WINDOW TO THE WEST

[Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] nowhere in the world today is there a more controversial country than germany divided by an iron curtain the west democratic and free the east under an entirely foreign system of political institutions social and cultural life and with a much lower standard of living in any comparison of the two parts of today's germany certainly a look at west germany is positive proof that people who are determined to remain free will survive and succeed in the face of almost insurmountable obstacles this is the great river whose name brings to life memories of a glorious history a river of fanciful imagination the river rhine above all else the rhine is a working river on which moves an endless stream of tugs and barges loaded with raw materials and finished products for the markets of the world the rhine is germany's most important single artery of commerce linked with an intricate system of canals the river's traffic eventually reaches every corner of europe at the village of bingham unrain not far downstream from mainz is the beginning of what is considered to be the most beautiful part of the river without question this is one of the greatest tourist attractions in all of europe the spacious white vessel moves from its moorings pleasure-bound on a summer's day the journey takes only about three hours but it is an experience which leaves an indelible impression on the minds of all who visit here how wonderful is this valley of the rhine along both sides of the river are colorful villages with their picturesque architecture and ever-present cathedrals along this part of the rhine's journey to the sea the river flows through wine country the slopes of the fertile hills are planted to endless rows of vines which produce some of the world's finest wines from these grapes come the fine rhine wines which are renowned throughout the world for taste and quality [Music] our own journey continues northward here are ancient castles rich in legend standing as sentinels on peaks of surrounding hills in some of them people still live but mostly they are empty attractions for the tourists to regard with romantic interest our excursion boat approaches a fortress built some 800 years ago in the middle of the river [Music] once this was a stronghold of robber barons who levied tolls on passing riverboats today it serves as a signal tower for traffic passing through the narrows on this great crag of solid rock according to mythology sat lord ally of the golden hair as she combed her long tresses she sang a melody so moving that river captains were enchanted and crashed their boats on the treacherous rocks or so the myth goes [Music] here is a panorama that is nature in its finest form from high above the village of bopard the river makes a great u-turn creating a vista of breathtaking beauty then the river turns again to continue its ceaseless journey to the sea and now our rhine journey no longer twisting and turning among the high hills comes to the city of bonn since 1949 bonn has been the capital of the german federal republic which we know as west germany here are administered the functions of a model government reborn within a land almost completely without authority less than 20 years ago bonn is also the birthplace of the great composer ludwig von beethoven and certainly no greater honor could be claimed by any city [Music] cologne is an attractive city of commerce art culture and religion cologne was almost completely devastated by bombing during world war ii yet miraculously enough one of the few buildings which remained virtually untouched was the famous cathedral one of the most magnificent gothic churches in the world [Music] the rhine continues north the river is now brown with the wastes of chemicals and industry here in close proximity are the great cities of dusseldorf and dusborg here is where the great iron masters establish two of germany's greatest industrial cities the city of dusborg is west germany's largest producer of iron and steel dusseldorf the administrative center of the whole of the rural country viewing such tremendous industry and constant outflowing of manufactured products the question is asked how could germany which lost the war surge back to prosperity so much faster than her neighbors who won the war well no matter the destruction the skill of the german worker was not destroyed nor was the knowledge of the german engineer or the managerial know-how of the german industrialist the real underlying strength of any people the social capacity inherent in the accumulation of years of human experience is again proven to be any nation's greatest economic asset today west germany is the most prosperous country in western europe [Music] no this isn't an experiment in transportation of the future this is the city of wapertal here for more than 60 years the people of wapertal have used this means of transportation as we normally use streetcars or buses this is a unique site for the visitor who has been hearing of plans for a transportation system of tomorrow employing cars suspended from monorails for major cities in his own country but here in wuppertal the trams just continue their movement above the city streets as they have done for more than six decades hamburg is germany's largest seaport this is a major point for the unloading of much of the raw materials for the maw of german industry and the major shipping point for the increasing flow of products of a resurgent west germany here they are loaded