presenting these resolutions for your consideration may I be allowed to say a few words as to the character and life of our honored friend? Mr. Field needs no eulogy. His fame and his place in history are secure. The news that comes to us every morning from all parts of the world; the daily quotations on which we base our business action; the friendly messages which assure us of the instant welfare of dear ones in far-off countries, are ever-recurring reminders of his great genius. Although nothing we can say will add to the lustre of great deeds, still it is well for us, from time to time, to refresh our memories as to the full meaning of the great achievements which mark the progress of the world. In the rush and hurry of modern life, what at first startles us soon falls into the commonplace and is perhaps undervalued. In the pamphlet published in 1866 at the time of the banquet given to Mr. Cyrus W. Field by this chamber, the statement was made that ‘the success of the Atlantic telegraph was one of the great events of the nineteenth century.’ History will point to it as one of the landmarks of modern progress. On the morning after the landing of the cable at Valentia the London Times said: ‘Since the discovery of Columbus nothing has been done in any degree comparable to the enlargement thus given to the sphere of human activity.’ This was confirmed by unanimous statement of distinguished men and leading journals in all parts of the world.
“Our country was filled with enthusiasm and the world with wonder. John Bright, in a splendid tribute to ‘his friend Cyrus Field,’ spoke of him as ‘the Columbus of modern times, who, by his cable, had moored the New World alongside the Old.’ Mr. Evarts said: ‘Columbus found one world and left it two. Cyrus W. Field found two continents and left them one.’
“In all the years that have passed, this cord of connection between the Old World and the New has grown more practical and useful, and the old cities in the far Eastern world can now communicate with the new cities of our Pacific shores in a few moments of time. What will be the result of these facilities we cannot estimate. Already practical schemes for the establishment of communication by telephone are under advisement, and it may be but a short time before we can converse with friends thousands of miles across the sea.
“We do not claim for Mr. Field the discovery of the possibilities of the cable, but it was owing to his superb and almost superhuman exertions that the project was made practicable. It is hard for us to estimate the severe trials through which he passed. For nearly thirteen years he labored against every obstacle, crossing the ocean more than forty times, spending months with the cable ships on the stormy Atlantic, exhausting himself in the swamps and inland forests of Newfoundland and Cape Breton, with alternations of hope and fear, of success and discouragement, that would have exhausted almost any other man.
“This was the great work of his life, but his energy, vigorous thought, and executive ability enabled him to carry out many other business enterprises, which were of great value to this city and country.
“He was born of sturdy and choice New England stock. His father, the Rev. Dr. David Dudley Field, was a distinguished clergyman in Massachusetts, and his grandfather an officer in the Revolution.