into the holes of vessels of all nationalities for shipment to the far corners of the world hamburg is a city rich in history her architecture reflects the germany of old before the great catastrophe of world war ii when the city was a prime target of allied bombers when all but a few of her great old buildings were leveled today hamburg has been almost completely rebuilt her streets are an endless flow of traffic her buildings new and designed and overflowing with business personnel her people well-dressed and prosperous this is certainly one of west germany's most important centers of trade and commerce an example of what a determined people can do to restore themselves to a place of importance in a changing world in germany an airport is a bluegolfer one of the major air centers of western europe is at frankfurt and mine this is an important terminal point for most of the major airlines of the world today's super jetliners with their tremendous speed and capacity bring an ever increasing flow of tourists and businessmen to prosperous west germany [Music] this is the city of frankfurt built along both banks of the mine river like most german cities frankfurt was a prime allied target during the last war most of the traces have been removed but the opera house is an everyday reminder of the destruction dealt this nation under the infamous hitler regime frankfurt today among the foremost cities of all of europe is a city of history here the old and the new join together to retain an atmosphere of ancient romance in a modern era this is the eschenheim tower a relic of the 15th century this sturdy bastion was once the main center of defense of the original settlement which is frankfurt today throughout frankfurt are vestiges of an historical past dating back beyond the reign of charlemagne in the 14th century frankfurt became officially the electoral city of the german emperors during the period through the end of the 18th century coronations were solemnized in the fine gothic cathedral of saint bartholomew frankfurt today is a teeming modern city it has been practically rebuilt from the very bottom on the ruins of a city that was almost completely destroyed by the poundings of the bombs of war it has been an amazing rebirth charred ruins transformed into bright new buildings department stores and office buildings which are visible evidence of the resurgent german prosperity the thoroughfares of the city are in constant motion with the vehicles and activities of a purposeful people into the city throng the workers and the shoppers by auto and by streetcar pedestrians crowd the sidewalks overall there is an attitude of real purpose in a people who barely 20 years ago were almost completely destroyed and destitute this is economic rebirth in its truest form we are now in berlin an island in east germany that is europe's and perhaps the world's most explosive political problem recalling the takeover to power by the nazis the firing of the german reichstag or parliament building was an important factor [Music] this is the reichstag today in the western sector of the city what was formerly a symbol of nazism has been restored as a reminder of what can happen to a people and to a nation gradually mesmerized by a treacherous minority barely a hundred yards from the reichstag building the russians have built a huge war memorial in their customary massive style it is guarded day and night by solemn russian soldiers who are continually on the move this is meant to commemorate the conquest of berlin as a russian reminder of the retribution that fell upon berlin and the german people the brandenburg gate on the border between the free british west and the russian east sector of the city the gate belongs to the history of berlin and to all of germany through this massive portal history is forever passing to understand the german problem one must merely drive through the brandenburg gate we are now in east berlin almost immediately there is an air of restraint a somberness which is in complete contrast to that of the western part of the city where the west allows unrestricted access to their part of the city every auto every person passing through the gate to or from east berlin must satisfy the east communist guards and one never knows at what minute traffic might suddenly be stopped the major thought affair and show place of east berlin is stalin lay on both sides of the boulevard buildings have been constructed in moscow-styled architecture [Music] from outward appearances this is a thriving city a pleasant happy place to live but watch the faces of the people of east berlin as they pass under the ever watchful eye of joseph stalin this is hardly an enjoyable existence the russians with their penchant for propaganda and display have also built an elaborate war memorial in east berlin this is even more massive than the one in west berlin this is designed as a constant reminder of the power of the soviet throughout the eastern sector of berlin there are reminders of the germany of before the war buildings of religion education and government which were barely damaged during the holocaust but east berlin today is no longer a city of freedom of song and laughter there is hardly any traffic on the streets behind the facade is a dead city numberless building still in ruins years after the end of conflict life is grim under the east german communist regime in contrast to life in communist east germany west berlin is a show window of the free world west berlin's prosperity is the result of one of the most incredible bootstrap operations the world has ever known [Music] of an industrious and energetic people dedicating themselves to rebuilding their city from a complete ruin this is a success story indeed for west berlin today is certainly one of the most prosperous and productive cities in all of western europe where in east berlin there is an almost complete lack of consumer goods the shop windows here are attractively filled with an abundance of the products of a thriving and continually expanding economy here is where free enterprise creates household appliances for the benefit of the housewife radios and television sets to inform and entertain the people in their own time clothing for the well-dressed people who live their daily life on what is barely an island of freedom completely surrounded by an east germany dominated by communism due in great part to the tremendous influx of refugees from the east west germany since the war has built more than 5 million new homes and apartment buildings to house the ever-increasing population of this energetic nation west berlin has built and continues to build more than her proportionate share of new housing west berlin rebuilt is ultra modern in every respect including its many fine new hotels west berlin is a real attraction for the traveler who would visit this island of democracy it is a place to visit and view with amazement respect and concern west berlin at night an even greater contrast to the drabness of the eastern sector of the city this is indeed a city of lights of laughter and entertainment west germany has more than four million cars and trucks most of which were built in germany jammed into an area smaller than the state of oregon this constant flow of traffic winds its way along some of the finest highways to be found anywhere in the world the famous autobahns originally designed to expedite the movement of military traffic they provide germany with one of the finest and fastest highway systems in the world today south and to the east of frankfurt across the necker river is the historic and colorful university city of heidelberg heidelberg is germany's oldest university having been established in 1385 to these halls of learning continue to come students from all the world here are offered the arts and sciences of higher learning against the background of a university city which is known all the color and romance of an historic germany reaching deep into centuries gone by [Music] no visit to west germany would be complete without seeing the black forest known as the schwarzwald the black forest is in the southern uplands region of west germany this area is a tourist delight there are fine roads and roadside rest houses which provide every comfort and convenience throughout the area are colorful villages usually built alongside a clear flowing mountain stream these quaint and charming settlements serve mainly as holiday resorts for visitors to the black forest which is one of the great tourist attractions of west germany one of the major resorts of the black forest area is freudenstadt the town was almost completely destroyed in the closing days of the war not a single wall was left standing today freudenstadt has been completely rebuilt on a larger scale than before and has regained its position as one of germany's outstanding therapeutic treatment centers and health resorts more than a hundred thousand visitors come here every year summer and winter to enjoy a feeling of true holiday relaxation and happiness in the black forest as well as in many other parts of west germany there is always dancing to the lilting music of the harvest festivals laughing to the distinctive tunes and tempos so long familiar to the germany of yesterday dressed in the colorful costumes of their forefathers this is a time to forget any problems of the workday world in that dancing in that laughter their remains captured the color and romance of the germany of days gone by of hopes for the future of this land of romance and history [Music] south of the black forest just across the border in switzerland is one of the outstanding attractions in all of europe the great waterfall at shaffhausen [Music] this is part of the river rhine a few miles upstream from basel where the navigable part of the river begins [Music] here is where this river which has its beginning in the alps first shows its real force and stature where it gains true momentum for its continued course on its way to become europe's greatest working river and then to finally meet the sea [Applause] when viewing the west germany of today consider the ruin that was the germany of 1945 then consider the federal republic of today rebuilt no unemployment her factories turning out more than double the output of 1936 her currency one of the soundest in the world at the rate they have recovered it should not be too long before the future of all of germany and to a degree that of our neighbors could rest largely in the hands of the west germans it will be interesting to see what they make of their future this time germany is a monumental example of the real force of the rights of the individual and a free enterprise in creating a way of life has contrasted to the system imposed upon the socialistic states the future status of berlin and of germany itself remains to be decided and upon those decisions could conceivably rest the future of the world for a long time to come this is john cameron swayze saying goodbye for now [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] you